Professional Surveyor Magazine

ACSM, APLS and GITA

The 2010 Solutions Conference will be co-located with the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping and Arizona Professional Land Surveyors' 2010 Annual Conference and Technology Exhibition.

This is a true co-location in that the two conferences will have separate programs, but will share the exhibit hall and networking events. The events will also share a combined track focused on surveying and geospatial technology crossover. Visit the technical sessions page, and look for “ACSM/GITA Joint Track Session” tags.

Contact Information:

ACSM, APLS, GITA
http://gita.org/networks/2010/mar-apr-10/solutions.asp

MAPPS to Demonstrate Geospatial Technologies for Congress

Members of Congress and Congressional staff will have an opportunity to witness an exhibition of geospatial technologies at a showcase to be hosted by MAPPS on the campus of the U.S. Capitol. The 5th Annual MAPPS Geospatial Technology Exhibition will be held Wednesday, March 10 in the first floor foyer of the Rayburn House Office Building. Federal and state agency representatives and stakeholder groups will also attend. The exhibition, from 9:00am to 4:00pm, coincides with the MAPPS Federal Programs Conference, the premier event in the geospatial community that brings together the Federal government and the private sector for discussions on programs, budgets and procurement opportunities. More than 100 members of MAPPS will be at Capitol Hill on Wednesday, meeting with members of Congress to discuss legislation affecting the geospatial profession.

Four MAPPS member firms will exhibit technology demonstrations. These firms include: Merrick & Company, winner of the 2009 MAPPS Geospatial Excellence Awards competition; Riegl USA; Trimble; and Woolpert, Inc.

"These four firms represent the capabilities available throughout our membership. They will show decision makers at the highest level of our government that a capable and qualified private geospatial community exists, along with technology, data and services that can fuel economic growth, improve the efficiency of government programs, and improve the quality of life for the American people and in nations around the world," said John Palatiello, MAPPS Executive Director.
U.S. Representative James Moran (D-8th District-VA), who represents MAPPS' headquarters in Reston, VA, is the sponsor of the event.

Four legislative issues and associated public policy applications will be demonstrated during the exhibition. The legislative initiatives to be highlighted during MAPPS members' meetings with members of Congress and at the technology exhibition include:

The "Making America Prosperous (MAP)" Act, a proposed bill to authorize the "Imagery for the Nation" concept, authorizing a national geospatial image mapping program to provide baseline geographic data for economic development and a variety of other applications;

A "Digital Coast" Act, fully authorizes the Digital Coast program within NOAA to help America's fragile oceans, coasts and shorelines by implementing mapping, charting, and other geospatial data, as recommended in several recent commissions, as well as a National Academy of Sciences report;
The "FLAIR" Act, or Federal Land Asset Inventory Reform Act, H.R. 1520, will create a current, accurate cadastre, or land inventory, of Federal land ownership, as well as consolidate the more than 100 duplicate, inaccurate, obsolete, and non-interoperable land inventories currently maintained by several Federal agencies;
And the Freedom from Government Competition Act, H.R. 2682 and S. 1167, to codify the "Yellow Pages" test, a simple test that has been applied by Mayors and Governors, both Democrat and Republican, that says if there are private companies to be found in the Yellow Pages providing products or services in the commercial market that the government is also providing, then the service should be subject to market competition to break up the government monopoly and prove a better value to the taxpayer.

MAPPS Government Affairs Manager John "JB" Byrd said, "The fact that this is the fifth year that MAPPS has demonstrated geospatial technology before Congress serves as a testimonial to the high level of importance MAPPS member firms place on traveling to Washington to actively promote the profession and the legislative priorities impacting the geospatial community and the citizens of our Nation."

Contact Information:

MAPPS
http://www.mapps.org

RESON Launches New Low Cost Expedition-Ready Multibeam System

RESON has once again demonstrated its ability to fine-tune its product range in both price and features, by introducing a new cost-efficient sonar which bridges the gap between singlebeam echosounders and high resolution multibeam sonar systems. HydroBat is an entry-level multibeam system operating at 160kHz and covers a swath of 120°.

Rich Lear at RESON stated: “A task that used to take a week with the old singlebeam echosounders, takes only three days with this new multibeam HydroBat.”

Designed to be simple and reliable, the new HydroBat from RESON is ready to meet the demands of serious hydrographic users in harbors and ports. Former software developer, Simon Barchard, states: “A really neat feature is the ability to run a fully functional survey software package on the sonar processor”.

Commenting on the way HydroBat is optimized, the R&D engineering team points out that the product has been specifically designed for surveyors looking to make the transition from singlebeam to multibeam sonars, with the minimum of investment but without sacrificing product quality and performance.”

Being expedition-ready demands not only high quality equipment but also highly qualified technical support service, fast-response field support, a comprehensive inventory of spare parts and quick-start training– RESON is uniquely positioned to meet these demands.

HydroBat will be demonstrated during Oceanology International 2010 in London, March 9th-11th.

Contact Information:

Reson
http://www.reson.com

Registration Now Open: "Be Together: The Be Communities LIVE Conference,"

Bentley Systems, Incorporated, the leading company dedicated to providing comprehensive software solutions for the infrastructure that sustains our world, today announced that registration is now open at www.bentley.com/BeTogether for the inaugural Be Together: The Be Communities LIVE Conference, being held May 17-20, 2010, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia.

This innovative event will enable the architects, engineers, constructors, geospatial professionals, and CAD managers who regularly exchange ideas virtually on the Be Communities professional networking site to connect, communicate, and learn from each other in person. At the same time, guided by Bentley product experts, attendees will acquire knowledge critical to the adoption of an information-modeling level of practice as they earn Bentley Institute Learning Units to track time invested in professional development.

“Be Together is a marked departure from the Be Conferences of previous years,” said Keith Bentley, founder and CTO of Bentley, and Be Communities champion. “Its format and content were driven by the members of our Be Communities website and Be User Groups. So attendees can look forward to a hands-on, product-oriented experience focused on helping practitioners get their jobs done faster and with better results. It’s the ideal event for those who like to roll up their sleeves and dig into information modeling technology.”

Throughout the week, attendees will benefit from:
* Interactive product tours and overviews of Bentley’s product roadmaps,
* Explorations of software tips, tricks, and techniques,
* Hands-on workshops and product test drives,
* Clinics that help them resolve current project modeling challenges,
* Peer presentations of case studies featuring innovations in software use,
* Roundtable and panel discussions on today’s hottest technology issues.

Those registering for the conference by March 31 will receive an early bird discount of $200 off the $795 conference fee.

Ed Mueller, Bentley chief marketing officer, said,“Our interactive conference gives all those practitioners who regularly share information virtually on Be Communities a unique opportunity to ‘press the flesh’ as they gather for a ‘live’ exchange of ideas. Over the course of a few days, attendees will gain valuable knowledge and
insight that will help them adopt world-class information modeling practices – to advance the value of their work and open the door to new career-enhancing project opportunities.”

The Be Together Conference encompasses the following areas of interest to the infrastructure community:
* Roads and Bridges
* Structural
* Water
* Geospatial
* Utilities and Communications
* Building
* Plant
* Applied Research
* MicroStation and ProjectWise

The Be Communities LIVE Zone
At the Be Together Conference, the traditional exhibit hall will be replaced with the Be Communities LIVE Zone – an interactive experience that brings people and technology together in a series of dynamic zones. Top hardware, software, and other experts from Bentley partner organizations will be colocated with teams of Bentley product and professional services specialists to demonstrate – in
hands-on sessions – the combined value of Bentley, Bentley channel partner, Bentley technology partner, and third-party developer offerings for visualization, collaboration, modeling, plotting, point clouds, and much more.

Contact Information:

Bentley Systems
http://www.bentley.com/BeTogether

Infoterra SGSA acquires Enifosa

Infoterra SGSA, part of Spot Infoterra, the Earth observation division of Astrium Service, has acquired 100% of Enifosa’s (Enginyeria i Fotogrametria S.A.) shares, a leading Spanish firm in 3D urban atlas production and updating.

This purchase, which supports Spot Infoterra’s strategy of strengthening its position as a key player in the Earth observation market, is the first phase of a merging process that will culminate during the second quarter of the 2010, and make Infoterra SGSA one of the most important supplier and producer of geographical information in Spain.

Contact Information:

Infoterra
http://www.infoterra-global.com/

Merrick & Company Releases Version 6.1 of MARS Software Suite

Merrick & Company, a world leader in light detection and ranging (LiDAR), digital orthophotography, photogrammetry, hyperspectral mapping, and geographic information systems (GIS) mapping, is pleased to announce the release of Version 6.1 of the Merrick Advanced Remote Sensing (MARS) software suite www.merrick.com/MARS. The MARS software suite is a robust, production-grade Windows® application designed to manage, visualize, process, and analyze LiDAR data with powerful visualization capabilities and unparalleled performance.

“The new release of MARS features a completely new breakline compilation tool suite. Not only does the application support Windows 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems, but the new tools allow our users to accurately and efficiently compile linear breaklines that support hydrographic modeling. In addition, our triangular irregular network (TIN) model now respects 3D breakline shapefiles.” said Bruce Adey, LiDAR Discipline Lead, GeoSpatial Solutions.

Merrick & Company, an employee-owned $100 million geospatial solutions, surveying, engineering, architecture, and design-build firm, serves domestic and
international clients in the geospatial/mapping, infrastructure, energy, security, and life sciences markets. Merrick maintains eight offices in the U.S. as well as offices in Canada and Mexico.

Contact Information:

Merrick
http://www.merrick.com

Ashtech Introduces New MobileMapper Software for GIS & Mapping applications

Ashtech is releasing today the MobileMapper Field and MobileMapper Office, a new GIS and mapping software suite with advanced data collection and processing features. The new suite will first be introduced on the MobileMapper 6 professional GPS/GIS handheld receiver but over time it will be rolled out to the entire line of Ashtech MobileMapper GPS/GIS receivers. The new software suite replaces the previously available Mobile Mapping and MobileMapper 6 Office applications.

The new software suite provides a new graphical interface, common to Field and Office, and it includes all the features and options previously available in Mobile Mapping and MobileMapper 6 Office software.

In addition, MobileMapper Field enables collection of multiple features at the same time, the ability to label collected features, configuration of antenna height, and support of the DXF, MIF or CSV formats. It also offers a direct interface to Laser Technology Inc.’s (LTI) ranger finders. The direct interface enables automatic input of distance and bearing to a distant object to easily collect offsets.

MobileMapper Office has been enriched with new features including an on-screen distance measurement tool, a quality control option to filter out questionable points to improve overall data accuracy and quality. Last but not least, it offers the ability to export collected data to a KML file, providing an excellent way to plot and immediately verify position data against a GoogleTM Earth background map.

“Ashtech accelerates investments in new products and solutions to meet emerging customer requirements and to keep the products easy-to-use. The new MobileMapper Field and MobileMapper Office are a result of this approach, offering a complete set of features and options for virtually every GIS application as well as cross-product compatibility”, said Jacek Pietruczanis, GIS product marketing manager.

New MobileMapper Field and Office software are available free by visiting the Ashtech FTP site for new software downloads. http://www.ashtech.com/en/support/

Current Users can also contact their resellers about the upgrade. Visit http://www.ashtech.com/en/dealerlocator/index.asp

The MobileMapper 6 is an extremely rugged, compact, Microsoft Windows Mobile-based, wireless capable and price-competitive professional GPS/GIS handheld receiver with post-processing option capable of adding sub-meter accuracy performance. Ashtech offers professional GIS and mapping solutions to professionals in a wide range of markets, including forestry, agriculture, natural resources, governments, utilities, or oil and gas.

