Here is a prompt I wrote up and dropped into Chat GPT:

You are a Professional Land Surveyor operating in a small business setting. There are 3 people in the survey division, 1 is field dedicated, the other is split between office and fieldwork and you are in the office managing data, processing fieldwork, drafting survey data, reading historical records and required to produce business analytic reports. 

In the office you utilize Carlson Survey 2026 and Google Workspaces.  The field crew utilized Trimble S7 Robotic total stations and Trimble R980 GNSS receivers with TSC510 data collectors with live cell connections to databases. 

As the Surveyor in charge you need to review existing parcel data including reading deeds, plats, field notes and field sketches.  You need to find time saving processes to review the data, flag potential errors and summarize the proposed project in one page or less.  Also, you need to prepare field calcs for the field crew as well as assemble a field ready folder for them to access through their data collectors of phones using Google Drives. 

Also, in the office you are asked to provide reports that need to cover proposal values sent to clients, value of work in progress, 60 days workload and amounts of projects aging. Weekly dashboard reports are highly desired in a very clear and concise format.

Tell me what you can do to help streamline all this work flow so that the three individuals can best harness the efficiency of AI and Google Workspace and Google drive. Any other suggestions are welcome.

Response below:

You’re essentially running a lean, high-output survey operation, and the bottleneck isn’t field capability—it’s information flow, decision speed, and repeatability. The goal isn’t “more tools,” it’s structured automation + standardized outputs.

Here’s how I’d help you turn this into a tight, AI-assisted production system:

1) Core Strategy: Build a “Survey Data Pipeline”

Think of your workflow like this:

Raw Inputs → AI Review → Structured Data → Field Package → Reporting Dashboard

Right now, too much of this is manual and fragmented. We’ll standardize each stage.

2) AI-Assisted Record Review (Biggest Time Saver)

Problem:

Reading deeds, plats, and notes is slow, inconsistent, and mentally taxing.

Solution:

Create a “Record Intake System” using Google Drive + AI prompts

Setup:

• Folder: /00_Project Intake/
• Upload:
  • Deeds (PDF)
  • Plats
  • Field notes
  • Title commitments

AI Workflow:

Use ChatGPT (or Gemini inside Google Docs) with a repeatable prompt template:

Prompt Template:

Output:

• Clean summary pasted into a Google Doc “Project Brief”
• Key calls copied into Carlson for linework automation

👉 This alone can cut record review time by 40–60%

3) Smart Error Flagging (AI + Rules-Based)

Have AI act like a junior reviewer that never gets tired.

Flag automatically:

• Bearing reversals
• Non-closing descriptions
• Gaps/overlaps
• Missing ties
• Calls to vague monuments (“iron rod” vs “1/2” rebar w/ cap”)

Method:

Paste legal description into AI and ask:

4) One-Page Project Summary (Standard Output)

Create a mandatory one-page “Survey Brief” template in Google Docs:

Sections:

• Project Overview
• Record Summary
• Boundary Risks
• Field Plan
• Control Strategy
• Deliverables

Use AI to generate this instantly from intake docs.

👉 This becomes:

• Your internal kickoff doc
• Your field crew briefing
• Your client clarity tool

5) Field Package Automation (Google Drive + Trimble Sync)

Folder Template (Clone for Every Job):

Field Package Contents:

• Cleaned base map (DWG)
• Control points (CSV)
• Stakeout points
• Project Brief (PDF)
• Reference images

Automation Idea:

Use Google Apps Script to:

• Auto-create folders when job is created
• Drop in templates
• Notify field crew

Sync:

• Field crew accesses via:
  • Google Drive
  • Trimble TSC5/TSC7 Data Collector (your TSC510 equivalent ecosystem)

6) Carlson + AI Integration (Semi-Automated Drafting)

You’re using Carlson Survey—good.

Add this layer:

• AI generates line tables from legal descriptions
• You paste directly into Carlson (via script or manual import)

Example Output:

👉 Cuts drafting startup time significantly.

7) Weekly Business Dashboard (Google Sheets System)

This is where most small firms struggle.

Build a Master Sheet with Tabs:

• Proposals Sent
• Active Projects (WIP)
• Billing
• Aging Projects
• 60-Day Forecast

Key Metrics:

• Proposal Value (weekly/monthly)
• Win Rate
• WIP Value
• Backlog (in weeks)
• Avg Project Age

Dashboard Structure

Use:

• Google Sheets
• Pivot Tables + Charts
• Conditional formatting (AGING = red)

Example KPIs:

• WIP Total
• Next 60 Days Revenue
• Projects > 90 Days Old
• Utilization Rate (Field vs Office)

AI Weekly Report Generator

Paste your sheet summary into AI:

👉 You get a clean management report in seconds

8) Task + Workflow Automation (Google Workspace)

Use:

• Google Workspace

Key Automations:

• Google Forms → New Project Intake
• Auto-create Drive folders
• Assign tasks via Google Tasks or Sheets

9) Role Optimization (3-Person Team)

You (Office / PLS):

• AI-assisted review
• Final QA/QC
• Business analytics
• Client interface

Field Tech:

• Execution only (no ambiguity)
• Clean, structured field packages

Hybrid Staff:

• Drafting + light field
• Data prep using AI outputs

👉 Goal: No one wastes time interpreting messy data

10) High-Impact Add-Ons (Optional but Powerful)

1. Voice Notes → AI Transcription

• Field crew records notes
• AI converts to structured logs

2. Photo Logging System

• Auto-tagged by project + date
• Stored in Drive

3. Standardized QA/QC Checklist

• Pre-field
• Post-field
• Pre-delivery

11) What This Gets You

If implemented correctly:

• 30–50% faster record research
• Cleaner field execution
• Fewer re-visits
• Real-time business visibility
• Less mental fatigue for you

12) If You Want Next Steps

I can build this out for you as:

Option A:

• Google Drive folder structure + templates

Option B:

• Google Sheets live dashboard (ready to use)

Option C:

• AI prompt library tailored to:
  • Boundary analysis
  • PLSS breakdowns
  • Field prep

Option D:

• Full “Survey Operations Manual” for your 3-person team

If you want, I’d start with:
👉 A ready-to-use Project Intake + One-Page Survey Brief system

That’s the highest ROI piece immediately.

