SUE (Subsurface Utility Engineering)

The engineering practice of collecting, classifying, and depicting existing subsurface utility data on a project drawing, with each segment labelled by ASCE 38 quality level so designers know how far to trust it.

A SUE scope combines records research, surveying of visible surface features, field designation with electromagnetic locating and radar, and test-hole verification at the points that matter, all tied to project survey control and delivered as a signed and sealed drawing. What separates it from a private locate is not the instruments — often the same ones — but the survey basis, the professional responsibility attached to the deliverable, and the explicit statement of confidence per segment.