Contact Information:

Ashtech
http://www.ashtech.com

Topcon Names Smith Director of GNSS Product Management

Fraser Smith, a geomatics engineer with extensive experience in GNSS product research and development (R&D), has been named director of GNSS product management for Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS).

Smith, former R&D manager for Point, Inc., will report to Mark Hornstra, senior vice president, marketing and product management.

About Smith’s appointment, Hornstra said he “will take the leadership role in defining the product line strategies for GNSS products for Topcon and Sokkia.”

He said Smith “has a wealth of experience that will help create our next generation of innovative GNSS products. Fraser’s background will help optimize our development roadmaps and plans to improve product time-to-market and cost performance.”

Smith’s responsibilities will include working closely with the company’s engineering groups, as well as marketing and operations teams to “ensure the development of innovative and exciting products, that continue to be world-class in regard to quality and performance,” Hornstra said.

Contact Information:

Senior Vice President Promotions Announced AT McKim & Creed

Tim Baldwin, PE, Tim Cawood, PLS, Street Lee, PE, and Mark Smith, PE, LEED AP, have been promoted to senior vice presidents at McKim & Creed, an engineering, surveying and planning firm with offices throughout the Southeast.

In their new roles, Cawood will oversee the company’s geomatics (surveying and mapping) services, Lee will be in charge of water and wastewater services, and Smith will manage the development and natural resources business unit. Baldwin will be responsible for business development in the water and wastewater industry.

“These individuals have made significant impacts in their areas of expertise, and we are pleased to recognize and celebrate their accomplishments through this promotion,” said Michael Creed, PE, chairman and CEO of McKim & Creed.

Baldwin joined McKim & Creed in 1991 as a project manager. Cawood came to the company in 1985 as a surveyor, and Lee began his association with McKim & Creed in 1986 as a project engineer. In 2005, Smith joined McKim & Creed as the national director of planning and land development.

McKim & Creed provides engineering, surveying and planning services from offices throughout the Southeast. The company has won numerous awards and accolades, including being named one of the nation’s top architectural/engineering/contracting firms by Public Works and Southeast Construction magazines, and one of the top 200 environmental firms in the United States by Engineering News-Record magazine.

Contact Information:

McKIM & CREED
http://www.mckimcreed.com

ASPRS Announces Daniel Civco as 2010 SAIC/Estes Memorial Teaching Award Winner

Daniel Civco, PhD, a professor in the Department of Natural Resources Management and Engineering at the University of Connecticut, has been named as the recipient of the 2010 SAIC/Estes Memorial Teaching Award.

The SAIC Estes Memorial Teaching Award was inaugurated in 2003 and is named in honor of Professor John E. (“Jack”) Estes, teacher, mentor, scientist, and friend of the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS). This award is designed to recognize individual achievement in the promotion of remote sensing and GIS technology, and applications through educational efforts. Award recipients are chosen based on documented excellence in education, teaching, mentoring and training. The recipient receives a presentation plaque and a $2,000 cash award.

Civco currently serves as Director of the Center for Land use Education and Research (CLEAR) and is Co-founder of the Laboratory for Earth Resources Information Systems (LERIS) as well as a Co-PI of the NASA-funded Regional Earth Resource Applications Center (RESAC) established in 1999. Civco received his BS degree in Natural Resources Conservation in 1974, and the MS and PhD degrees in Plant Science, the former concentrating in Landscape Planning and the latter in Remote Sensing.

Working with students in the classroom, and spending countless hours preparing content for his students is Civco’s true passion. His approach toward education is one based on teaching principles and practices as well as the use of geoprocessing tools, both of which are essential for the effective management of the environment.

Civco is engaged in advising undergraduate students within the geomatics
and other natural resource concentrations. He has served as major advisor to ore than 30 MS and PhD-degree graduate students, as well as serving as Associate Advisor to nearly 70 others. His manuscript “Perspectives on Earth Resources Mapping Education in the United States” provided the impetus for the creation of the ASPRS Remote Sensing Core Curriculum, and it served also as the blueprint for the IAEGS curriculum.

He is a well-published scholar, and received the ESRI Award for Best Scientific Paper in GIS in 1997 and in 2001, and second place for the 1999 ERDAS Award for the Best Scientific Paper in Remote Sensing. In 2007 he received the National Award from the Program for Excellence in College and University Teaching in the Food and Agricultural Sciences, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the highest honor an educator in the field of agriculture and natural resources can
receive.

In expressing his appreciation to ASPRS for this award Civco said, “Receiving an award bearing Dr. Estes’ name is truly an honor, and to be mentioned in the same company as past recipients -- words can’t describe what that means to me. Though I got to know him only in the latter years of his life, I admired and respected Jack throughout my entire professional career. I am no Jack Estes, but I have tried to aspire to the principals and ideals that defined him. Jack was an exceptional scholar, mentor, leader, and gentleman.”

In addition to his excellence in teaching, Civco has been very active in ASPRS. In his first term as Chair of the ASPRS Education and Professional Development Committee, he was instrumental in assisting then President Roger Hoffer in establishing the ASPRS International Educational Literature Award. He was a Director for the New England Region, served on the National Board of Directors from 2002 thru 2004, was elected Director of the Remote Sensing Applications Division in 2000, and served as Chairman of the ASPRS Education and Professional Development Committee, of which he will again be Chair in April 2010. He received an ASPRS Fellow Award in 2003.

The Award, with funding provided by Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), will be presented in April at the ASPRS 2010 Annual Conference in San Diego California.

Contact Information:

New Leica IPAS Freebird saves up to 25% on sensor mission cost

Leica Geosystems announces a new version of its leading IPAS GNSS-IMU processing software. The new Leica IPAS Freebird is designed to improve flight economy and simplify GNSS-IMU processing.

The new Leica IPAS Freebird allows to economize airborne data acquisition by up to 25%. Leica IPAS Freebird no longer requires a continuous lock of satellites and frees up your mission planning by allowing much tighter turns between flight lines. The results are up to 25% improvement in flight economy for sensor missions and time saving of several minutes per turn.

Previously, GNSS-IMU processing required separate steps for GNSS trajectory and IMU processing. The all new Leica IPAS Freebird with IPAS TC allows you to combine those steps into one by using GNSS raw measurements and tightly coupled GNSS-IMU processing.

"We are very pleased with this latest addition to our very successful IPAS product line. The new Leica IPAS Freebird will set new standards in efficient data acquisition and accurate image georeferencing," says Ruedi Wagner, Product Manager for Airborne Imaging Sensors. "Leica IPAS Freebird will be standard in our entire product portfolio of imaging and LIDAR sensors. And of course, as is
customary for our entire airborne sensor product line, we are offering upgrade possibilities to our existing customers. Leica IPAS Freebird allows you to cut corners, not quality."

Contact Information:

Leica Geosystems
http://www.leica-geosystems.com

LizardTech Releases LiDAR Compressor 1.1

LizardTech, a division of Celartem Inc. and a provider of software solutions for managing and distributing geospatial content, announced the newest release of LiDAR Compressor, which enables users to turn giant point cloud data sets into efficient MrSID files, at the International LiDAR Mapping Forum (ILMF) this week in Denver, Colo.

This latest release, version 1.1, offers improved lossless compression performance, better data quality for lossy compression and many other user interface improvements. “We’re very excited to be able to offer this improved version to our customers,” said Jon Skiffington, director of marketing. “By adding new features
such as better progress metering and improved logging, along with support for
MG4 in third-party applications such as ArcGIS 3D Analyst and Merrick MARS, our
customers are able to easily compress and utilize all of the information in their point cloud datasets.” Demonstrations of these new features along with those of LizardTech’s entire line of geospatial products will take place in booth #103.

In addition, two members of LizardTech’s management team will be participating in
forum presentations. Jon Skiffington hosts “How Best to Manage and Store LiDAR Data” from 12:00pm-12:30pm on Thursday, March 4, while Engineering Manager Michael Rosen leads “LiDAR Data Compression with MrSID Generation 4” from 10:30am-11:00am on Friday, March 5. Both presentations address several of LizardTech’s technological innovations, including the new wavelet-based technique for compressing LiDAR data sets as well as MrSID Generation 4, the latest version
of the trusted MrSID format.

A trial version of LiDAR Compressor is available as a free download on LizardTech’s website at http://www.lizardtech.com/download/.

Contact Information:

LizardTech
http://www.lizardtech.com

Cobb named Topcon Director of Agriculture Product Management

Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS) announces that Kevin Cobb has joined the company as director of product management and business development for precision agriculture products.

Cobb was formerly with AGCO Corporation as advanced technologies manager. He will report to Mark Hornstra, senior vice president, marketing and product management.

Cobb has 20 years of experience in the precision agriculture business. “When you combine his product knowledge with the relationships he has established in the industry over the years,” Hornstra said, “you have a combination we gladly welcome to Topcon’s product management team.

“Kevin’s history in the industry and his work in emerging technologies will strengthen the product strategy development that supports Topcon’s Precision Agriculture Business Unit,” Hornstra said.

On joining the company, Cobb said, “Topcon has an enormous amount of core technology and developmental capabilities. I will use what I have learned over the years to provide leadership – emphasizing clear communications and effective working relationships both inside and outside the company.”

Contact Information:

Quorum Introduces Latest Version of Geospatial Information System – Quorum GIS

Quorum Business Solutions, Inc. (Quorum), a leading provider of business and information technology solutions for the oil, gas, and renewable energy industry, announces the release of the latest version of Quorum GIS. Quorum GIS is a geospatial information system that helps manage GIS data for map presentation and spatial analysis of various data sources throughout the enterprise.

The latest release of Quorum GIS incorporates many enhancements that help improve and streamline operations throughout the land department and the organization as a whole. Some of these enhancements include: integration to
Quorum Land such as new tract interest summary by depth severance; support for multiple ESRI versions, including optimized Map Service Definition (MSD) support for ArcGIS 9.3.1; new map properties and tools to increase quality and performance through map caching; and enhanced map and layer security.

Founded on the industry standard ESRI platform, Quorum GIS takes an enterprise-wide approach to managing GIS data through securing maps, layers and GIS tools. Quorum GIS minimizes manual and labor-intensive drafting processes by allowing the automatic generation of GIS polygons from legal descriptions. Typically used in land organizations, Quorum GIS can also be leveraged for use across various other departments, including production, operations, contract administration and accounting.

Contact Information:

Quorum Business Solutions
http://www.qbsol.com

Sidwell to Present at 2010 GIS/CAMA Technologies Conference

St. Charles, IL – Sidwell’s Mark Dupree, Director of GIS Sales, has been selected to present multiple sessions at the upcoming 14th Annual GIS/CAMA Technologies conference in Little Rock, Arkansas. These sessions will feature critical information on the application of GIS technology to data development and management as well as successful sharing of geospatial data between local government entities. This conference is a valuable educational and networking event for any Professionals in Property Assessment, Tax Administration, Mapping and Information Technology.

Dupree’s first session on March 9, ‘GIS: Building a Strong Foundation’, will look at standards integral to the foundation of any GIS to ensure its longevity and value throughout an enterprise. Understanding how the GIS was built will allow current and future users to effectively apply technology to improve and enhance their operation and maximize their investment in GIS.

The second session, which takes place on March 10, is ‘Reaching Across Borders with GIS’. This session features a case study on multi-jurisdictional sharing of geospatial data between a group of local government entities, and how these counties were able to work together to set standards and achieve their goal of effectively sharing data between multiple taxing districts, emergency service districts, and municipalities that cross county boundaries.

