RTK Receiver Rental Comparison: Start an LRTK Annual Plan with Reduced Upfront Burden

On construction and surveying sites, centimeter-level precision surveying is indispensable to ensure construction is carried out as designed. As a method, RTK receivers (GNSS positioning devices) are widely used, but because they are precision instruments the upfront acquisition cost is high, and it is actually difficult for small and medium-sized construction companies and sites to readily invest. As a means to overcome such hurdles, the use of RTK receiver rentals and annual subscription plans is attracting attention.

In this article, we explain the upfront costs of introducing RTK receivers, the challenges involved, and the benefits of adopting rental solutions. We also compare the main rental methods used in the market and consider the cost-effectiveness and on-site suitability of short-term rentals versus annual plans. Building on this, as a concrete measure to keep initial costs down while continuing to use RTK surveying, we introduce the labor-saving and time-saving effects achievable through simple deployment using our LRTK annual plan. Finally, we include on-site usage examples and an FAQ about implementation, so please refer to them.

Table of Contents

• Initial acquisition costs of RTK receivers and their challenges

• Benefits of adopting rentals (cost, maintenance, short-term site support)

• Comparison of the main RTK receiver rental models in the market

• Cost-effectiveness and site suitability of short-term rentals versus annual plans

• Methods to continuously use RTK surveying while minimizing initial costs

• Simplified deployment and realizing labor reduction and time savings with LRTK annual plans

• Use-case scenarios and examples at construction sites (as-built management, pile-driving guidance, photo management)

• FAQ

Initial Costs and Challenges of RTK Receiver Deployment

First, let's look at the cost-related hurdles you face when introducing RTK receivers in-house. If you try to purchase a typical GNSS surveying system (RTK-capable), an initial investment on the order of several million yen may be required for a complete two-unit set consisting of a base station + a rover. Even a single receiver can be expensive, costing ¥500,000–¥1,000,000 or more depending on the model, and there are additional expenses such as survey software license fees and annual calibration and maintenance costs. For small and medium-sized enterprises, such a lump-sum capital investment is a heavy burden and a factor that makes them hesitate to adopt the equipment.

In addition, RTK surveying also faces the challenge that it requires technicians with advanced knowledge and experience. In conventional surveying, surveying work with a total station is normally carried out by a two-person team, and a specialist surveyor was required. Even with RTK-GNSS surveying, proficiency is required for operating and configuring the equipment and for setting up and configuring base stations and communications. As precision equipment, careful handling is necessary, and it was not something that all field staff could easily operate. For this reason, there is a risk that purchasing the equipment becomes a "white elephant", and particularly on small sites it is difficult to justify the investment in terms of cost-effectiveness.

As a result, on many sites where high-precision surveying is required, companies have responded by either engaging external surveying firms or renting the necessary equipment on an ad hoc basis. However, outsourcing costs accumulate on a per-project basis and can, over the long term, exceed the cost of owning the equipment. In addition, if a company does not have measuring instruments on hand when needed, it cannot respond to emergency surveys, leaving challenges in terms of responsiveness. Against this backdrop, demand is growing to utilize RTK surveying in-house while keeping initial acquisition costs low.

Benefits of Implementing Rentals (Cost, Maintenance, Short-term On-site Support)

One promising way to lower the barriers to introducing RTK receivers is the option of procuring equipment through rental rather than purchasing. By using rentals, you don't need to prepare a large amount of capital for initial deployment, and you can borrow equipment only for the periods you need. A major advantage is that this can greatly reduce initial costs.

There are advantages to adopting rentals beyond cost considerations. First, the burden of equipment maintenance is reduced. High-precision instruments require regular calibration and inspection, but with rentals the provider supplies equipment that is managed and maintained. The provider also handles repairs in case of failure, so you do not need to stock spare parts or secure specialized technicians in-house. Additionally, when new models or technologies emerge, renting can allow you to always have access to the latest models. Continuously updating purchased equipment is difficult, but rental services update their equipment lineup in line with market needs, reducing the risk of obsolescence.

Furthermore, rentals are flexible for short-term on-site needs. For example, if "high-precision surveying is required only for this construction project," you can rent the equipment for a short period and return it after completion. There is no need to worry about leaving equipment idle for long periods, and it also makes cost management by project easier. For sudden surveying needs, as long as the rental company has stock, equipment can be procured immediately, giving you the reassurance of being ready to use when needed. In addition, rental services often provide support for operation and technical consultation, making it easier to introduce RTK equipment even on sites using it for the first time.

As described above, adopting RTK receiver rentals brings a range of benefits, including cost reduction, reduced maintenance effort, and flexible equipment operation. However, it is important to be aware that if usage frequency becomes high, accumulated rental fees can make this option relatively more expensive. In the next chapter, we will compare the main rental methods used in the market and examine the options according to usage patterns.

Comparison of Major RTK Receiver Rental Options in the Market

There are several ways to rent and use an RTK receiver. Here, we compare the main methods and outline the characteristics of each.

