Two companies can both offer concrete scanning and still provide very different jobsite experiences. The equipment matters, but so do the questions asked before the scan, how findings are interpreted, and how that information gets communicated to the contractor.
When choosing a ground penetrating radar company, look beyond whether GPR appears on a service list. A reliable provider should understand why an area is being scanned, explain what the equipment can reasonably identify, and provide findings in a form that helps with the work planned afterward.
What Should a Ground Penetrating Radar Company Ask Before Scanning?
One of the easiest ways to evaluate a GPR provider is to pay attention to what they ask you.
A technician scanning for several proposed core holes needs different information than one scanning a long trench or an area planned for multiple anchors. The location and size of the work area, the type of penetration or cut, available plans, and current site conditions can all affect the scanning scope.
A reliable provider should be clear about what information they need before arriving onsite. For Con-Cor’s concrete scanning work, contractors can provide the jobsite address, scope, and plans when available. That gives the technician useful context for why the concrete is being investigated instead of treating every scan as the same assignment.
The Scanner Should Explain What GPR Can and Cannot Tell You
What can GPR detect in concrete? Ground-penetrating radar can help locate rebar, post-tension cables, electrical conduit, plumbing runs, sleeves, and other embedded objects. However, concrete scanning is not simply a matter of running equipment across a surface and receiving a perfect map of everything inside.
Depth, target spacing, reinforcement patterns, concrete conditions, and other factors can affect how scan data appears. A reliable concrete scanning company should be willing to discuss those limitations instead of presenting GPR findings as absolute.
Con-Cor uses GSSI Flex NX equipment for its GPR concrete scanning. The technology matters, but what matters most for the contractor is understanding what the scan shows in the area where work is actually being planned.
Find Out How the Scan Results Will Be Communicated
The way findings are communicated can be just as important as collecting the scan data.
On some jobs, marked findings at the work area may provide what the field crew needs. Other projects may require documentation or reporting that can be shared with a project manager, superintendent, engineer, or trade performing work later.
Con-Cor marks and communicates findings in the field and provides documentation and reporting based on project needs. Discussing that process before scanning helps everyone understand what information will be available and how it can be used once the fieldwork is complete.
Concrete Construction Experience Adds Useful Context
GPR scanning on a construction site rarely happens without another reason. A contractor may be planning core drilling, saw cutting, anchor installation, trenching, or another modification to existing concrete.
A scanning provider doesn’t need to perform every trade involved in the project, but understanding concrete construction helps put the scan into context.
Con-Cor performs its ground penetrating radar scanning firsthand rather than subcontracting the scanning work. The company has also worked in concrete cutting and drilling since the early years of the concrete sawing industry.
That background matters because the technician is not looking at an abstract scan area. The findings may affect a cut, penetration, or other field decision that follows.
Look at Affiliations and Certifications for What They Represent
Affiliations and certifications can add useful information when evaluating a contractor, particularly for commercial, municipal, and public work. They should still be considered in the right context.
Con-Cor belongs to several industry organizations, including the Concrete Drilling and Sawing Association, Associated General Contractors of America, Associated Builders and Contractors, and other construction groups. CSDA provides industry-specific training, and Con-Cor states that CSDA has trained its laborers as Certified Operators in the concrete drilling and sawing field.
Choosing a Ground Penetrating Radar Company for Your Project
A reliable ground penetrating radar company should be able to explain the scanning scope, what information is needed before the job, what the equipment can reasonably identify, what limitations may affect the findings, and how those findings will be communicated.
Those details provide a better basis for comparing GPR services than equipment specifications or a service list alone. If you are planning concrete scanning in Southeast Wisconsin or the surrounding area, send Con-Cor the jobsite location, proposed work area, scope, plans or sketches when available, and project timeline so we can review the scanning requirements.