These sessions are approved for IAAO training credits, and Mr. Dupree is an IAAO-certified instructor, possesses the designation of GISP from the GIS Certification Institute, and has previously served as both the co-chair and chair of IAAO’s Mapping/GIS Section. The Sidwell Company will also be exhibiting at the GIS/CAMA Technologies Conference. Visit the Sidwell team at Booth 113 during the conference to learn about the latest set of tools for address management, and see them unveil their next generation of rich, interactive web site interfaces, which combine the best of ESRI and Silverlight tool sets.

Contact Information:

The Sidwell Company
http://www.sidwellco.com
Karen Fouts, Marketing Manager
630-549-1065
kfouts@sidwellco.com

Terrasolid and Bentley Systems have entered a partner agreement

Terrasolid Ltd., a world-leading developer of software solutions for handling airborne and mobile scanned laser point clouds, and Bentley Systems, Incorporated, the leading company dedicated to providing comprehensive software solutions for the infrastructure that sustains our world, have signed a partner agreement that enables Terrasolid to sell MicroStation bundled with its product suite.

TerraScan, TerraMatch, TerraPhoto and TerraModeler form a leading software solution for the handling of airborne and mobile laser scanned point clouds.

“With Terrasolid products running on MicroStation, users can calibrate, match, and classify the point clouds and create true ortho photos in their design environment,” says Mika Salolahti, business development manager at Terrasolid. “This agreement will help us tremendously in our sales efforts, as our customers are often not
existing Bentley users. To aid current and future development for MicroStation, we are also pleased to announce that we have joined the Bentley Developer Network.”

Contact Information:

Terrasolid Ltd, Bentley Systems
http://www.terrasolid.fi

Topcon provides IP-S2 3D dataset to Autodesk for promotion

Topcon Positioning Systems announced that it recently signed a data license agreement with Autodesk, Inc., a world leader in 2D and 3D design, engineering and entertainment software.

The agreement authorizes Autodesk to use Topcon’s IP-S2 3D Mobile Mapping System data sets in the advertising, marketing, training and distribution of their software where desired. The IP-S2 datasets are in the form of extensive geo-referenced, colorized point clouds.

Topcon is a member of the Autodesk Developer Network, and provides sample data to assist in targeted software product development.

The IP-S2 features dual-frequency GNSS tracking, high-accuracy IMU integration and odometry for fast, safe data collection at a cost well below conventional ground mapping methods.

Typical applications of the IP-S2 are: 3D Mobile mapping and surveying; Roadway condition assessments; Pipelines, Railways, Utility Corridors, Waterways; Homeland Security; and Disaster Management. Charles Rihner, vice president of Topcon’s Emerging Business Unit, said, “We are excited to provide the IP-S2 datasets to Autodesk as we believe it enables them to highlight the many features of their software in a way that reflects their customer’s current and future requirements.”

Contact Information:

Leica AR10

Leica Geosystems introduces the AR10 high performance wideband GNSS antenna with integrated radome and large ground plane. The AR10 uses an all new antenna technology to provide exceptional signal tracking, phase centre accuracy and multipath suppression. With its integrated radome, rugged construction and light
weight the AR10 is perfect for reference station, monitoring and campaign applications.

Designed from the ground up for wideband tracking, the new wideband antenna technology introduced in the AR10 provides superior low elevation tracking, multipath suppression and antenna phase centre accuracy across all frequency bands. An all new low noise amplifier (LNA) is used to provide exceptional low noise for superior measurement quality. The new LNA technology also has excellent out of band rejection, helping to significantly reduce potential interference due to jamming.

Integrated Radome
Thanks to the integrated radome, the AR10 prevents build up of snow which could otherwise degrade signal quality. The non-spherical radome is designed for optimal signal quality and has the added benefit of discouraging birds from perching on the antenna, a common source of signal attenuation with rounded radomes. The aerodynamic shape of the antenna reduces wind loading and together with the light weight ensures that the AR10 can be used with a variety of antenna masts or as a field or campaign base on a tripod. Constructed using a robust and UV
resistant enclosure the AR10 is made to withstand extreme temperature, humidity, dust, salt, solar radiation, pollution, shock and vibration.

Future Proof
With emerging satellite systems close on the horizon, such as the European Galileo system and the Chinese Compass (Beidou 2) system, it is more important than ever before to have a true GNSS antenna. In line with Leica Geosystems “future proof” philosophy, the AR10 has been designed for all existing and currently planned signals of the GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and Compass global navigation satellite systems and the SBAS, QZSS, Gagan, OmniSTAR and other L-band augmentation systems.

Contact Information:

Leica Geosystems
http://www.leica-geosystems.com

PCI Geomatics Signs Million Dollar Contract with BSEI for an Automated Image Production System

PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of geo-imaging software and systems, is pleased to announce it has signed a million dollar contract with Beijing Space Eye Innovation Technology Co. Ltd. (BSEI) to supply an automated image processing system to the China Centre for Resources Satellite Data and Application.

Under the terms of the contract, PCI Geomatics has been entrusted to provide an advanced image processing system for the automatic registration and mosaicking of multi-sensor imagery.

The system includes PCI’s advanced image processing technology, which employs NVIDIA Graphic Processing Units (GPUs) to significantly accelerate the automation steps. The contract also includes the provision of professional services, training, and ongoing support.

“PCI Geomatics has established a strong and successful relationship with BSEI,” said Yubin Xin, General Manager of PCI Beijing Technology Corporation Ltd. “This contract highlights the value of PCI’s new robust, automated image processing systems which employ GPU technology, along with the importance of having local services provided for via the PCI Beijing office.”

“We selected PCI Geomatics and their leading edge innovative solutions to provide us with the reliability and scalability we need to support this project,” said Yafu Sun, Vice General Manager of Beijing Space Eye Innovation Technology Co. Ltd.

BSEI is an exclusive reseller of PCI Geomatics' flagship software Geomatica in China.

For additional information on Beijing Space Eye Innovation Technology Co. Ltd, please visit: http://www.bsei.com.cn/.

Contact Information:

PCI Geomatics
http://www.pcigeomatics.com

Océ North America Launches the First Single Footprint System for Wide Format Color and Black & White

Océ, an international leader in digital document management and delivery, today announced the North American launch of the Océ ColorWave 300, the world’s first single footprint multifunction system that can print, copy and scan wide format documents in both color and black & white.

Saves space and investment costs
Companies no longer have to invest in separate systems for large format color and black & white documents. The new Océ ColorWave 300 multifunction printer is a true single footprint system for printing, copying and scanning. It is perfect for businesses with limited space as only one system is needed instead of two to print in both color and black & white, thereby saving floor space. It offers architects, engineering, construction and commercial printing companies an ideal alternative to conventional wide format toner systems.

Printing, copying and scanning – in color and black & white
Businesses can print, copy and scan color and black & white wide format documents on the Océ ColorWave 300 multifunction printer. It is the first system with a truly integrated scanner, meaning all functions can be controlled from one simple user panel, and there is only one IP address to maintain. Unique Océ technologies, like Océ Image Logic and Océ Dynamic Switching, ensure first-time-right results. The powerful controller swiftly handles the most popular file formats – HPGL/2, PDF, DWF, and JPEG – without sacrificing speed. Users can print and scan documents via a USB flash drive.

Helps businesses print sustainably
This system offers an economical way to add color to enhance technical documents and produce color promotional materials. It delivers the ease of use and workflow efficiency of an Océ black & white system and the versatility of a color printer. As it is based on thermal inkjet technology, the system does not produce any ozone, dust or odors.

Contact Information:

Océ
http://www.oceusa.com

ASPRS Is Now on Twitter

ASPRS is now on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ASPRSorg. Members and those interested in the activities of the Society are invited to follow the account to access the latest information with regard to Society news, conferences, publications and
much more. Tweets will include reminders of conference deadlines, notices of upcoming ASPRS webinars and new book releases, and headlines of Society press releases.

ASPRS will use #ASPRS10 as the official hashtag for tweets about the ASPRS Annual Meeting in San Diego in late April, and invites everyone to use it as they
tweet about their plans.

"Our use of social media is a natural part of our effort to be more connected with
our members and others who follow the geospatial information sciences and technologies,” said ASPRS Executive Director James Plasker.

Contact Information:

Topcon’s GLS-1500 Laser Scanner

Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS) announced a new laser scanner, the GLS-1500, that speeds up point cloud collection – 30,000 points per second – in an ‘all-in-one’ design to reduce the amount of equipment needed in the field.

“Topcon’s Precise Scan technology data collection – at 30,000 points per second and a 150 meter range – sets the bar for the industry,” Fred Moser, Topcon laser scanner sales manager, said. “The GLS-1500 is 10 times faster than the previous model.

“The GLS-1500 is designed to provide quick and hassle-free setups to save time and improve productivity,” Moser said. “Portability, accuracy and dependability are key customer needs. The GLS-1500 meets those needs in an all on-board, one-person instrument, that saves time and labor costs.”

It has a built-in 2.0 megapixel digital camera so when connected to a PC and using Topcon’s ScanMaster software, a live video feed of the job site can be streamed to aid in scan setup and data acquisition. Also, the GLS-1500 has an onboard data collector with keypad and LCD display which allows it to be used as a stand-alone laser scanner.

Data collected from the GLS-1500 can be stored onboard on an SD memory card or logged into a PC. Moser said, “With the GLS-1500’s built-in wireless LAN connection, you can control the scanner on a PC from the comfort of your vehicle.”

Topcon’s Precise Scan Technology is an innovation that allows consistent, high accuracy measurements over a wide range of distances. Utilizing lens arrays, and SAW filtering, the GLS-1500 provides unparalleled stable and precise accuracy measurements from 1 – 150 meters.

The GLS-1500 features include:
-- 30,000 precise points per second. 10 times faster data collection than previous models;
-- Precise Scan Technology for industry-leading clean point cloud data;
-- Lens array optics technology to maintain distance accuracy from 1-150 meters;
-- Additional ranging past 330 meters;
-- Onboard scan control software stores scan data and images to a standard SD card for easy download;
-- Eye-safe and invisible Class 1 laser.

“With the Class 1 laser classification, users can scan near airports, busy traffic areas, and populated areas with no effect to the people or the environment.” Moser said. The use of a Class 1 invisible laser offers the benefit of low power consumption. “With lower power consumption, the GLS-1500 can operate for longer times with fewer battery changes and that saves time on the job.”

Moser said, “The GLS-1500 has what the operator needs onboard in the field – in one instrument. It is yet another example of Topcon’s ‘field-to-finish’ solutions for surveyors and civil engineers.”

Contact Information:

Leica Geosystems Launches SmartNet North America

Leica Geosystems, Inc. is proud to announce the launch of SmartNet North America. SmartNet is a subscription based service offering GNSS Network RTK corrections throughout North America with Leica Geosystems directly operating, managing, and maintaining all segments of the network. From the reference stations in the field to the server and IT infrastructure, SmartNet offers a turnkey solution.

SmartNet is built on the powerful Leica Geosystems GNSS Spider software providing a variety of real-time data products to the end-user. With Leica MAX, which is based on the RTCM 3.1 Master Auxiliary Concept (the first and only international Network RTK Standard), legacy receivers not capable of using newer formats will be able to utilize Leica iMAX as well as other common RTK data formats. SmartNet is open to all data formats, offering a GNSS RTK solution to anyone in the precision measurement marketplace.

