In large-scale infrastructure corridors, surveyors establish an RTK base station on a known control point to broadcast differential corrections to heavy machinery (graders, dozers) and field rovers. The entire project's physical reality hinges on the mathematical purity of that single base station coordinate.
The Autonomous Base Threat
A frequent error occurs when a field crew sets up a base station and accidentally triggers an 'Autonomous' or 'Here' initialization rather than typing in the verified control coordinates. In this scenario, the base station assumes a standalone, heavily degraded GPS position (often off by 2 to 5 meters). It then broadcasts this inherently shifted reality to all rovers.
Cascading Subcontractor Failure
If the error is not caught by immediate secondary control checks, the concrete subcontractor will pour foundations 3 meters out of alignment, and the piping subcontractor will lay utilites matching that flawed poured concrete. When the error is finally discovered days later by an independent municipal inspector, the tear-down costs trigger catastrophic cross-litigation among the general contractor, the surveyors, and multiple subs.