Cost-effectiveness and On-site Suitability of Short-term Rentals and Annual Plans

As shown in the table above, short-term spot rentals and annual plans (subscription-based) each have their appropriate use cases. In terms of cost-effectiveness, one-off rentals are cheaper when usage frequency is low, but if you use it frequently, an annual plan tends to be more economical overall.

For example, if the daily rental fee is, say, tens of thousands of yen, renting several times a month can make the total annual rental cost quite high. In that case, securing equipment with an annual contract from the start not only reduces the total cost but also saves the hassle of arranging rentals each time, making it more efficient.

On the other hand, if your use is limited to spot use that occurs once a year or less, an annual plan may leave the equipment underused and may not be cost-effective. Therefore, "how frequently you will perform RTK surveying" is an important point in deciding between a short-term rental and an annual plan. It can be wise to start with a rental to see how it goes, and consider switching to a long-term plan if opportunities to use it increase.

From the perspective of on-site suitability, the advantage of keeping equipment on hand through an annual plan becomes clear. If a company owns RTK receivers, measurements can be taken immediately when needed, so work is not interrupted by waiting for a surveying slot or arranging subcontractors. For example, at one construction site each site supervisor carried a terminal with an RTK receiver and was able to perform as-built measurements and stake out pile locations themselves, and tasks that had previously been halted while waiting for the surveying team began to proceed smoothly. The effect of not having work stop due to "waiting for surveying" is significant and leads to improved productivity across the site.

Another benefit is bringing work in-house and reducing dependence on specific personnel. Previously, even small-scale surveys were outsourced to external surveying companies or staff had to compete for expensive equipment within the company, but with affordable smartphone-based surveying devices, the company's own staff alone can handle surveying. Surveying tasks no longer rest solely with specialized technicians, and because each crew can independently measure and record, field data collection becomes more efficient across the entire organization. Moreover, when a "one-device-per-person" operation in which each individual carries a high-precision device is implemented, not only is waiting for surveys eliminated, but faster data sharing speeds up decision-making, and overall operational efficiency improves dramatically.

On the other hand, with spot rentals, arranging equipment can take time, making flexible responses difficult, and there are cases where teams force an unrealistic schedule with the mindset of "let’s just complete only the work that’s necessary within the rental period." If you want to promote DX (digital transformation) on site and make routine use of survey data, permanent equipment installation through an annual plan is still desirable.

How to continue using RTK surveying while minimizing initial costs

So, what methods can be considered to continuously utilize RTK surveying while keeping the burden of initial costs low? The key is to skillfully combine the rentals and leases described above and to adopt the latest technological solutions.

First, on the funding side, it's important to adopt the idea of smoothing costs as operating expenses (OPEX) rather than relying on equipment purchases. By confirming effectiveness through short-term rentals while gradually expanding usage and switching to leases or annual plans according to your needs, you can incorporate high-precision surveying into your company's workflows without a large upfront investment. The key to continued use is to align rental periods with your company's project cycle and choose a plan that can be utilized without strain.

From a technical standpoint, the use of low-cost, easy-to-use RTK solutions is effective. In recent years, ultra-compact RTK-GNSS receivers that can be attached to smartphones and tablets have emerged and are offered at substantially lower prices than conventional units. With these new devices, it becomes realistic even at sites that previously shared expensive surveying instruments to relatively inexpensively introduce multiple units and operate on a one-device-per-person basis. Also, systems that link smartphone apps with cloud services are intuitive and easy to learn, allowing site staff who are not surveying specialists to use them, which lowers the hurdle of personnel training for continued utilization.

Thus, by devising financing plans and leveraging technological innovation, it is possible to overcome the barrier of initial costs and establish RTK surveying on site. One concrete solution born from this is our company's LRTK Annual Plan. In the next chapter, we will look at how using this annual plan makes it easy to introduce RTK surveying and achieve labor reductions and time savings.

Achieving Simplified Implementation, Reduced Staffing, and Time Savings with the LRTK Annual Plan

Our LRTK annual plan is an RTK surveying solution developed to address the challenges described above. It is an annual subscription that bundles an ultra-compact RTK-GNSS receiver attachable to iPhones and iPads (weighing approximately 125 g) with dedicated cloud-connected apps and services. There is no need to purchase expensive surveying equipment at initial deployment; by simply attaching the device to your existing smartphone you can achieve centimeter-level positioning. Because you can access the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan's electronic reference point network and satellite augmentation signals (Michibiki CLAS) via the smartphone without installing a fixed base station, high-precision surveying can be completed with a single receiver.

The main strengths of the LRTK annual plan are its comprehensive service offering and the low barrier to adoption afforded by flat-rate pricing. Positioning, 3D point-cloud scanning, AR-guided stake placement, high-precision photogrammetry, volume calculation, and other diverse on-site functions are available all-in-one. Procuring these individually from other vendors can require expenditures on the order of several million yen plus multiple monthly service subscriptions, but with LRTK you only need just a single device and a simple annual contract. Because new features are added through software updates, functions you may need in the future can be tried at no additional cost. Its cost-effectiveness is such that you could say, "If there is even one feature you can use, you would be losing out by not adopting it," and currently many construction companies and municipalities are switching to LRTK.

