Simon, an architect, got in touch specifically looking for a “longer term partner for surveys and preparation of existing drawings.”
The first test project was a house in Tring where he initially asked for:
- Ground floor plan
- First floor plan
- All three main elevations
Because we know architects almost always end up needing a complete set, we flagged likely extras early:
- A roof plan
- A garage plan
We priced these in the quotation so Simon could decide whether to include them now or later, instead of discovering a gap mid-project.
Defining and agreeing the scope
Our reply to Simon did three things clearly:
- Confirmed his core request – GF, FF, three elevations.
- Suggested the additional roof and garage plans for completeness and priced them transparently in the quote.
- Asked the purpose of the project so we could tailor the level of detail (planning vs. building regs vs. concept design).
Once Simon confirmed he was happy to proceed, we issued the initial invoice, explaining that:
- Payment would secure and activate the survey slot, and
- We could attend as early as the following week, subject to his client’s availability.
Survey logistics – fitting into the client’s diary
Simon sent over a very clear availability grid for his client across two weeks, including exact days and time windows. We used that to propose:
- Wednesday 17 September or
- Thursday 18 September
Ultimately, Simon confirmed:
- Date: Wednesday 17th
- Arrival time: Adjusted by us to 3:00–3:30 pm to better fit his client’s window.
Once the initial payment landed, we replied with:
- A payment confirmation
- The attending surveyor’s details (Ali Uddin, mobile number)
- The survey date and arrival window so Simon could brief his client.
This is our standard pattern: the client always knows who is coming and when, and we don’t lock in calendars until the deposit is in place.
Carrying out the survey & preparing the drawings
On the agreed date, Ali attended site and completed the survey. We updated Simon the next day:
“Just to let you know, the survey went well the other day.”
From there, our internal workflow was:
- Data upload & organisation
- All on-site measurements, notes and photos collated.
- CAD drafting
- Ground and first floor plans drawn up to the agreed scale and layer structure.
- Three elevations built from the internal and external measurements to ensure alignment between plans and facades.
- Any optional elements (roof/garage) prepared if instructed.
- Internal QA
- Dimension loops checked, doors/window positions cross-checked between plans and elevations.
- Files packaged into a draft PDF pack for Simon to review.
On 25 September, we emailed Simon:
- Confirming again that the survey had gone well, and
- Issuing the draft drawings pack as a ZIP, alongside the final invoice.
We also reminded him that, once the invoice was settled, we would issue:
- The final CAD (DWG) files
- Final PDFs
- The site photographs captured during the visit
—everything he would need to move cleanly into design and planning.
Follow-up and relationship building
A couple of weeks later, when we hadn’t yet heard back, we sent a light follow-up:
“Just checking in to see if you’ve had a chance to review the drawings we shared earlier. A quick update would be greatly appreciated.”
The tone was intentionally low-pressure but proactive: we want to keep projects moving, but we also understand architects are often juggling multiple deadlines.
Even at this stage, the wider objective remained clear:
- Deliver a smooth first project
- Make it easy for Simon to review, sign off and pay
- Set a good foundation for the longer-term partnership he mentioned in his very first email.
Outcome – a repeat-friendly workflow
By the end of this Tring project, we had:
- Turned around a targeted existing drawings package (plans + elevations) from scratch within a tight time window.
- Aligned the survey to the client’s actual availability instead of forcing awkward times.
- Shown how we handle quote → deposit → survey → draft → final deliverables in a way that’s easy for an architect to plug into their own workflow.
It’s exactly the type of project where we aim to become the “go-to measured survey partner”: clear scope, predictable timelines, and drawings that can slot straight into an architect’s CAD environment without redrawing.
Project Details
| Service Type | Measured survey & existing drawings (GF, FF, elevations, with optional roof & garage plans) |
| Time Taken | 1 week |
| Budget | £500–£650 |
| Location | Tring, Hertfordshire |
