Building A Contour

The following equipment and machinery are used for building a contour.

Tractors:
Ploughs:
Graders: A grader, also commonly referred to as a blade, is an engineering vehicle with a large blade used to create a flat surface. Typical models have three axles, with the engine and cab situated above the rear axles at one end of the vehicle and a third axle at the front end of the vehicle, with the blade in between.
Bulldozers:
Dumpy Levels: A dumpy level, builder’s auto level, levelling instrument or automatic level is an instrument used in surveying and building to transfer, measure, or set horizontal levels. It is an instrument that is set up on a tripod and, depending on the type, either roughly or accurately set to a levelled condition. One operator looks through the sight while the other holds a tape measure or graduated staff at the position to be measured. It is used to gather and/or transfer elevations (or levels) during site surveys or building construction. They generally start from a reference point known as a benchmark, this may be a value from a known survey point or an arbitrary point used as a once-off.

Click here to view a video that explains the working of a dumpy level in use on a construction site

The Process Of Building A Contour

Contours are imaginary lines on a slope connecting areas on the same level. In agriculture, contours refer to terraces or plough furrows that are created when ploughing in the same direction as the imaginary contour.

Depending on the size of the operation and the characteristics of the site different machinery is then used to create the contours by ploughing, grading or bulldozing the earth to form ridges and lines.

In agriculture, a terrace is a levelled section of a hilly cultivated area, designed as a method of soil conservation to slow or prevent the rapid surface runoff of irrigation water. Often such land is formed into multiple terraces, giving a stepped appearance

This form of land use is prevalent in many countries and is used for crops requiring a lot of water, such as rice. Terraces are also easier for both mechanical and manual sowing and harvesting than a steep slope would be.