method of computing volumes

[rmk]

we have a client who is building a road. we have topo'd the existing ground and created a surface of the existing ground. now he is going to excavate to an unspecified depth, and we are being tasked to determine how many cubic yards of material he has removed. we are going to topo the roadway after excavation. is it possible to compute the volume of material between two surfaces? or is there another method we should use. any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

[cadtag]

yes, it's a volume surface. as long as you have before excavation and after excavation surfaces, it should be straightforward.

but -- the most accurate way to determine how much has been excavated would be to count the trucks. There are multiple ways to calculate volumes in software, and there's an expected degree of difference between them. trucks on the ohter hand, are real.

[Iceberg]

After you have both surfaces you can create sections from the road. Once you have your sections created you can do a volume report and a mass haul diagram which would give you the amount of cut taken from the existing surface.