Locating, CCTV and fault finding for working trades.
Orbital supports plumbers and electricians across South East Queensland with the specialist locating and inspection work that’s outside your standard kit — buried cable tracing, CCTV pipe inspection, electrical fault finding, targeted service location on properties where DBYD records don’t cover what you need.
Fast response. Focused scope. Sensible pricing. Twenty-three years of locating SEQ means we’ve seen what you’re going to find before you find it.
What we do for plumbers and electricians
Cable and pipe tracing
Trace a specific buried service from a known access point — power cable from a switchboard, water main from a meter, gas line from the regulator, sewer from a manhole. Walk the route with EMF on the running cable; mark the path; capture coordinates if needed.
Unknown service location
Find what’s there before you cut, trench or drill. Combined EMF + GPR sweep of the area where you need to work. We tell you what’s beneath, where, and at what indicative depth. Marking on the ground in AS/NZS colours so your crew can work around it confidently.
CCTV pipe inspection
Sewer and stormwater inspection — diagnose a blockage, identify a damaged pipe, confirm a junction, locate a connection that doesn’t appear on the plan. WSAA-standard inspection if the report needs to go into a council submission; lighter scope where it’s just diagnostic for your repair planning.
Electrical fault finding
Locate a fault on a buried cable without digging up the entire route. We use the EMF receiver and dedicated fault-finding accessories to pinpoint the fault location, so you can excavate exactly where the problem is rather than chasing it.
Post-repair verification
After a repair or new installation, capture the as-installed position to coordinates so it goes into the property’s records correctly. Useful for new private services that should appear in future locates.
How we work with trades
Fast response
Most plumber and electrician scopes are diagnostic — you’ve called us because the job is paused waiting for the information. We treat these as high-priority and aim to mobilise within 1–3 business days, often sooner if the call comes in early. Urgent jobs are accommodated where the catchment and crew availability allow.
Trade-to-trade pricing
Focused scope, focused price. We quote per job rather than from a published rate card — but our pricing for targeted trade scopes is significantly lower than our commercial AS 5488 work, because the scope is smaller and the deliverable is lighter (paint and a quick report, not a full CAD package).
Plain-language reporting
Where you need a report for your client (insurer claim, building inspector, builder), we deliver a clear plain-language summary alongside the photo and survey record. Your client reads it without needing an engineering translation.
Coordination with your job timeline
Call before you arrive on site if you can — we’ll align the locate to the timing of your repair or installation so you’re not waiting around. Most jobs we attend immediately after the locate, sometimes alongside.
Frequently asked questions
How quickly can you get to my job?
Most trade-priority scopes in the Brisbane / Gold Coast / Sunshine Coast catchment are attended within 1–3 business days. Sometimes same-day for urgent diagnostic work, depending on the day and our crew availability. Call us first thing — earlier in the day means more options.
Do I need to be on site when you locate?
Not necessarily. For straightforward locates we can attend the site with the homeowner’s or property manager’s authority and brief you on the result by phone or photo report. For more complex diagnostic work it’s helpful if you can be on site, but we can usually work around the program.
What does a typical trade scope cost?
Lower than our commercial AS 5488 work because the deliverable is lighter — usually paint and a photo / coordinate report rather than a full CAD package. We quote per job; send us a brief description and a site address and we’ll come back with a fixed-price quote, usually within a few hours.
Can you find a fault on a buried electrical cable?
Yes. EMF fault-finding equipment combined with our locating receivers pinpoints faults on buried cables to within a few metres, often closer. We give your electrician the location so you can excavate exactly where the problem is, not chase the fault along the cable route.
Will the report be defensible if there’s a dispute?
Yes. Even on a focused trade scope, every located service carries an AS/NZS 4502 colour marking and an accompanying photo / coordinate record. If a dispute escalates (insurance claim, strata complaint, building inspector challenge) the documentation holds up to review.
Can you do CCTV that meets a council build-over requirement?
Yes — WSAA-compliant inspection with Wincan-compatible reporting is standard. For trade scopes that’s typically overkill (the lighter diagnostic CCTV is enough), but where the inspection has to go into a council submission we deliver to the full WSAA standard.
Related services
- Underground service locating
- CCTV pipe inspection (WSAA / Wincan)
- Vacuum excavation through Vac2U alliance
Call us or send us the site.
Phone first if it’s urgent. Send the address and a brief description if you want a quote in writing. We’ll come back inside a few hours with a fixed-price scope and a realistic attendance date.