The real cost of a setting-out error is rarely the survey — it's the rework, delay and disputes that follow. A misplaced foundation can cost tens of thousands, long after the small cost of getting it right the first time.

An engineering register records a site's survey framework — control points, topographic data, calibration certificates and survey targets — while the site diary logs the daily setting out. Kept separate and complete, the two form a defensible record that protects the contractor at final account.