When it comes to measuring, error tends to develop in accumulated measurements. The head of that pin becomes the benchmark from which all vertical measurements are taken using measuring devices like a transit or laser level, that pin becomes the ultimate point of control in a vertical system of measurements. nail) into something of relative permanence, be it pavement or a tree or a masonry wall or any substantial thing that is immobile. How is a Benchmark Datum Established?Ī benchmark datum can be established quite arbitrarily by simply driving a sturdy pin (a.k.a. In complex operations, there may be a system of benchmarks called out, but in a smaller operation a single benchmark will often be isolated as the “ground zero“ of the system, the primary plane of reference, the sun in the solar system, the queen of the hive. But in common use of the term, it is not just any datum – in a system of vertical measurements, a benchmark is a special datum. It is true that a benchmark is a datum in and of itself. Some folks use the word benchmark interchangeably with the word datum.

As a term it has many uses, but in design and construction, a datum refers to a vertical measurement taken in relation to a universal elevation, such as sea level.

By the way, the plural of datum is technically data, but my experience (and my research) suggests that in this context, saying “datums” is customary.Ī datum is literally a data point, defined basically as any measurement or result. One way to exercise control with vertical measurements is to work with datums and to establish a primary benchmark datum that gives a localized origin to a design or construction project’s system of vertical measurements. If you are not exercising control, then things don’t generally come together properly.

Working with measurements, it is extremely important to exercise control.

Datum in real estate