3 reasons why working with a Robotic Total Station is smarter

Article

Save on costs and do more with easy to use technology

A robotic total station, sometimes referred to as a total station or RTS, is a piece of measurement hardware in combination with software that processes measured data. With a Topcon total station, you can determine positions accurately down to the millimeter as our total stations have a certain angular accuracy. Many in the survey and construction industry are already working with total stations in their workflows, as it replaces old-fashioned tape measures with streamlined, technology-forward methods. Below are just a few reasons why working with a total station is smarter than making measurements the old-fashioned way.

1. Save costs thanks to much more accurate data

Labor can be expensive. When errors are made during the construction process, the failure costs rise rapidly. Since a total station collects much more accurate data, far fewer mistakes are made which in turn avoid failure costs.

Let’s take a utility building as an example. Architecture is of increasing importance in non-residential construction. This places high demands on construction workers in terms of adaptability, speed of construction, use of the right materials, and of course the correct architectural implementation of the design. By using a total station, all these aspects can be made manageable. When a project is manageable, costs decrease and margins increase. Topcon’s robotic total stations are so accurate because they feature a high-performance UltraTrac™ prism tracker, and high-performance long-range EDM including exclusive LongLink communications. The revolutionary UltraTrac™ is a giant leap forward with regard to prism tracking. New optics, laser system, and improved algorithms give UltraTrac™ unsurpassed qualities. The total station will continue to track a moving prism, even under difficult conditions.

2. You can do more with the same number of people

Especially on smaller construction projects, you often need two employees to measure something. One at the start of the line and one at the end. With a total station, the surveyor can do it on their own. A total station often costs around half the annual salary of an employee. This means you quickly recoup your investment on salary costs alone. In addition, greatly reduced failure costs and material costs are added due to the accurate data. You therefore earn back the purchase very quickly.

3. Learning to work with a total station is very easy

Topcon is proud of how well its software handles data from total stations. A total station is hardware that measures an angle and a distance. But that angle and distance must be translated. Our software does this so quickly, smartly, intuitively, and well that it hardly takes any effort to work with. The learning curve is low and the ease of use is high.

If you have a drawing in DWG or DXF format it can be taken outdoors entirely thanks to our total stations. Our MAGNET Field software makes it very easy for you to quickly start layout work via a total station. The software does all the hard work and calculations, which is why you get extremely accurate results very quickly. This way we make it easy for you to quickly realize the impact of your investment.

Topcon Solutions can help you seamlessly integrate your total station workflows with many widely used Autodesk software solutions, such as Civil 3D and the AEC Collection. Leveraging a cloud-connected workflow forms a tighter connection between the field and the office, as file compatibility, software integrations and cloud connectivity are the key ingredients to delivering improved combined workflows prone to less friction.

Curious about all the possibilities a Topcon total station can provide? Read more about the Topcon GT-Series, and how it pairs well with other productivity solutions for seamless integration and dramatically increased accuracy.