UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Rev. 12/2005

ANY LEVEL METHOD

EARTHWORK CALCULATION SPREADSHEET
The spreadsheet Any Level Method is used to compute the volume of earthwork.
This spreadsheet uses the Any Level Method (Coordinate Method) to compute the end area
of the embankment or excavation at a given Station. Earth fill and excavation yardage must
be entered and calculated on separate spreadsheets. This spreadsheet can only calculate one
type of earthwork at a time.
For more information on Earthwork Computations using the Any Level Method see:
South Dakota Engineering Technical Note Design SD 1.
Users new to the Any Level Method are strongly encouraged to review the Tech Note
Design- SD-1 and the various examples for different cross-sections.
The user has two options for entering the cross-section data.
Enter the rod readings and distances from the survey on the Survey Notes tab and
the spreadsheet will convert the entered rod readings to elevations.
Enter elevations and distances directly in the Any Level Method tab.
The user can enter data in cells that are shaded yellow. Located on the Survey
Notes tab and the Any Level Method tab is a Show all Stations button. When this
button is pushed, all 28 available Stations for entering cross-sections are displayed. The
Hide Stations button will hide the last 14 Stations, but it will not delete the data that has
been entered in them.

Survey Notes
The user enters an elevation (Elev.) of a benchmark (BM) and the back sight (B.S.)
on the benchmark. A height of the instrument (H.I.) is computed as shown in Figure 1. The
height of the instrument is used to convert the Rod Readings to Elevations, which are
referenced to the benchmark elevation. Only one H.I. can be used in this spreadsheet. The
elevations are placed on the Any Level Method Tab.
Figure 1: Survey data used to convert rod readings to elevations.

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Rev. 12/2005

Hints for Entering Rod Readings and Distances

If the beginning or end stations will have an end area of zero, do not enter any rod
readings or distances for the beginning or ending station.

Distances to the left of the centerline are entered as a negative number.

When entering data in the Survey Notes tab, the first rod reading and distance is
repeated at the end. Notice how the Rod Reading and Distance of 19.8 and -52.5 in
Figure 2 is entered at the beginning and end. Repeating the first Rod Reading and
Distance at the end is necessary to have a closed area for the cross-section.

Both earth fill and excavation cross-sections are entered in a clockwise order going
around the figure. Any blank entry within a cross section or a distance not entered in
order will cause errors.

When entering the rod readings & distances (coordinates) for each cross-section, the
entire perimeter of the cross-section must be defined with coordinates, including the
design surfaces as staked. Therefore, rod readings & distances must be determined
for all points not located on the original surveyed ground surface. For the example in
Figure 2, the coordinate points 4.3/-6.0 and 4.3/6.0 were added to the actual survey to
define the top of the dam.

Cutting and pasting data can cause formatting errors and is not recommend.

Figure 2: A sample entry at Station 2+40 on the Survey Notes Tab.

STATION
Rod Reading

2+40

DISTANCE

1
19.8
-52.5

2
4.3
-6.0

3
4.3
6.0

4
21.2
56.7

5
21.6
0.0

6
19.8
-52.5

Convert to Elevations Button

To convert the Rod Readings to Elevations on the Any Level Method tab, click on the
Convert to Elevations button.
Using the Convert to Elevations button will overwrite any Stations, elevations, and
distances on the Any Level Method tab.

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Rev. 12/2005

Any Level Method

The Any Level Method tab can have data for the Station, Elevation, and Distance
entered directly or it is imported from the Survey Notes tab when the Convert to Elevations
button is pushed. Figure 3 shows the imported elevations and distances for Station 2+40 using
the H.I. from Figure 1 and the Rod Readings from Figure 2. From the elevations and distances
in Figure 3 for Station 2+40, the end area equals 1041.8 ft 2.
Hints for Entering Elevations and Distances

If the beginning or end stations will have an end area of zero, do not enter any
elevations or distances for the beginning or ending station.

Distances to the left of the centerline are entered as a negative number.

When entering elevations, the first rod reading and distance is repeated at the end.
Notice how the Rod Reading and Distance of 84.5 and -52.5 in Figure 3 is entered at
the beginning and end. Repeating the first Rod Reading and Distance at the end is
necessary to have a closed area for the cross-section.

Both earth fill and excavation cross-sections are entered in a clockwise order going
around the figure. Any blank entry within a cross section or a distance not entered in
order will cause errors.

When entering the elevations & distances (coordinates) for each cross-section, the
entire perimeter of the cross-section must be defined with coordinates, including the
design surfaces as staked. Therefore, elevations & distances must be determined for
all points not located on the original surveyed ground surface. For the example in
Figure 3, the coordinate points 100.0/-6.0 and 100.0/6.0 were added to the actual
survey to define the top of the dam.

Cutting and pasting data can cause formatting errors and is not recommend.

Figure 3: This shows the imported elevations and distances for sample Station
2+40 using the H.I. from Figure 1 and the Rod Readings from Figure 2.
STATION

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Rev. 12/2005

Graph
The user must view the cross-section plot for each station entered to insure the accuracy of the
data entered.
On the Any Level Method Tab, click on the Show Graph button. Then select the
Station to view its cross-sectional plot and the graph will display this station.
If the user wants to view another stations cross-section from the Graph tab push the
View another Graph button.
Figure 4: The cross-section plot of Station 2+40.

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Rev. 12/2005

Survey Notes
STA
B.S
H.I.
F.S.
Elev.
BM
0.00
100.00
100.00
Elevations must be calculated. Use an assumed H.I. if only Rod Readings were used.
STATION

Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE

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10

11

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Rev. 12/2005

Survey Notes
STA
B.S
H.I.
F.S.
Elev.
BM
0.00
100.00
100.00
Elevations must be calculated. Use an assumed H.I. if only Rod Readings were used.
STATION

Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE
Rod Reading
DISTANCE

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10

11

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Rev. 12/2005

Any Level Yardage Calculation

(see Technical Note Design SD-1 for AnyLevel Method guidance)

Name:
Computations By:
Type of Earthwork:
STATION

Section:

Any Producer

40

Date:

Any
Project Information
2
3
4

Township:
11/5/05

10

11

12

13

END AREA

500 N

County:

Range: 100 W
Any

Is this a earth fill quantity?

AVE AREA
DISTANCE

Yes
CY

ELEVATION
DISTANCE

ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE
ELEVATION
DISTANCE

VOLUME
5% Settlement
TOTAL VOLUME
Page 7 of 9

0.0 CU. YD
0.0 CU.YD
0.0 CU. YD

Elevation (feet)

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Rev. 12/2005

Chart Title

10
8
6
4
2
0
-2
-4
-6
-8
-10
-10

-8

-6

-4

-2
0
Distance (feet)

10