Cable locating · Auckland schools
Digging on school grounds? Know where the cables are first.
We locate and mark underground power, data and fibre on Auckland school sites before playground, fencing, drainage or building work starts, and leave a signed PDF report for the property file.
Read the case study →
Why school sites need a locate
A school is rarely one build. Classrooms, halls, lighting, cameras and data get added over decades by different contractors, and the cable that matters is often the one nobody wrote down.
Services from many eras
Power to relocatables, data between blocks, cameras on the fence line, lighting in the car park. Each one is a reason to check before anyone digs.
A live site
Children, staff and parents use the site every day. We book the locate around the school timetable, including holidays, and keep the marked area clear and simple to read.
A record you keep
The signed PDF report goes on the property file, so the next project, and the next contractor, starts from evidence rather than memory.
Knowing where there isn’t cable
At Rongomai, confirming there was no cable signal in the marked driveway positions mattered as much as finding the cable that was there.
Who books us
Property managers, principals and boards of trustees planning a project, and the builders, landscapers and fencers working for them. We can deal with whoever is running the job and send the report to both.
How a locate works
- Scope itA five-minute call: the address, the area you’re digging, what you already know is there, and when work starts.
- Pull the plansWe lodge the free beforeUdig plan request for you, so we arrive with the utility maps.
- Sweep and markWe walk the area with a 3M Dynatel cable locator, trace what’s there and mark it on the ground with paint or flags.
- Report the same dayA signed PDF with a site map, the marked services, the method, photos and the limits of what a locate can find.
What we locate, and what we hand off
We locate
- Underground power cables (low voltage, traceable)
- Data cabling, with a tone applied
- Fibre, via tracer wire, pit access or a signal on the far end
- Empty conduits and ducts that are metallic or have a tracer
- Control cables and comms tie-lines
We refer
- Gas: your certified utility locator or gasfitter
- Water and wastewater: Watercare or a certified plumber
- Chorus lead-ins: free plan via beforeUdig, and we help you order it
- Non-metallic pipes with no tracer: these need ground-penetrating radar, which we don’t offer yet
What it costs
On-site time is charged at our standard rates, the same as every other service. We scope the job with you first in a free five-minute call.
| When | First hour | Each hour after |
|---|---|---|
| Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 5pm | $75 + GST | $95 + GST |
| After hours, weekends and public holidays | $125 + GST | $165 + GST |
The first hour covers the call-out and travel. Time after that is charged in half-hour blocks. See all rates
Questions from schools
Can you work around school hours?
Yes. Tell us the timetable when you book and we’ll fit the locate around it, including the holidays.
What do we get at the end?
Marks on the ground, and a signed PDF report the same day with a site map, the marked services, the method used, photos and the limitations of the locate.
Can you find water pipes and gas?
No. We refer gas to a certified utility locator or gasfitter, and water to Watercare or a certified plumber. Non-metallic pipes without a tracer need ground-penetrating radar, which we don’t offer yet.
Do we still need a beforeUdig plan?
Yes, and we lodge it for you. The plan shows where the utility networks say their assets are; the on-site locate checks what’s actually in your ground. More on that here.
Planning work on your school grounds?
Book a locate before the first spade goes in. We reply within 1 hour, 24/7.
Book a locateCall 0800 222 546