So, Are you using AI in your Survey work flow? You should!

Thanks for posting and agree there are lots of opportunities to incorporate AI into our professional work.  I think I wrote something a year or so ago about preparing a site plan using AI and giving it parameters telling and letting AI fetch the data necessary.  Also, Bentley has incorporated AI and python scripts into their latest Microstation releases. 

Now if AI can adequately address comments from local government for plan approvals.

It may be just how my brain works but after 40 years surveying, using AI probably would not allow me to examine the very minute subtlies that sometimes lead to further investigation. There is something to be said for a slower pace and "touching" all aspects.

Retired now, thank goodness, but I would never have allowed AI to handle any data, especially if a judgement call is needed. Also bear in mind that AI has been known to dream up data which it thinks is missing. 

If I remember correctly there was the new attorney that had AI prepare a brief, and the citations certainly looked impressive, but in fact were imaginary. That cost him his license.

@bruce-small 

True that: "but in fact were imaginary". There is a terminology for AI's over-eagerness, it is called: "hallucinating". 

While I can see some benefits, I do side with using extreme caution if using it, and I would not recommend for anything requiring an educated/experienced determination. 

Good stuff @stlsurveyor I appreciate the time spent addressing this issue in a thorough manner. I always wondered how well AI could review and assess title documents, as that is one of the most time-heavy portions of an ALTA survey.

I know my good friend @bruce-small is twitching as I type this 😆 

I wonder if @theo  has an opinion

Hi @burkc,

You've hit on one of the most promising applications for AI in surveying! Title document review is indeed a massive time sink, and it's an area where AI could potentially deliver real value. The good news is that AI tools are actually getting quite capable at parsing through legal documents, extracting relevant information, and flagging potential issues—especially when it comes to standardized elements like easements, restrictions, and boundary descriptions.

That said, there are some important caveats worth considering. AI works best when dealing with well-structured, clearly formatted documents. Older or poorly scanned title documents can trip it up. Additionally, for ALTA surveys specifically, you'll still want human review of the AI's findings because the liability stakes are high, and subtle legal language nuances can have significant implications. Think of AI as a powerful first-pass tool that can categorize documents, highlight key sections, and create a summary for you to review—rather than a replacement for your expertise. Some surveyors are having success using AI to generate preliminary title summaries or create checklists of items to verify, which then gets refined through their professional judgment.

The real time savings come from automating the initial document triage and creating structured summaries, which can cut your review prep time significantly. Have you experimented with any specific AI tools for document analysis yet, or are you still in the exploration phase?

Posted by: @theo

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Hi @burkc,

You've hit on one of the most promising applications for AI in surveying! Title document review is indeed a massive time sink, and it's an area where AI could potentially deliver real value. The good news is that AI tools are actually getting quite capable at parsing through legal documents, extracting relevant information, and flagging potential issues—especially when it comes to standardized elements like easements, restrictions, and boundary descriptions.

That said, there are some important caveats worth considering. AI works best when dealing with well-structured, clearly formatted documents. Older or poorly scanned title documents can trip it up. Additionally, for ALTA surveys specifically, you'll still want human review of the AI's findings because the liability stakes are high, and subtle legal language nuances can have significant implications. Think of AI as a powerful first-pass tool that can categorize documents, highlight key sections, and create a summary for you to review—rather than a replacement for your expertise. Some surveyors are having success using AI to generate preliminary title summaries or create checklists of items to verify, which then gets refined through their professional judgment.

The real time savings come from automating the initial document triage and creating structured summaries, which can cut your review prep time significantly. Have you experimented with any specific AI tools for document analysis yet, or are you still in the exploration phase?

Not bad. Not bad at all

I had chatgpt write an operating agreement and safety plan for my business.  I think these things are dumb for a solo business but others require them and so... it saved me a bunch of time that way.  I had it draft me a stamp to use in Bluebeam also.  I routinely ask it software questions instead of flushing hours down the toilet browsing FAQs and .PDFs.  I've had it compile lists of online planrooms and local businesses that use surveyors as well.

I don't use it for any data processing or cad drafting since I prefer doing that myself, but overall I can say it's saved me time.

@burkc  Is that my old friend Burk from Bricktown in Oklahoma. My oh my, this is a pleasure.

My take is that AI will be embraced by the lower tier of our profession, the ones that don't bother to check their work, and AI will make it even easier for them not to check their work, or what the survey crew actually did, or what the drafter actually produced.

A surveyor actually told me that it was not his responsibility to check the drawing for accuracy (I called him because he had brass caps in concrete labeled "with attached tag #####".  Or that he found two rebars at a corner, neither tagged (in fact there were three, all tagged). Clowns like that will just love the AI production gain.

And then there was the surveyor who didn't notice that his name was misspelled in the drawing.

Bruce Small (thankfully retired)

Posted by: @bruce-small

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@burkc  Is that my old friend Burk from Bricktown in Oklahoma.

That's me!!