Vertical and Horizontal Deformations Monitoring of FSS Rector’s Administrative Block Using Conventional Geodetic Techniques

Many circumstances commonly contribute to changes in the size, shape, or dimensions of large structural objects. Therefore, monitoring the nature of these changes—especially those that may lead to structural collapse—is essential. This study focuses on the monitoring and analysis of vertical and horizontal deformations of the Rector’s Administrative Block located within the Federal School of Surveying, Oyo, using ground survey methods. The objectives are: to carry out a preliminary study of the building through a reconnaissance survey; to ascertain the positional status of structural monuments already installed on the building through first-order survey observations; to perform least squares adjustment on the observed data using ADJUST software and MATLAB; and to compute the displacement magnitudes for all structural points and compare them with their respective 95% confidence ellipses for deformation analysis. The methodology adopted involves primary data acquisition using GNSS receivers, Total Station, and a Geodetic Digital Level. A total of eight lawn beacons and thirteen structural target points were observed. Deformation analysis was conducted by comparing the computed displacement magnitudes of each structural point with the USACE (2018) geometric standard to determine whether noticeable alterations or movements had structurally occurred, particularly between the observed epochs and data acquired in 2011. The results indicated that the building was very stable at the time of observation. It is therefore recommended that all large engineering structures be subjected to deformation studies. Keywords: Deformation, GNSS, MATLAB, USACE, Ground Survey Method, Epoch.