The Director of Reference Station Operations at Leica Geosystems, Wendy Watson states “Leica Geosystems has a long list of affiliate networks using our GNSS Spider software technology to cover both local and statewide markets; however with the SmartNet network Leica Geosystems is providing the largest and only North American wide GNSS RTK Network available in the market today. We do everything from the reconnaissance and installation of the reference stations themselves, managing subscriptions services, to monitoring the Network’s health and operation 24/7.”

SmartNet has opened the doors to new markets in precision measurement across many industries such as Precision Agriculture and GIS, while at the same time providing a stable and reliable infrastructure for the traditional construction and surveying applications. Watson continues, “We built SmartNet to provide high-precision, high-availability Network RTK corrections for any application, using any constellation, while at the same time being open to all. We are very excited to offer this to the market and have ambitious expansion plans to cover even more territory in North America. “

SmartNet North America is supported by a new website that was developed to be an information portal for users. With detailed information for applications, a map of the current North American coverage, as well as providing information about the Leica Geosystems affiliate networks available in North America, users can easily see what type of network coverage is available to them. The website also provides a host of other information including an introduction to RTK networks and methods, a glossary of common terms and acronyms, products associated with GNSS networks, configuration and connection guides, as well as news and announcements.

The website is not limited to North America. A SmartNet World link is also available to similar Leica subscription based services operating in the UK, Ireland, Denmark, Italy, Australia, and Bahrain along with many others around the world.

Contact Information:

Leica Geosystems
http://smartnet.leica-geosystems.us

RapidEye Delivers Satellite Images of Chile's Damaged City of Concepción

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that it has imaged the area next to the epicenter of Saturday's heavy 8.8-magnitude earthquake in Chile.

The images cover a total area of 13,125 km² and show the most damaged area around the city of Concepción. They were taken on Saturday, February 27th, 2010 at around 11:00 a.m. local time, only a few hours after the earthquake hit the area at 3:34 a.m. in the morning local time. In order to be able to run change detection analyses, RapidEye also has images available of the very same area take a couple of days before the event.

RapidEye is concentrating on delivering these and future images of the region at no cost to governmental and non governmental help organizations and institutions in need of the most current Earth Observation information available for this region. If your organization is involved in emergency efforts for this devastating event, please contact sales@rapideye.de. Additionally, RapidEye makes the imagery available for purchase on the Geodata Kiosk at www.geodatakiosk.com. General inquiries for the imagery can be sent to sales@rapideye.de. More information on RapidEye Products and Services can be found at the company’s website www.rapideye.de.

RapidEye has made these images available for editorial use at their website www.rapideye.de. They may be published for editorial use only, in hard copy, electronic or in broadcast format, provided that credit is provided to “RapidEye” on all such products.

Contact Information:

RapidEye
http://www.rapideye.de

Sidwell to Provide GIS Data Enhancements for Washington County, AR

Washington County, Arkansas is located in the northwestern part of the state and centers around Fayetteville, home of the University of Arkansas Razorbacks. Although the County has a well-established and robust GIS in place to support the needs of the County assessment operations, they were in search of a more efficient means by which to calculate soils valuations for their agricultural tax parcels. They also knew that their existing data set would require enhancements and updates in order to ensure that it contained all necessary information required for accurate calculation of their ag parcel values. Washington County chose The Sidwell Company to provide GIS data enhancements and a GIS-based agricultural assessment solution to meet these needs.

For this project, Sidwell’s team will review and update all existing agricultural land use data to ensure that it fits to current aerial imagery, with special attention being given to locating the approximately 8,000 home sites across the county and updating the areas of forest cover. This enhanced agricultural land use data will support the parcel/soils acreage calculations that will be performed using Sidwell’s Farmland Assessment and Report Management System (FARMS^®) software. One distinctive advantage of this ArcGIS^®-compliant software solution for agricultural tax assessment is the ease with which the enhanced data can be processed to generate accurate and completed acreage calculations and operate within their existing GIS software environment. The resultant acreage calculations can be exported to various formats for the purposes of complete system integration. Additional features of the software module include the ability to set up user-defined tolerances for easily identifying discrepancies between assessed and measured acreages, the ability to then “normalize” these acreage discrepancies, and the capabilities to create customized thematic maps for presentation, set spot symbol placements and record related comments for each parcel. Final delivery of Washington County’s enhanced GIS data will be made in ESRI’s Geodatabase format.

Washington County joins the more than 100-strong family of local government users of Sidwell’s robust and efficient farmland assessment software solution. The County will realize benefit in the enhancement of their data set, consistency in their acreage calculations and the efficiencies in agricultural assessment valuation provided by the FARMS product.

Contact Information:

The Sidwell Company
http://www.sidwellco.com
Karen Fouts, Marketing Manager
630-549-1065
kfouts@sidwellco.com

Enhanced GPS Functions Released in SuperPad 3

SuperPad 3 enables users to set the coordinates of GPS start point

SuperGeo Technologies, the leading global provider of complete GIS software and solutions, releases more enhanced GPS functions in SuperPad 3, its full-function mobile GIS software.

SuperPad 3 is a set of full-function mobile GIS software. Its powerful GIS functions effectively assist field surveyors in collecting, editing, measuring spatial data with mobile devices, and other survey equipments, such as GPS.

With the technology advancement, GPS is one of the essential equipments for field surveyors now. With GPS device, field surveyors can not only manage the current position and use the navigation functions, but also employ GPS functions to position and edit spatial data.

The significantly enhanced GPS functions in SuperPad 3 retain the functions provided in SuperPad 2.x version, like GPS navigation, waypoint creating, and spatial data collection. As to the GPS status display, SuperPad 3 has the new GPS Status Bar. Through the visualization settings, field surveyors will be able to recognize the GPS information and status in the map window without opening other windows.

In terms of GPS settings, SuperPad 3 provides the coordinates of the GPS navigation start point, GPS precision, warning messages, and so on. Therefore, when field surveyors work with GPS, the working efficiency can be greatly improved.

Download and experience the powerful GPS functions in SuperPad 3 at http://www.supergeotek.com/download_6.aspx .

Contact Information:

SuperGeo Technologies
http://www.supergeotek.com/index.aspx
Sarah Liu
886-2-25467700
sarahliu@supergeotek.com

New Zealand RapidEye Capture Now Underway

RapidEye satellite imagery coverage over New Zealand at 20 February 2010

RapidEye satellite imagery now extends across areas of New Zealand. In the last few weeks substantial coverage with less than 20% cloud has been placed in the archives.

“The quick collection of satellite imagery by RapidEye has demonstrated one of the systems advantages. RapidEye can routinely capture large areas in short time frames, providing clients with timely, cost-effective 5m orthoproducts” says Dr Gail Kelly, Business Development Manager of AAM “This imagery will prove useful for a wide range of applications.”

RapidEye is the only commercial geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites. AAM is the distributor in Oceania for satellite data products from RapidEye. If you would like to request a quotation or obtain a data sample for New Zealand, please email us at imagery@aamgroup.com

For the latest brochure and information about RapidEye archive imagery, visit www.aamgroup.com/rapideye

Contact Information:

AAM
http://www.aamgroup.com
Megan Bock, Marketing Coordinator
07 3620 3111
m.bock@aamgroup.com

Salmon Joins PBS&J’s Applied Technologies Group

Frank Salmon, GISP, joined PBS&J’s design and federal group as a project manager for the applied technologies group (ATG). Salmon will be responsible for growing the ATG’s GIS and information technology practice in the central Florida region.

With more than 15 years of GIS experience, Salmon has extensive expertise in developing decision support systems and performing spatial analyses using ESRI’s ArcGIS products. His background also includes responsibility for regional and national GIS coordination, ArcGIS programming, ArcGIS server development and
administration, software testing, environmental assessments, and project management within the engineering and environmental industry. He currently serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Central Florida, teaching fundamental theory of GIS and offering practical, hands-on training using ArcGIS version 9.3.

Salmon is a member of the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association (URISA). In 2000, he was awarded the Graduate Project of the Year award by the North Carolina Chapter of the American Planning Association for his project “GIS-Based Suitability Assessment for a Signature Park Location, Concord, NC.”
“We are truly excited to bring Frank on board. We are confident that his experience and technical knowledge will be of great benefit to our existing and future ATG clients,” says Donna Huey, ATG vice president.

Frank holds a M.A. in Geography from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He received his B.S. in Geography and a minor in Computer Science from Southern Connecticut State University. He can be reached in PBS&J’s Orlando office at 407.647.7275, or by e-mail at fwsalmon@pbsj.com.

Contact Information:

PBS&J
http://www.pbsj.com

Merrick Acquiring LiDAR and Hyperspectral Data for RDECOM-STTC Project

Merrick & Company is acquiring and processing light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data and visible near infrared (VNIR) hyperspectral imagery for a U.S. Army Simulation and Training Technology Center (STTC) project, located in Orlando, Florida. The work is being done under a contract for Applied Research Associates, a 1,400-person, international research and engineering company.

STTC’s mission is to ensure the dominance of the U.S. Army by creating, integrating, and delivering technology-enabled solutions. These advanced technology simulators provide key training opportunities for the war fighter.
The collected data will provide the basis for urban terrain modeling and will be used to design a 3D simulation training model. The data provided includes 128 spectral bands and .5 meter pixel resolution VNIR hyperspectral imagery and 0.5 meter ground sample distance (GSD) LIDAR data in order to provide a very high fidelity data set. Features that will be extracted from the data include bare earth, building footprints, tree canopy points and polygons, surface hydrology, road networks, and utilities. The data is being collected over a 19-square-mile area.

Merrick & Company, a $100 million geospatial solutions, surveying, engineering,
architecture, and design-build firm, serves domestic and international clients in the geospatial technologies, mapping, energy, security, and life sciences markets. With a focus on geospatial surveying and remote sensing services ( Merrick
GeoSpatial Solutions) , the firm’s most recent work includes light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data acquisition in Texas for oil and gas exploration, acquiring LiDAR data for the Federal Emergency Management Association’s dam and levee recertification program, providing services to Xcel Energy, and providing services to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Bureau of Land Management.

Applied Research Associates, an employee-owned firm, was founded in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1979 and now has offices throughout the U.S. and Canada. The firm is staffed with advanced degree engineers and physical scientists with the capabilities to produce solutions for the technically complex needs of national defense and aerospace, homeland safety and security, transportation, and commercial applications.

Contact Information:

Merrick & Company
http://www.merrick.com

PCI Geomatics Receives Contract to Assist MDA with Geospatial Solution

PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of geo-imaging software and systems, has announced today it has signed a significant six-figure contract with MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. (MDA) to develop and deploy an enterprise level image management system to support the processing of RADARSAT-2 satellite imagery for an international customer.

PCI Geomatics offers image processing and analysis solutions through its GeomaticaX technology, an extension of its desktop software converted to pluggable functions. It’s comprised of an extensive list of software functions used for building workflows which can be linked in unassisted processing chains to produce fully automated image and information products. The GeomaticaX product line encompasses the Professional Software Development Kit (ProSDK), ProLines automated workflows, and the GeoImaging Accelerator.

Contact Information:

PCI Geomatics
http://www.pcigeomatics.com

GTX Corporation Announces Support for Windows 7 and 64-bit Computing

View PDF Now

Contact Information:

GTX Corporation
http://www.gtx.com

Topcon provides IP-S2 3D Dataset to Autodesk for Promotion

Topcon Positioning Systems announced that it recently signed a data license agreement with Autodesk, Inc., a world leader in 2D and 3D design, engineering and entertainment software.

