Skip to content 
Spatial Dimensions surveys existing buildings and sites for architects, planning consultants and design teams across the UK. We deliver measured building, topographical and underground utility surveys as 2D CAD drawings, native Revit models and point clouds, from offices in London, Sevenoaks and Nottingham.
In short: Spatial Dimensions is a UK survey company, founded in 2012, whose architect clients include BDP, ADP Architecture, Stiff + Trevillion, HMY Architects, David Miller Architects and PolkeyCollins. We reach site in an average of 5.3 working days from instruction, draft every deliverable in-house under an ISO 9001:2015 checking workflow, and quote a fixed price in writing within 24 hours. Measured building surveys start from £850, topographical surveys from £595 and Revit models from £500.
What surveys do architects need before design starts?
Most architect-led projects need a measured building survey, a topographical survey or both, and many also need an underground utility survey before foundations or drainage are designed. Spatial Dimensions can carry out all three on one control network, so the building, the site and the services line up in the same coordinates.
| Survey | What it gives your design team | Delivered as | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measured building survey | Floor plans, elevations, sections, roof plans and reflected ceiling plans of the existing building | DWG, DXF and PDF, or a native Revit model | £850 |
| Topographical survey | Ground levels, boundaries, buildings, trees and drainage covers, tied to the Ordnance Survey National Grid and Ordnance Datum | 2D CAD, 3D points and contours, a digital terrain model or Revit topography | £595 |
| Underground utility survey | Buried services located to BSI PAS 128:2022 using electromagnetic location and ground-penetrating radar | 2D CAD on the topographical base, or 3D Revit | £850 |
| Laser scanning survey | A registered point cloud of the building or site to design against | E57, RCP, RCS, LAS | £850 |
| 3D model (Revit) | Architectural, structural and MEP elements modelled from our scan or from your point cloud | .RVT in your Revit version, plus IFC | £500 |
Measured building surveys follow the RICS Code of Measuring Practice, 6th edition. Topographical surveys are typically drawn at 1:200. If you are not sure what to specify, our level of detail guide explains the choices.
Can you deliver Revit models for architects?
Yes. Spatial Dimensions builds 3D models natively in Autodesk Revit (.RVT) and exports to IFC, covering architectural, structural and MEP elements as agreed in the quote. The target Revit version is fixed in writing at quotation, so the model opens in the version your practice runs.
We can model from our own laser scan or from a point cloud someone else captured. Scan-to-BIM is priced in two parts: the site capture and the modelling. See scan to BIM for how that works.
How quickly can you get to site, and when will I get the drawings?
Spatial Dimensions reaches site in an average of 5.3 working days from instruction, anywhere in the UK. Where a deadline is tight, several survey technicians often work a single project to speed it up.
We confirm the delivery date in the written quote, before you instruct us. We won’t promise a date we can’t keep. Rushing a survey increases the risk of errors, so we put getting it right first time ahead of an unrealistic date.
Drawings can be turned around in as little as 48 hours for small domestic projects, and within a week for most projects. On large projects, several CAD technicians work in parallel to meet the deadline. At Greenwich Millennium Village, six CAD technicians condensed 180 days of CAD drawing into 35 working days, checking one another’s line work against the point cloud so the drawings stayed accurate. The project was delivered on time.
How accurate are your surveys for design work?
Accuracy depends on the level of detail (LOD) agreed before the survey and on the deliverable. On Spatial Dimensions 2D drawings, LOD 3 is drawn to ±10 mm and LOD 4 to ±5 mm. On our 3D models and point clouds, plan position is ±20 mm at LOD 3 and ±10 mm at LOD 4.
| Level of detail | 2D drawings: tolerance | 3D model or point cloud: plan (X, Y) | 3D model or point cloud: height, hard detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| LOD 2 | ±20 mm | ±20 mm | ±10 mm |
| LOD 3 | ±10 mm | ±20 mm | ±10 mm |
| LOD 4 | ±5 mm | ±10 mm | ±5 mm |
Topographical surveys are georeferenced to OSGB36 National Grid and Ordnance Datum, so your site plan, the levels and the building survey share one set of coordinates.
Which architects have worked with Spatial Dimensions?
Spatial Dimensions works with architects of every size. That runs from large international practices such as BDP and Perkins&Will, to leading sector specialists such as Stiff + Trevillion, EPR Architects, PRP, ECD Architects and David Miller Architects, and smaller independent practices such as PolkeyCollins, ADAM Architecture and Atomik Architecture. The six projects below show the range of work, from a single office floor to an NHS hospital site.
| Project | Architect | What Spatial Dimensions delivered |
|---|---|---|
| Hinchingbrooke Hospital | BDP, with WSP and the NHS | Drone photogrammetry, topographical survey, PAS 128 utility survey at QL-B, measured building survey, CAD and a Revit model at LOD 3 |
| St Thomas’ Hospital | ADP Architecture, for Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust | Desktop utility search, topographical and measured building surveys to LOD 3 on a control network tied to Ordnance Survey datum |
| Basildon University Hospital | HMY (Hazle McCormack Young) Architects, for Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust | 1:50 floor plans and elevations, coordinated Revit models at LOD 3, underground utility and topographical surveys |
| Maida Vale Studios | Stiff + Trevillion Architects | Measured building and topographical surveys, an as-built 3D BIM model and 2D CAD drawings for the planning application |
| Lincoln City FC | PolkeyCollins | A Revit 2026 model of the south stand at LOD 3, the other three stands in Revit, topographical, drone and PAS 128 utility surveys |
| 77 Farringdon Road | David Miller Architects | Measured building survey and laser scanning of occupied office floors, and a 3D model that formed the base of the design documentation |
“I would have no hesitation in recommending Spatial Dimensions for measured surveys on large healthcare projects of this scale.”