By using the LRTK annual plan, you can concretely achieve reduced staffing and shorter work times. Surveying work that previously required two or more people can be completed by one person, and equipment setup and takedown times can be greatly reduced. Because it can be operated with intuitive smartphone controls without a specialist surveyor, anyone on site can take measurements and record data whenever they need to, based on their own judgment. As a result, other tasks will no longer be halted while waiting for the surveying staff to arrive, enabling zero-wait on-site operations. Also, because acquired data is immediately shared in the cloud, post-processing and reporting work after returning to the office are streamlined. Overall, compared to conventional methods, you can achieve significant productivity improvements and reduced operational burden.

Thus, the LRTK annual plan is a solution that lowers the barriers to initial adoption while transforming on-site surveying practices with the latest technology. Next, let's look at several case-by-case concrete examples of how LRTK can be utilized on actual construction sites.

Use Cases and Examples at Construction Sites (As-built Management · Pile-driving Guidance · Photo Management)

Finally, let's look at a few cases of how RTK surveying using LRTK can be specifically utilized on construction sites.

• As-built management: LRTK also proves powerful when it comes to highly accurate measurement and recording of post-construction as-built conditions (final shape). Earthwork quantities and finished surface elevations that were previously measured painstakingly with batter boards, tape measures, or large equipment can be 3D-scanned on site in a short time with LRTK to obtain point cloud data, allowing immediate earthwork volume calculations and comparisons with the design shape. For example, in the completion inspection of embankment works, the specified fill volume can be calculated from the high-density point cloud obtained in just a few minutes, leading to significant labor and time savings compared with conventional methods. Since the acquired data can be overlaid with drawings in the cloud for review, checking as-built results and preparing reports is also streamlined.

• 杭打ち誘導：An application example for setting out structure positions and pile-driving work. The LRTK system integrates with AR technology and can display design positions on a tablet screen in real time while guiding pile-driving work by a single operator. Traditionally, a surveyor would place stakes at measured points and the construction crew would use them as reference marks, but after introducing LRTK, on-site staff themselves can follow the on-screen instructions to install piles at the correct positions. This simultaneously achieves improved positioning accuracy and reduced manpower, allowing layout work to proceed efficiently even on complex terrain or sites with poor visibility.

• Photo management：RTK's high-precision positioning can also be applied to photographing and managing construction records. With LRTK, the coordinates and orientation of the shooting location are automatically recorded on photos taken with a smartphone, so it is immediately obvious which point and in which direction a photo was taken. You can plot shooting locations on a cloud-based map and manage photos in chronological order, making it dramatically easier to later check “where was that photo taken from?” or to compare the same location across multiple inspections. Improving the efficiency of photo management is also beneficial for quality control and safety management, and compared to traditional methods that relied on paper ledgers, information sharing is greatly enhanced.

FAQ

Q: Should I buy or rent an RTK receiver?

It depends on how often you use it and what you use it for. If you only use it very occasionally, renting and borrowing it only when needed is more economical, but if you use it regularly, buying or a subscription contract is often cheaper in the long run. In particular, a flat-rate service such as an LRTK annual plan lets you keep initial costs down and have continuous access to equipment, so on sites that conduct surveys frequently it offers better cost-effectiveness than renting.

Q: What is included in the LRTK annual plan?

A: The LRTK annual plan includes the loan of a smartphone-mounted RTK-GNSS receiver unit (LRTK device), as well as access to the surveying app and cloud services. Positioning, point-cloud processing, AR functionality, and more are all packaged together, so there is no need to purchase costly additional software. Software updates and support are also included in the contract, allowing you to use the latest features with confidence (the only item you need to provide separately is a compatible iPhone/iPad).

Q: Can a beginner who has never used RTK use it well?

A: Yes, LRTK is designed to be usable without specialized knowledge through an intuitive smartphone app. There is guidance during the initial setup, and complicated base station configurations are not necessary. Even those without surveying experience can learn the basic operations with a short training session and start using it on site right away. In addition, our support team will respond to questions after deployment, so you can use it with confidence.

Q: Can positioning still be performed in places without network connectivity, such as areas outside network coverage or in mountainous regions?

A: Yes, LRTK devices support the centimeter-class augmentation service (CLAS) provided by Japan's Quasi-Zenith Satellite System, and can maintain centimeter-level positioning using correction signals from the satellites even in environments where mobile phone signals do not reach. Therefore, high-precision surveying is possible even in areas with unstable communications infrastructure, such as mountainous regions or disaster sites (however, positioning becomes difficult in places where satellite signals themselves cannot be received, such as inside tunnels).

Q: Is it necessary to prepare your own base station (reference station) for RTK surveying?

A: No. LRTK adopts a network RTK that obtains correction information from public CORS networks and private VRS services, so users do not need to install their own base station. With a single GNSS receiver (rover) you can start surveying immediately, eliminating the upfront burden of purchasing and installing an entire base-station set as was previously required.