The agreement authorizes Autodesk to use Topcon’s IP-S2 3D Mobile Mapping System data sets in the advertising, marketing, training and distribution of their software where desired. The IP-S2 datasets are in the form of extensive geo-referenced, colorized point clouds.

Topcon is a member of the Autodesk Developer Network, and provides sample data to assist in targeted software product development.

The IP-S2 features dual-frequency GNSS tracking, high-accuracy IMU integration and odometry for fast, safe data collection at a cost well below conventional ground mapping methods.

Typical applications of the IP-S2 are:
-- 3D Mobile mapping and surveying;
-- Roadway condition assessments;
-- Pipelines, Railways, Utility Corridors, Waterways;
-- Homeland Security; and
-- Disaster Management.

Charles Rihner, vice president of Topcon’s Emerging Business Unit, said, “We are excited to provide the IP-S2 datasets to Autodesk as we believe it enables them to highlight the many features of their software in a way that reflects their customer’s current and future requirements.”

Contact Information:

Leica Zeno GIS Handhelds

Leica Geosystems' Leica Zeno GIS products within the Leica Viva family targeting the data collection market is available. These new handhelds provides a one-click automated workflow between the field and office to manage and maintain assets, inspect infrastructure, respond to emergencies, ensure public safety, explore natural resources and conduct as-built and incident mapping with ease.

Leica Geosystems' Leica Zeno GIS products within the Leica Viva family targeting the data collection market is available. These new handhelds provides a one-click automated workflow between the field and office to manage and maintain assets, inspect infrastructure, respond to emergencies, ensure public safety, explore natural resources and conduct as-built and incident mapping with ease.

The Leica Zeno 10 provides a colour graphic display in portrait format and a numeric keypad. Alternatively users have the choice to purchase the larger Leica Zeno 15 with a full QWERTY keyboard and a display in landscape format.

Both GNSS/GIS devices support:
• fully rugged GNSS/GIS handheld working in the most demanding environments
• dual-constellation (GPS/GLONASS) and SBAS tracking
• Zeno Field software based on an OEM version of the popular ESRI ArcPad 8 software enhanced with GNSS functionality
• an integrated digital camera linking photos to feature locations
• from sub-metreto decimeter accuracy

The Leica Zeno Field software provides a range of functions to easily control the integrated GNSS receiver and to manage the data collection process such as GNSS raw data logging, easy handling of GNSS real-time configurations, feature accuracy management, and an automated workflow between the field and office.

With Leica Zeno, Leica Geosystems introduces EasyIn, the simplest dataflow between the field and office. It simultaneously checks in features and GNSS raw data, automatically post-processes GNSS observations and updates feature vertices to the most accurate location in one easy, automated step. Together with Zeno Office users can easily manage feature quality over time and benefit from automated import and export functions to a wide range of different formats such
as ArcGIS geodatabase, shapefile, dxf, dgn, and dwg. Zeno Office is also available as an extension to ArcGIS Desktop.

Contact Information:

Leica
http://www.leica-geosystems.com

Tucson Company Surv-Kap, LLC. Has New Owners

John and Helen Baffert have purchased Surv-Kap, LLC. from Clements National Company in Chicago, Illinois. John Baffert has served as president of the Tucson company since 2004.

Founded in 1972, Surv-Kap manufactures and distributes land survey markers and monument products for the professional surveyor industry. The company serves customers in all fifty states and Canada and with products in use from the Antarctica to the Bahamas.

Baffert, a native of Nogales, Arizona, graduated from Bethany College in Santa Cruz, California. He also holds a Masters Degree from Webster University, St. Louis, Missouri.

Contact Information:

Surv-kap
http://www.surv-kap.com

AAMHatch Changes Name to AAM

AAM is celebrating a name change and 50 years of service

We are pleased to announce that as of 1st March, AAMHatch Pty Ltd will be known as AAM Pty Ltd.

The name change coincides with our partner, Hatch Associates, exiting from its partial ownership in our company. We thank Hatch for their contribution to our business over the past six years.

Whilst in many ways, 2010 will be "business as usual" for AAM, the new name and change of ownership will see exciting new developments for AAM in the Year of the Tiger. In the meantime, AAM will continue its focus on professional products and services for our clients throughout Australia, New Zealand, Africa and Asia whilst striving for continuous improvement and innovation in all of our activities.

We now have a new domain name resulting in a new web address and new email format:
www.aamgroup.com , info@aamgroup.com or j.bloggs@aamgroup.com (initial.surname@aamgroup.com)

We look forward to meeting with our clients and partners over the comings months. Our familiar logo will prevail so look out for our staff at trade booths at industry events and watch our website for the latest AAM developments.
If you have any questions concerning our new name or would like to discuss any new project opportunities, please contact us on info@aamgroup.com

Contact Information:

AAM
http://www.aamgroup.com
Megan Bock
07 3620 3111
m.bock@aamgroup.com

Olson Re-elected COFPAES Chairman; Dolan Named Chairman-Elect

The Council on Federal Procurement of Architectural and Engineering Services (COFPAES) announced the re-election of Patrick M. "Pat" Olson, PE, PLS, CP (Aero-Metric, Inc., Sheboygan, WI) to the position of Chairman and the selection of Joseph M. "Joe" Dolan, PLS, PP (Dolan & Associates, Atlantic City, NJ) as Chairman-Elect.

Olson was elected to a second one year term by the delegates from the five COFPAES member organizations during the council's meeting in Washington, DC.
Olson is President and Chief Executive Officer of Aero-Metric, Inc. a professional geospatial services firm headquartered in Sheboygan, WI with nine locations throughout the United States. He has been the COFPAES delegate representing MAPPS since 2005 and most recently served as COFPAES Treasurer. Olson earned a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. He was the owner and chief operating officer of a professional engineering practice in Oshkosh, Wisconsin from 1972-1977 and worked for Donohue & Associates, a large civil and environmental engineering firm from 1977-1991. An active MAPPS member, Olson serves as Chairman of the MAPPS-USGS agency liaison committee and is a member of the MAPPS Political Action Committee (PAC).

Dolan is Vice President of Dolan & Associates, a full service land surveying firm in Atlantic City, NJ. He has served as the American Congress on Surveying and Mapping (ACSM) delegate to COFPAES and as Treasurer of COFPAES, a position to which he was also re-elected. Dolan has worked in private practice and municipal government for more than 30 years and has served as an instructor and advisor to several post secondary schools in surveying. He is a past Director of ACSM and a past President of the National Society of Professional Surveyors (NSPS), a member organization of ACSM.

"The COFPAES delegates made a wise choice in re-electing Pat as Chairman and Joe Dolan as Chairman-Elect," said John Palatiello, COFPAES Administrator. "Their knowledge of Federal procurement procedures, dedication to qualifications based selection (QBS), and leadership skills will serve COFPAES and the community well. As COFPAES works to promote QBS, reform the FAR retainage provisions, and build livable communities and a vibrant infrastructure, these professionals are leading the practice in our coalition."

Contact Information:

COFPAES
http://www.cofpaes.org

ESRI Announces Relationship with Amazon Web Services

As part of its commitment to support cloud computing, ESRI is collaborating with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to join the growing community of AWS Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) building services and solutions in the cloud computing environment.

In the debut of collaboration, AWS will be a Gold Sponsor at the ESRI Federal User Conference in Washington, D.C., February 17–19. In addition to the many cloud discussions that will occur at this event, attendees will have the opportunity to learn about the complexities and concerns of cloud computing security at a dedicated technical session. This new AWS relationship will serve the ESRI user community into the future as cloud computing continues to move quickly into the IT mainstream, becoming a convention in business.

"We have a growing user base that's interested in cloud computing and the benefits it promises," says Jack Dangermond, president, ESRI. "We're excited about working with Amazon Web Services and joining their software vendor community. We'll continue to move forward to provide leading solutions that will meet customer needs now and into the future."

"ArcGIS provides a standards-based platform for spatial analysis, data management, and mapping. Making ArcGIS available via cloud computing will give customers a secure, scalable, and easy-to-deploy Web option for enterprise data visualization and geospatial analytics."

Contact Information:

ESRI
http://www.esri.com/amazon

Optech’s Next-Generation CMS V400 Released

Optech Incorporated, the leading manufacturer of advanced lidar survey instruments, today announced the release of its next-generation Cavity Monitoring System, the CMS V400.

The CMS V400 is the ideal scanning solution for dangerous and inaccessible cavities, offering improved safety in standard mining operations: the CMS measuring head is extended into hazardous or inaccessible areas while the user stands clear. Mine operation efficiency is increased by using CMS data to gain accurate insight into the mine's actual structure and the results of blasting, and mine profitability is increased by verifying the actual cavity size, orientation and production. The system is easy to transport and set up, and is fully programmable, allowing the user to define scan parameters such as elevation step, azimuth step and scan limits.

The CMS V400 is completely revamped from previous models, delivering a faster, more robust, sleek package that delivers four times the point density in half the time. In addition to drastically reducing scan time, a modern graphical user interface with real-time data streaming and built-in post-processing has been developed. This enables the user to verify successful data collection and geo-referencing while in the field.

“Our goal with this next-generation CMS development was to improve on the already popular CMS product by adding functionality that improves scanning efficiency, accuracy and workflow, while not sacrificing the qualities that users have come to rely on over the years,” said Dave Adams, Optech’s Product Manager, Industrial and 3D Imaging.

Contact Information:

Optech
http://www.optech.ca

Riegl's Latest Mobile Scanning Innovation

The future of mobile scanning is here. Riegl’s V-series 3D laser scanners have demonstrated significant advancements in mobile scanning. The series currently consists of the VQ-180, VQ-250 and VZ-400 and, the newest and most innovative addition, the VMX-250 mobile scanning system. These instruments provide high speed, non-contact data acquisition using narrow infrared laser beams and fast line scanning mechanisms. In addition, all instruments are rugged and portable. They were designed with easy integration in mind, so they are mountable in nearly any orientation and the compact design preserves space.

The VMX-250 mobile scanning system consists of two VQ-250 scanners on a mounted platform accompanied by a GPS-INS, and up to 8 digital cameras or video equipment.

Accommodating multiple cameras ensures a 360 degree field of view. Most standard station wagons or off-road vehicles can be optimized for easy installation and the scanners are powered directly from the car’s battery. Data acquisition is operator controlled using a standard laptop. The system was designed with the user in mind– set up is fast, easy and safe!

For years surveyors have worked under the risky conditions of traffic and unfavorable weather conditions. At 600,000 measurements per second, the VMX-250 mobile scanning system allows surveyors to capture highly accurate and high resolution dynamic 3D data at highway speeds. The ability to travel at these high speeds significantly increases safety for all applications, including mapping of highways, railroads and waterways as well as extended urban area, construction sites and open pit mines. The benefits of these mobile systems stretch far beyond safety. Surveyors have speculated as to how accurate a system that is moving at highway speeds or on rough waters could really be. Users of the VQ-250 system have reported accuracies of better than 1cm while traveling at normal highway speeds. This report was based on a test area of a half mile, over 1500 control points, which was taken in just 45 minutes.

The speed also contributes to a significant reduction in project time. Traditionally mobile scanning of a 10-mile road was dangerous and took up to ten weeks, from data acquisition to post processing. The new VMX-250 is capable of completing a 10-mile project in a matter of hours. The cutting edge echo digitization technology, used in the VMX-250 mobile lidar scanning system, penetrates foliage, fences and other obstacles. The system’s online waveform technology allows for more than 10 measurements per laser shot. The combination of these technologies results in laser precision of 1cm or better and accuracy 3cm or better.

