Topographic plan 1:500
The most detailed scale for houses, private plots and utility design: 1 cm = 5 m, 0.5 m or 0.25 m contours and every underground network shown.
Licensed service · EL-845/2026
The 1:500 scale is the largest and most detailed format for topographic plans: one centimetre on the drawing equals five metres on the ground. At this scale fence thickness, steps, porches, gates, wells, lamp posts and even individual shrubs and young trees appear in their true positions.
A 1:500 plan is most often required to design a private house, add a new building or storey on an existing plot, or connect to gas, water, sewer and electricity networks. Small retail units, car washes and filling stations are typically designed on 1:500 plans as well. This is also the scale at which underground utilities are shown in full, with diameter, material and depth.
Relief is normally shown with a 0.5 m contour interval, or 0.25 m on flat ground, supplemented by dense spot heights on pavements, road surfaces and building corners. Standards require the mean position error of well-defined features not to exceed 0.5 mm at plan scale, roughly 25 cm on the ground; with GNSS RTK and total stations we actually achieve a few centimetres.
Survey areas usually range from a few hundred square metres to several hectares and extend 10–20 m beyond the plot boundary to capture adjacent streets and utility lines.
When you need it
- Designing a private house or villa
- Planning an extension, garage or pool on a plot
- Gas, water, sewer and power connections
- Design of small retail and service facilities
- Preparing a building permit application
What's included
- Full survey of the plot plus a 10–20 m surrounding strip
- Relief at 0.5 m contours (0.25 m on flat ground)
- Outlines and corners of all buildings and structures
- All above- and below-ground utilities plotted
- Manholes opened, depths and diameters recorded
- Individual trees, shrubs and planting shown
How we work
- Confirming plot boundaries and design requirements
- Establishing control points with GNSS RTK
- Detail and utility survey with a total station
- Office processing and 1:500 drafting
- Review with the client and designer, then handover
Deliverables
- Topographic plan at 1:500 (DWG, PDF)
- Utility schedule with explanations
- Control point coordinate list
- Technical report
