AutoCAD® Civil 3D® 2012 Essentials: Autodesk® Official Training Guide: Essential

Calculating Earthwork Volumes

Moving earth is one of the most expensive construction activities in a land development project. For this reason, there are two important questions that you will need to answer about nearly every grading design that you do.

1. How much earth must be moved?
2. How much earth must be brought into or transported away from the project site?

As a designer or engineer, one of your most important tasks is to answer these questions with the smallest values possible. The less soil that is required to be moved for a project, the more money you have saved the client and/or owner. Transporting soil to or from the site is also a very costly construction activity and therefore one that you should also minimize.

Understanding Earthwork ...