The V-Series has created a new platform for mobile 3D laser scanning. All instruments in the series have produced excellent results and will be used for many more projects in the near future.Want to know more about Riegl’s breakthrough mobile scanning technology? -- Visit us at ILMF booth 117.

Contact Information:

Riegl
http://www.rielgusa.com

Return of the Cranes?

In ’98, Denver was awash in cranes, visual testimony to its vibrancy and growth. By ’08 they had disappeared. Last week I spied a crane being put to good use on a construction site. Then two more buildings being built and a new restaurant that wasn’t there just three months ago. I was pleasantly shocked to see construction equipment being put to good use, not parked by the side of the road sporting a “For Sale” sign. This can be dismissed as “anecdotal evidence” but I’m rooting for the recovery.

Contact Information:

Flatdog Media
http://www.profsurv.com

PCI Geomatics Releases Upgrade to Geomatica Software

PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of geo-imaging software and systems today announced the availability of an upgrade to its remote sensing and image processing software Geomatica®. Version 10.3.1 is the latest release available which includes imaging tools for GIS as well as additional satellite and aerial sensor support.

Satellites fully supported in this release include THEOS (Thailand Earth Observation System), GOSAT (Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite), and WorldView-2. Also included is support for ADS40 and ADS80 Digital Aerial Camera systems from Leica Geosystems.

Further colour balancing techniques have been added to the OrthoEngine automatic mosaicking tool, and an improved mosaicking process flow has been added to the EASI environment.

“PCI Geomatics prides itself on being the leader in sensor support, and this release does not disappoint our users,” saidPeter Hazlett, Product Manager for Geomatica at PCI Geomatics.

“By expanding our desktop software offering to include imaging tools for GIS, we are enabling all geo-professionals to take full advantage of imagery in their work.”

In addition, Geomatica 10.3.1 is now supported by Windows 7 Operating System.

Contact Information:

PCI Geomatics
http://www.pcigeomatics.com

Troubled Europe Equals Stronger Dollar

The recent financial troubles in Greece will most certainly lead to a bailout. This means for us: Already investors are selling Euros and buying dollars, giving our currency a boost (and probably, later, U.S. stocks). This in turn will take the pressure off the Fed to raise rates. Still with me? Continued low interest rates will assist not only housing recovery, but the general recovery as well. Read “Europe Trouble, U.S. Opportunity” on the WSJ’s website.

Contact Information:

Flatdog Media
http://www.profsurv.com

MapMart Unveils Free ArcMap Toolbar

MapMart, the most extensive online source of mapping and image data sets, today introduced the MapMart On-Demand Toolbar for ESRI ArcMap. Available free from MapMart, the On-Demand Toolbar integrates directly into ArcMap and enables ESRI users to search, compare imagery options, preview and purchase a wide variety of geospatial data from inside their GIS environment.

The MapMart On-Demand Toolbar may be downloaded at no charge from the MapMart website at www.mapmart.com.

“The MapMart On-Demand Toolbar for ArcMap is designed to allow an ESRI 9.2
or 9.3 user to search available imagery and mapping data within his or her current project area by the simple click of a button,” said Rebecca Murray, product manager for MapMart. “Our aim is to provide the most currently available quality mapping data to make it quickly and easily accessible to today’s GIS users.” The MapMart On-Demand Toolbar makes it possible for ArcMap users to highlight or define any geographic area of interest within their GIS project and instantly search the MapMart product database for geospatial data sets matching the AOI criteria. Thumbnails of relevant satellite imagery, aerial photographs, DEMs, topographic maps, and vector data sets available for purchase from MapMart can be viewed onscreen. ArcMap users can modify the search to match cloud-cover, vendor and acquisition date parameters for any GIS project worldwide. With the exception of downloading the final files, all steps of imagery acquisition can be completed without leaving the ArcMap interface. MapMart offers a wide variety of U.S. and International geospatial data sets via the On-Demand Toolbar with additional data coming online daily.

Some of the products currently available include:

DigitalGlobe Satellite and Aerial Imagery
GeoEye Satellite Imagery
SPOT Imagery
RapidEye Imagery
Aerials Express Imagery
Microsoft Imagery
Pictometry International Oblique and Orthogonal Imagery
Terrametrics TruEarth Imagery
Harris Globe15 and Conus10 Imagery
DeLorme World and North American Street data
Tele Atlas Street data
EASI Demographics
Intermap DEM data
HIDEM worldwide DEM data

Contact Information:

MapMart
http://www.mapmart.com

2010 ASPRS Fellow Award Winners

George F. Hepner, Marguerite Madden, J. Chris McGlone, and Clifford J. Mugnier have been named the 2010 ASPRS Fellow Award winners. The ASPRS designation of Fellow is conferred on active Society members who have performed exceptional service in advancing the science and use of the mapping sciences (photogrammetry, remote sensing, surveying, geographic information systems, and related disciplines). The designation of Fellow is awarded for professional excellence and for service to the Society. Candidates are nominated by other active members, recommended to the Fellows Committee, and elected by the ASPRS Board of Directors. Up to 0.3 percent of the Society’s active members may be elected as Fellows in any one year. The nominees must have made outstanding
contributions in a recognized Society specialization whether in practice, research, development, administration, or education in the mapping sciences.

Members of the Fellows Committee and the Executive Committee are ineligible for
nomination. This year’s awards will be given in April at the ASPRS 2010 Annual Conference in San Diego, California. Read More

Contact Information:

Cadcorp Announces Incident Support Mapping Application for UK Fire Services Market

Digital mapping and geographic information systems (GIS) software developer Cadcorp has announced the release of another application for GIS users in the fire service sector. The Cadcorp Incident Support Mapping System (ISMS) extends the range of applications available to fire services that are based on the Cadcorp SIS – Spatial Information System product suite. It has already been deployed at a number of UK fire services.

Cadcorp’s ISMS provides fire services with a stand-alone application to enable effective management of resources at major incidents through a simple and intuitive user interface. The system has been designed for ‘usability’; the straightforward, logical interface reduces the need for dedicated specialist users or complex training.

The ISMS allows the user to rapidly establish the location of an incident using
an in-built gazetteer. The precise locations of emergency services staff and
resources can quickly be placed on a plan of the incident site to enable better
decision making. Benefits already identified from its use include improved management of resources in attendance at an incident and the ability to quickly and easily position and update resources on site. The system provides rapid access to large-scale mapping and addressing information together with the capability to easily integrate other data overlays.

Chris Oakes, station manager of Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service said, “The deployment of the new Incident Support Mapping application provided immediate benefits during a recent major fire at a chemical works. The process of ensuring the safety of nearby residents was greatly enhanced by our ability to use the NLPG (National Land and Property Gazetteer) dataset to provide the police with a list of specific premise addresses requiring evacuation. In addition, the facility to
regularly save ‘snapshots’ of the developing incident plan and the ability to electronically distribute this data once the ICU (Incident Command Unit)
returns to station will provide significant benefits. Immediate access to the data for debrief and/or investigation will provide cost savings and efficiency gains, both of great value to the service.”

“The Incident Support Mapping System is another application available to fire services and based on Cadcorp SIS”, said Mike O’Neil, managing director, Cadcorp. “We are very pleased that it is already making a positive difference in day to day fire fighting activities”.

More information on the Cadcorp Incident Support Mapping System can be found at: http://www.cadcorp.com/pdf/BR-Fire%20Service_Incident%20Support.pdf

Contact Information:

CadCorp
http://www.cadcorp.com

EngineerSupply becomes an Apache Laser Technologies Authorized Dealer

EngineerSupply.com is pleased to announce the addition of Apache
Lasers Technologies construction lasers and accessories to its product line.
The Apache Lasers line provides professional grade construction Rotary Lasers,
Pipe Lasers, Auto-levels and laser distance tools. Apache is one of the fastest
growing laser companies in the world. EngineerSupply is proud to partner with
Apache Technologies in providing high quality professional grade products. The
new partnership will enable EngineerSupply to provide more solutions to its
customers needs.

Apache Technology produces products for use in the fields such as building
construction, site construction, and land surveying. Their variety of products
includes construction lasers, laser detectors, machine control laser detectors,
tripods, rods, and land surveying supplies. All Apache products are rugged and
durable they are waterproof, dirt and dust-proof. Apache is the world’s largest
laser detector manufacturer. They specialize in laser detection with top of the
line Laser detectors and Machine Control Laser Detectors. Apache Technologies’
Machine Control Laser Detectors Receivers are excellent for use in excavation,
bulldozer work, grading, earth moving and more.

About EngineerSupply
EngineerSupply is constantly expanding its product line and assists many
professionals in areas such as engineering, construction, design, surveying,
estimating, law enforcement and more. The trained customer service team is
available to help with any customer questions and concerns. Its conception was
based on its teams' years of experience working in the engineering and surveying
industry both using the products and seeing a need to a single resource for
engineers, surveyors, and construction professionals. EngineerSupply represents
the most reputable brands in the industry for engineering supplies, land
surveying equipment, blueprint storage, measuring wheels, measuring tapes, and
construction equipment. EngineerSupply is a privately held company and was
started in 1999. EngineerSupply.com has been serving our customers since 1999.
More information can be found at the company’s website, ww.engineersupply.com

Contact Information:

EngineerSupply.com
http://www.engineersupply.com
Rob Powell
800-591-8907
rob@engineersupply.com

Home Construction Picks Up

Two of the largest home builders in the U.S. have seen upturns in their business. Beazer and D.R. Horton report improved order rates and fewer cancellations recently. Beazer shows a 37% increase in new home orders, while D.R. Horton boasts an increase of 45% in orders. Both point to factors such as the stimulus program for new home buyers as well as reductions in land and construction costs. Read Builders Start to Look Up on the WSJ's website.

Contact Information:

Flatdog Media
http://www.profsurv.com

Jobs: Less Bad News = Good News

The Employment Trend Index (ETI) is a measure of eight different indicators designed to show underlying trends. This indicator has risen for the fifth consecutive time indicating, "job growth will resume in the first quarter of 2010," according to Gad Levanon, senior economist at the Conference Board, the group that researches and publishes the ETI. Read Indicator Shows Improvement in Jobs Picture at the WSJ site.

Contact Information:

Flatdog Media
http://www.profsurv.com

Introducing Flatdog Media

Ownership of Professional Surveyor Magazine was transferred on February 5, 2010 from Reed Business, a Dutch-owned company, to Neil Sandler, who has served as publisher of the magazine for the past six years. The company that publishes the magazine has been renamed Flatdog Media, Inc. and is headquartered at new offices in Frederick, Maryland.

The new owner assures all readers and advertisers a “seamless” transition.

“This is an investment in a product and a team that is amazing in its capabilities,” Sandler said in making this transaction public. “Our resolve is to strengthen the profession of which we are a part. This is one of many planned steps to increase our involvement with the surveying community. “As with any technology-driven industry, the surveying industry is currently undergoing a transition,” Sandler continued. “From speaking with many of our industry’s leading authorities, I am thoroughly convinced that those who are willing to upgrade their skill sets and invest in themselves and their businesses will thrive in the years ahead. There is a very bright future in this industry for those who invest in it.”

Flatdog Media’s new offices are located at 20 West Third Street, Frederick, Maryland 21701 in the midst of the city’s bustling business district. The company phone, fax and email addresses remain the same:

ph: 301-682-6101
fax 301-682-6105
www.profsurv.com

Professional Surveyor Magazine is in its 29th year of being North America’s leading source of news and information for the surveying and mapping community.