Dominic Hook, Architect Director, BDP
“Spatial Dimensions did a fantastic job for us and we’d definitely like to work with them on other projects in the future.”
Lance Routh, Director, Stiff + Trevillion
“ADP have worked successfully with Spatial Dimensions on a number of projects. They have accurately delivered the required level of detail for survey works, within a workable time periods and competitive rates.”
ADP Architecture
“HMY have worked with Spatial Dimensions for a number of years appointing them to provide a range of surveys in 2D and Revit for our residential, healthcare and education projects. They understand architects’ requirements, produce accurate information, have friendly engagement with our clients and are always competitive. We have no hesitation in recommending them to our clients.”
Stephen Coomber, Partner, Hazle McCormack Young LLP
More work is on our projects page, including listed and heritage buildings.
What should an architect ask a surveyor before appointing one?
Ask four questions, and compare the answers in writing. These are the questions in our Survey Buyers Guide, with how Spatial Dimensions answers each.
- How is survey control set up and referenced? We establish a control network and tie it to the Ordnance Survey grid and datum, so topographical, building and utility surveys align.
- What accuracy tolerances apply? We state the LOD and its tolerance for each deliverable in the quote, using the table above.
- How is the data checked before issue? Every deliverable passes a multi-stage check under ISO 9001:2015. If we miss information that was in our proposal, we go back and fix it.
- Will the outputs work with your other surveys and models? CAD, Revit and point cloud files are delivered in agreed formats and versions, on one coordinate system.
Spatial Dimensions holds Constructionline Gold and Once For All Health and Safety Accreditation (SSIP scheme member), and £10,000,000 each of Professional Indemnity, Public Liability and Employers’ Liability insurance. We have had no RIDDOR-reportable incidents since the company was founded in October 2012. Spatial Dimensions personnel hold CSCS cards and are DBS checked and BPSS security cleared. Our Managing Director, Claire Fenwick FCInstCES, is President of the Geospatial Survey Association, formerly The Survey Association. See our credentials.
How much does a survey for an architect cost?
A measured building survey from Spatial Dimensions starts from £850 and a topographical survey from £595. The price depends mainly on the size of the building or site, the level of detail and the deliverables.
| Service | From | Most jobs fall between |
|---|---|---|
| Measured building survey | £850 | £1,500 – £15,000 |
| Topographical survey | £595 | £750 – £2,500 |
| 3D model (Revit) | £500 | £800 – £10,000 |
| Laser scanning survey | £850 | £850 – £5,000 |
| Underground utility (PAS 128) survey | £850 | £1,200 – £3,500 |
| CAD drawing package | £250 | £500 – £7,500 |
Those spans are the range across each whole service, not the price of one job. Spatial Dimensions quotes a fixed price against a written specification, and offers a price match guarantee on measured building, topographical, utility and 3D model work.
We will come back with a written quote within 24 hours. All prices exclude VAT.
What is a survey the wrong tool for?
A survey records what can be seen, reached or detected on the day. A desktop utility search is a records check only and is no substitute for an on-site detection survey, and no non-intrusive utility survey can guarantee to find every buried service. Where a service must be confirmed before you dig, we recommend a utility verification survey with trial holes.
READ THE BROCHURE ONLINE
Drag a page across, or use the arrows and your left and right keys
Swipe to turn the pages
Surveys for architects: FAQs
Do you survey for architects outside London?
Yes. Spatial Dimensions works anywhere in the UK from offices in London, Sevenoaks and Nottingham, and reaches site in an average of 5.3 working days from instruction.
Can you deliver the model in our version of Revit?
Yes. Spatial Dimensions builds models natively in Autodesk Revit and fixes the target Revit version in writing at quotation, so the file opens in the version your practice runs. IFC is available for other BIM software.
Can you model from a point cloud we already have?
Yes, if the point cloud has enough coverage and registration for the level of detail you need. Spatial Dimensions checks the data before you commit, and can rescan if it falls short.
Which level of detail should we ask for?
Ask for the level that matches what you will draw. LOD 2 records primary structure and openings, LOD 3 adds windows, doors and pipes of 50 mm or more, and LOD 4 adds brick and stone detail, decorative features and defects. Spatial Dimensions agrees the level with you before the survey.
Can you survey an occupied building?
Yes. At 77 Farringdon Road, Spatial Dimensions laser scanned occupied office floors for David Miller Architects, and we plan site work around how a building is being used.
What happens if something specified is missing from the survey?
Spatial Dimensions goes back and fixes it. If we miss any information that was specified in our proposal, we return and put it right, quickly and with no questions asked.
How do we get a quote?
Send Spatial Dimensions the site address, the survey extent, the deliverables you need and your deadline. We will come back with a written, fixed-price quote within 24 hours. Call 01732 458799 or use the contact page.
Next steps
Send Spatial Dimensions the address, the survey extent, the deliverables and your deadline, or call 01732 458799. You can also read how we work or get in touch.
Get the Survey Buyers Guide
Free to download. It explains what to ask any surveyor, how to compare quotes and what separates a good survey from a cheap one.