01 / SITE RESEARCH
Turn field notes into a site inventory
A simple way to organize observations before drawing conclusions about a place.
Start with observations
A useful site inventory separates what you observed from what you think it means. Begin with dated notes, photographs, a base map, and the project brief. Remove personal information from interviews or field notes before entering them into an AI tool.
Ask AI to sort observations into a small set of topics: circulation, vegetation, shade, water, use patterns, and maintenance. Require it to keep the original note or photo reference beside every item. This gives you a draft inventory you can trace back to its source.
Check the draft on a map
Mark each observation on the site plan. If a statement has no location, date, or source, label it as a question rather than a finding. Visit the site again when the answer affects a design decision.
A prompt to adapt
Organize these site notes into an inventory. Use only the information provided. For each item, include the topic, observation, source reference, location if known, and one question to verify. Keep interpretation in a separate column.
The output is an index of field evidence. The designer still decides which conditions matter and what they mean for the project.