Note: “Flatdog” in Flatdog Media is the nickname Sandler used for his beloved first pet, an adopted chihuahua named Ashley. It best describes how she reclined with all four legs splayed in front of the fireplace.

Contact Information:

Flatdog Media
http://www.profsurv.com

Trimble Introduces the Condor Family of GPS Modules

Trimble introduced today the Condor family of GPS modules. The new modules
feature major advancements in signal tracking for applications working in poor signal environments. With their higher sensitivity, performance and faster startup times, the Condor GPS modules enable system integrators to easily add Global Positioning System (GPS) capability to a mobile device with minimal impact on its size or battery life at a very economical price.

Trimble's Condor GPS modules are complete, ready-to-go receivers that provide position, velocity and time data with leading edge acquisition times. Compatible with active or passive antennas, the Condor GPS receivers can be used in portable handheld, battery-powered applications such as sport accessories, DAs, cameras, computer and communication peripherals as well as vehicle tracking, navigation, and security products.

"Trimble's Condor family of GPS modules represents a smart alternative to GPS chipsets for a variety of consumer and commercial positioning applications. The modules offer lower development costs, multiple form factors for flexibility, and high-quality positioning backed by Trimble's 30 plus years of GPS experience," said Steve Ruff, general manager of Trimble's Embedded Products.

The Condor GPS family includes modules with different form factors and interface options:

The tiny Condor C1011 module packs powerful positioning performance into a small size, 10mm x 11mm x 2.01mm, which is ideal for portable navigation products. It features a 36-ball surface-mount interface Land Grid Array (LGA) that can be electrically connected to a printed circuit board (PCB) by using a socket or soldering it directly to the PCB.
The Condor C1919 is a 19mm x 19mm x 2.5mm surface-mount format common with the Trimble Copernicus® II and Panda GPS modules. As a surface-mount module with 28 reflow-solderable edge castellations, the C1919 requires no costly I/O and RF connectors.
Continuing Trimble's tradition of advancing technology while preserving a customer's investment, the Condor C2626 module measuring 26mm x 26mm x 6mm leverages the popular Lassen® iQ form factor. It features a single 8-pin (2x4) male header connector for power and data I/O.

The Condor modules can generate position fixes with high accuracy in extremely challenging environments and under poor signal conditions (down to -160dBm). The receiver consumes typically 37 mA at 3.3 V with continuous tracking. In addition, the Condor receivers provide a configurable 1 PPS synchronized to GPS/UTC, typically within 25 nanoseconds (one sigma) and an update rate up to 10Hz.

Trimble's Condor GPS modules are capable of receiving Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) corrections, including the U.S. Wide Area
Augmentation System (WAAS) and the European Geostationary Overlay Service (EGNOS). They also support GPS assistance (aGPS).

The Condor GPS starter kit includes all the tools necessary to test and evaluate the Condor GPS receiver, including: a Condor GPS receiver in a rugged enclosure suitable for testing and data collection; a GPS antenna; PC-based analysis tools; and documentation.

The Condor C1919 and C1011 GPS modules are currently available through Trimble's Advanced Devices dealer network. The Condor C2626 is expected to be available in first quarter of 2010.

New Antenna Companion Modules
Trimble also introduced new Antenna Companion Modules (ACM) that combine a GPS receiver and a matched antenna in an easy to integrate module—the Trimble Silvana ACM and Anapala ACM. Both are compatible with Trimble's Copernicus II, Panda and Condor GPS solutions.

Silvana ACM offers an onboard antenna as well as a connector for an external antenna. An antenna detection circuit automatically switches to the external antenna, when connected. With Silvana, one flexible solution serves both internal and external antenna applications.

The Anapala ACM also supports multiple GPS solutions, but relies on the integral matched antenna.

Trimble's Silvana and Anapala ACMs are expected to be available in first quarter of 2010 through Trimble's Advanced Devices dealer network.

Contact Information:

Deadline Extension: TUgis 2010

Because of last week's snow storms, we are extending the deadline for the Call for Presentations for the 23rd Annual Towson University Geographic Information Sciences Conference (TUgis 2010) to Friday, February 19. Information about making a presentation at TUgis 2010 can be found at http://tugis.towson.edu.

The theme for this year's conference, which will be held on May 24 and 25 on the Towson University campus, is "GIS in Budget Constrained Times: Doing More With Less."

I hope you will consider making a presentation at TUgis 2010. Presentations on all topics related to GIS will be considered.In keeping with the conference theme, we are offering discounted attendee registration fees. The discounted fees are available through Friday, February 19. To take advantage of this offer, click on the "Register for TUgis 2010" button on the home page of the Web site.

Contact Information:

TUgis 2010
http://tugis.towson.edu
Jay Morgan
410-704-2964
jmorgan@towson.edu

Critigen Hires David Day

Critigen, a global technology consultancy for critical infrastructure, today announced David Day as vice president of its energy division. Day previously served as senior partner with Accenture’s energy global practice and has significant experience with information technology strategy and business consulting, systems integration and outsourcing as well as prior expertise leading large engagements for clients across upstream, midstream and downstream oil and gas functions.

"Critigen is always striving to be on the cutting edge of business in the areas
that are relevant to our clients, and David adds to our already deep expertise in the energy sector,” said Jeff Akers, CEO of Critigen. “In the new energy economy, we need to extract, deliver and utilize energy smarter than ever before. It’s going to take fresh thinking and a lot of hard work to successfully transform the old paradigms of our critical energy infrastructure into a next-generation model. We believe David is the kind of talent Critigen can put to good use in this endeavor.”

In his tenure at Accenture, Day led the growth of Accenture’s Canadian energy practice from inception to a thriving and permanent part of the local economy. He also secured the company’s first outsourcing contract in Calgary with a large natural gas producer in a five-year arrangement
and architected the delivery of Accenture’s services.

“Critigen’s process is based on breaking down the individual silos of critical infrastructure and recognizing each piece as part of a holistic system,” said Day. “I believe in that vision; I’m interested in being a part of a company that can shift the old paradigms.”

Contact Information:

Critigen
http://www.critigen.com

NVision Donating ‘Haitian Relief Mapbook’ Proceeds to Haiti

NVision Solutions Inc. has partnered with LeadDog Consulting to release a series of Haiti map products designed to assist relief workers and generate funds for relief organizations providing support to earthquake victims.

The “Haitian Relief Mapbook: Port-au-Prince and Surrounding Areas” is the first in a series of paper map products made for relief workers on foot giving direct and immediate aid to the people of Haiti. NVision will soon release a complete country mapbook and additional products such as medium and large-size wall maps.

NVision will donate 40 percent of the proceeds to the American Red Cross Haiti relief efforts. NVision is offering a paperback version of the mapbook online through Amazon. A lower priced, coil-bound version is also available via NVision’s website at http://www.nvs-inc.com/haiti. Mapbooks provide highly detailed maps of an area, but are easier to use, more portable, and more durable than folding maps. Field personnel can take notes in the mapbooks for later entry into full digital geographic information systems.

Mapbooks are a much more affordable and reliable tool than location-based technology such as GPS and Wi-Fi enabled devices whose utility may be limited or prohibited by infrastructure collapse and harsh conditions. “As both victims and responders to Hurricane Katrina, we know the importance of tough, paper-based map products for large scale disaster response,”said NVision President Socorro Harvey.” “Our hearts and support go out to the people of Haiti and those who are helping.”

NVision has extensive experience in emergency response mapping as a FEMA
contractor, NASA emergency response contractor, and emergency operation
center support team for local governments along the Gulf Coast, Kansas, and Washington. NVision is working closely with LeadDog Consulting who provides street mapping data and points of interest for the mapbooks. LeadDog continually updates mapping data for Haiti and NVision will continue to release
updated and new products on its website.

Contact Information:

NVision Solutions
http://www.NVisionSolutions.com

Texas Sheriff’s Department Deploys New Leica Geosystems 3D Laser Scanner for Crime Scene Investigation

Citing its ability to enhance criminal prosecutions while reducing investigation time, Bexar County Sheriff Amadeo Ortiz introduced his agency’s new Leica Geosystems ScanStation C10 to an audience that included local law enforcement agencies and the District Attorney’s office.The Leica Geosystems ScanStation C10 is an easy to use, compact and portable 3D laser scanner which can capture 50,000 measurement points per second out to a range of 900 feet.

The system also features an internal digital camera for panoramic photography. The technology is used by law enforcement agencies all over the world for crime scene investigations, vulnerability and threat assessments, post-blast investigations, police action inquiries, accident investigations and more.

San Antonio-based Bexar County Sheriff’s Department is the first police agency in Texas to deploy the latest generation Leica ScanStation C10 although other Texas law enforcement agencies have deployed previous generation Leica 3D laser scanners.

A Leica ScanStation was used to document the complex crime scene last November at Fort Hood where a gunman killed 12 and injured 31.Sheriff Ortiz stated that the Leica ScanStation “greatly enhances the investigation of the crime scene and aids in the prosecution of the offender.

Countless hours of investigative time will be saved by the automation at the crime scene instead of having to manually sketch the scene.”“In addition to
CSI, public safety agencies are recognizing that scanning can also be a powerful homeland security tool to aid with the prevention, protection against, response to and recovery from terrorist acts” said Tony Grissim, Public Safety & Forensic Account Manager for Leica Geosystems. “The heavy traffic we are seeing on our forensic web site at www.leica-geosystems.com/us/forensic, tells us that interest in our solution is keen”.

Contact Information:

Leica
http://www.leica-geosystems.us

Flood Map Desktop's Latest Version Offers Users Greater Flexibility

Flood Map Desktop’s latest version equips flood mapping partners with new tools to give them greater flexibility in their efforts to update and maintain flood hazard map data for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Risk Mapping, Analysis, and Planning (MAP) program. From creating flood hazard profiles in GIS to generating detailed label engines, this collection of data and cartographic mapping tools serves as a software extension to support ESRI’s ArcGIS 9.3 platform.

“We’re really excited about this latest version,” says Joshua Price, senior project manager at PBS&J. “Not only did we upgrade the existing tools, we also added many new tools that I think will really ‘wow’ our customers and help them leverage tools that produce measurable production gains. We added tools such as the ability to create flood hazard profiles in GIS instead of CAD; auto-generating base flood elevations; and connecting to enterprise geodatabases through ArcSDE. The software development team also added some new quality control tools.”

Flood Map Desktop sits on the user’s desktop and doesn’t require an Internet connection. Users can manage their own data with no rigid workflow. As Price notes: “We managed to keep the distribution on the customer’s desktop without restricting ArcGIS’s tools or add-ons so users get the speed and flexibility they need.” Flood Map Desktop comes in two versions—standard and professional.
The standard version is a free product that contains the templates, standards, and tools necessary to complete a Risk MAP project. The professional version is a licensed version that upgrades the features to automate data creation tasks, quality control, map labeling, and riverine and coastal flood hazard model interaction.

Contact Information:

Flood Map Desktop
http://www.floodmapdesktop.com

GPS-Photo Link Photo-Mapping Bundles Available on GSA Schedule

GeoSpatial Experts is pleased to announce the U.S. government has approved four of its photo-mapping product bundles for direct purchase by federal agencies. The bundles, which include GPS-Photo Link photo-mapping software and GPS-enabled Ricoh 500SE cameras, are available at reduced prices to government agencies through the GSA Schedule. GPS-Photo Link bundles may be purchased from GeoSpatial Experts via the GSA Advantage website atwww.gsaadvantage.gov.

