Utilities

How to take off underground site utilities

Mark each route on the utility plan from one named structure to the next. Record the drawing number, revision and scale before measuring. Check the civil, electrical and communications drawings together for grade changes, vault locations and utility crossings. If the elevations conflict, send a request for information and record the assumption you carried in the bid.

Worked example from Vault A to Vault B

For this example, the drawing shows two 4-inch Schedule 40 PVC ducts following the same 300-foot horizontal route in one trench. Keep a separate quantity for the route, each duct and the pull line.

• Conduit: 300 feet per duct × 2 ducts = 600 conduit-feet before rises or other measured additions. List bends and terminations from the details and account for their length only once.
• Pull line: If the specifications require one line in each duct, carry 2 × 300 = 600 feet of pull line along the horizontal route. Add any rises and required tails separately.
• Excavation: Both ducts share 300 linear feet of trench. If excavation is in your scope, use the trench detail for width, depth, bedding and backfill quantities. Confirm who carries surface restoration.

Check the details before pricing the run

Read the project and utility details for conduit type, size, bend quantity and required radius at each horizontal or vertical change of direction. Count adapters, couplings and supports from those details. List vaults, pull boxes and handholes separately, including the specified covers, grounding and hardware such as ladders, cable racks or sump equipment.

Highlight each run when it is measured. Use the electrical material takeoff sheet to keep the route, quantities and drawing references together for bid review.