Already used by numerous federal and local government agencies, the GeoSpatial
Experts’ GPS-Photo Link software correlates digital photographs with the locations where they were taken and then displays the photos on GIS layers or on KML-based maps, such as Google Earth.

The photo-mapping software is often used in conjunction with the Ricoh 500SE camera, which automatically geotags digital photos with location coordinates using an attached GPS module. “The GPS-Photo Link geotagging solution is used extensively by government entities for asset management and disaster assessment,” said GeoSpatial Experts President Rick Bobbitt. “Any application that requires the acquisition of asset location and condition information at a point in time can benefit from photo-mapping technology.”

Each of the four GeoSpatial Experts’ product bundles on the GSA Schedule
contains the GPS-Photo Link GIS Pro Series software, Ricoh 500SE digital camera with WAAS-enabled SiRF III GPS module, 2 GB SD card, bag and accessories. Bundle variations include an add-on directional Compass and optional WiFi capability.

The Ricoh 500SE camera features include 8.0 mega pixel resolution, Bluetooth, image stabilization, and 3x optical zoom with optional attachments. The camera is ruggedized for harsh conditions. It has dust proof armored glass, rubber casing, large buttons that can be used when wearing gloves, and an easy-to-view 2.5-inch LCD screen. The Ricoh 500SE also has a Memo Function allowing users to collect text memos while in the field as a part of your photo EXIF header information - ten memo fields with 50 sub-categories per field.

The WAAS-enabled SiRF III GPS module affixes to the side of the 500SE, providing accuracy of 3-5 meters and fast fix times. The GPS information is written directly into the photo image’s EXIF header. The optional WiFi capability allows the photographer to wirelessly transmit photos from the camera to computer.

The SE-3 GPS/Compass module affixes to the side of the 500SE to provide GPS
location and direction information. The GPS and direction information can be written directly into the image’s EXIF header. GPS-Photo Link software uses this data to display the direction in which the camera was pointing when the photo was taken.

Contact Information:

GeoSpatial Experts
http://www.GeoSpatialExperts.com

Eagle Point Releases New AutoCAD Civil 3D Add-on

Eagle Point Software Corporation releases Surveyors’ Companion, an AutoCAD Civil 3D add-on product that allows surveyors to comfortably and productively move to AutoCAD Civil 3D with simplified COGO routines and user interface.

"Having used Eagle Point civil/survey solutions since its inception, we have found that Surveyors' Companion continues the history of easy-to-use products," explains Greg Sharp, Vice President at Anderson Engineering and Surveying, Inc. "This program makes the AutoCAD Civil 3D learning curve more manageable and is able to be quickly implemented in a small business environment. Civil 3D is a sophisticated program, but Surveyors' Companion provides familiar commands and user interface that make surveying calculations and data transfer between the field and office a simple, seamless process."

The Surveyors' Companion utilizes basic surveying principles and proven technology used by thousands of clients. Its integration within Civil 3D provides surveyors with a seamless environment in which they can interact with native point, parcel, surface, alignment and profile data. Multiple dialog and command line based routines allow the input of raw alignment, lot and field traverse information directly into drawings, bypassing the use of external survey databases. Robust point placement routines allow surveyors to quickly locate COGO points to be uploaded to the field for staking.

Pricing and Availability
A single license of Surveyors' Companion is available for $595, while a network license is $795. For more information, please contact Eagle Point at 1-800-678-6565 or visit http://www.eaglepoint.com/survcomp/.

Contact Information:

Eagle Point
http://www.eaglepoint.com

Leica Geosystems and MicroSurvey Extend Software Partnership

Based on rapid growth of High-Definition Surveying (HDS) in civil/survey mapping applications, Leica Geosystems, the market leader in laser scanning products, and MicroSurvey Software Inc., a leader in mapping software, announced plans at SPAR 2010 for Leica Geosystems to resell MicroSurvey’s new PointCloud CAD mapping software on a global basis.The new PointCloud CAD software was developed by MicroSurvey using Leica Geosystems’ point cloud engine (pcE) technology to efficiently manage large laser scan data sets from any scanner or
aerial Lidar as users process point cloud data into mapping elements in the software’s final deliverables. The product is planned to be available from Leica Geosystems Feb. 15, 2010.

Natural Extension

“Adding MicroSurvey’s PointCloud CAD software to our product basket is a
natural extension of Leica Geosystems’ product offerings for the survey market. This software meets the needs of organizations preferring to process large laser scan data sets into final map deliverables within a single, end-to-end software. We know PointCloud CAD’s laser scan data management capabilities are excellent because it’s based on the very same Leica Geosystems point cloud engine we use for our own point cloud software. Plus, we like the way MicroSurvey has integrated these capabilities into point-cloud-friendly, end-to-end mapping software that includes creating linework, surface models, contours, and better
animations from laser scan data.” states Dr. Chris Thewalt, Director, Scanning Software Business, Leica Geosystems, Imaging & Scanning.

“With all the features of MicroSurvey CAD 2010 Premium, such as complete survey drafting, COGO, DTM, traversing, volumes, data collection interfacing, Autodesk’s AutoCAD compatibility and more, this software offers users a rich solution.”“MicroSurvey is delighted to extend its partnership with Leica Geosystems beyond the ForensicMap Pro software that we jointly introduced in 2009, ” states Darcy Detlor, CEO, MicroSurvey Software Inc. “Working with Leica Geosystems’ point cloud engine made it very easy for us to quickly develop an end-to-end mapping solution that’s point-cloud-friendly and high-performance.
We’re also excited to have Leica Geosystems as a new distribution channel for PointCloud CAD software, leveraging their strong leadership position in the laser scanning market and Leica Geosystems’ overall outstanding reputation in the survey industry.”

Contact Information:

Leica/Microsurvey
http://www.leica-geosystems.us

CartêGraph seeks Featured Speakers for 2010 User Conference

CartêGraph, the leading provider of work and asset management technology, has
issued a call for presentations for its 12th Annual User Conference, taking place October 4-7, 2010 in Dubuque, Iowa.

CartêGraph is seeking presentations that explain how user-organizations are
leveraging CartêGraph applications to cultivate new and unique approaches to work and infrastructure management. Suggested topics include:

Integration with systems and technology, such as GIS and mobile devices
Creation of standard operating procedures
Efficiencies gained and money saved with CartêGraph applications

Presentation sessions will be 45 minutes in length and will take place on October
6-7, 2010 at Dubuque's Grand River Center. Speakers will be chosen based on their presentation subject matter and its relevance to User Conference attendees.

Chosen speakers will receive complimentary registration to the 2010 User Conference for two attendees from his or her respective organization. Included with registration is access to the exclusive, pre-conference training sessions to be held October 4-5, 2010. The deadline for proposals is March 19, 2010.

Contact Information:

CarteGraph
http://www.cartegraph.com/conference/2010/callPresentations.html

Intuicom Announces the SLR 900

Intuicom, Inc., a leader in wireless data solutions, announces announce the production of the license- free SLR 900 - an integrated transceiver module for the Leica VIVA GS15 receiver.

This new high-performance data link, developed specifically for Leica Geosystems, provides a modular 900 MHz communication link for the transmission and receipt of RTK corrections.

Built upon the “best-in-class” performance of the 1200 DataLink built for Leica Geosystems 1200 and 900 families of GNSS products, the SLR 900 provides the following key features:

Simple Installation: Slot in Radio inserts directly into VIVA GS15 receiverEasy
Setup: Configurable thru Leica Viva CS10/CS15 controllersSingle-Unit
Operation: Configurable as Base, Rover or Rover/RepeaterField
Rugged: Once inserted into the GS15, it meets the VIVA environmental specifications of IP67.
License Free Operation in North America: No user licensing is required for the US, Canada, and other parts of the world.
2-Year Warranty: Low cost of operation
Supports Legacy Equipment: Compatible with Intuicom 1200 Data Links and other Intuicom 900 MHz products.
Network RTK Support: Compatible with Intuicom RTK BRIDGE (900 MHz) product offerings

“The SLR 900 offers the Leica Viva users ease of operation and high performance in a license-free solution,” said Peter Miller, Director of Engineering for Intuicom, Inc. “This product also benefits customers with existing equipment as it is compatible with previous generations of 900 MHz radios as well as the Intuicom RTK Bridge for Network RTK”.

Contact Information:

Intuicom
http://www.Intuicom.com

Trimble Introduces Indoor Mobile Mapping Solution for Capturing Interior Spaces

Trimble introduced today an indoor mobile mapping solution for facilities management. Using innovative technologies, the solution produces fast and accurate maps allowing users to translate their environments directly into 2D & 3D models of structured interiors. The solution enables building owners, facilities managers, engineers and construction professionals to more efficiently plan and manage building assets and properties. The announcement was made today at SPAR 2010 Conference on 3D Imaging and Positioning.Currently, mapping an indoor space can be time consuming. A tripod, laser and camera are set up to capture measurements and images at various locations. The equipment is then moved and set up multiple times until all perspectives of a room are captured. With the new Trimble solution, a simple walk-through of an interior space allows for 360 degree indoor coverage. Geo-referenced spatial data is captured accurately and quickly as the mobile system moves through the building at walking speed. The solution integrates active and passive sensors with an
intuitive user workflow to enable true indoor Geographic Information System (GIS) capability. Maps and models, covering thousands of square feet of indoor space, can be created in minutes and entire buildings can typically be completed in a day. The Trimble indoor mobile mapping solution provides:High-accuracy 2D and 3D maps of interior spacesReduced mapping time and associated costVisual models to optimize the management of building resources Situational awareness through complete interior space mapping for build security and special event plannersQuick and accurate map production through complete work flow and data processing Trimble's new solution makes indoor mapping easier and more affordable and it can be used in a variety of indoor mapping applications. The availability of indoor map data on a large scale can change the way the assets are managed. Not only is the data acquisition process much more efficient,
it can be utilized by many facilities management stakeholders via Trimble software and other third-party tools.

The Trimble indoor mapping capability is also ideal for security, law enforcement
and event planning. An optional spherical camera can provide a 360-degree geo-referenced image that can be controlled by the user to enable any desired perspective for situational awareness. Accurate information on building layout and physical surroundings can enable building security personnel to react quickly and effectively during emergency situations or special events.

"The Trimble indoor mapping capability has been rigorously demonstrated in a variety of interior spaces, including apartment buildings, subways and shopping malls," said Peter Canter, director of Advanced Mapping Systems at Trimble's Applanix subsidiary. "In all of these environments, the system delivered exceptional results, both in accuracy and in ease-of-use. Equally as important is the integration with existing software and workflows."Trimble's indoor mobile mapping solution is available on a limited basis. General availability is expected to be in the second quarter of 2010.

Contact Information:

Trimble
http://www.trimble.com/indoor-mapping

AccuTerra iPhone App

Intermap Technologies, the foremost global digital mapping and geospatial solutions company, today announced the availability of 76 ski resort maps for its AccuTerra iPhone App, including a special application for Whistler-Blackcomb ski resort. The application allows consumers to see where events are taking place, locate lifts, view trails by difficulty, find lodging, and check weather forecasts.
AccuTerra for Whistler-Blackcomb is available in 2D and 3D giving 2010 event spectators all the features of a paper trail map in the palm of their hands.

Building upon the success of AccuTerra GPS for the iPhone, which brings outdoor enthusiasts a detailed view of their topographic surroundings for hiking and walking adventures, AccuTerra is growing its library of applications by adding snow sport terrain. As visitors make their way to Whistler-Blackcomb and home viewers watch events unfold, AccuTerra allows them to navigate the upcoming events by displaying detailed, high resolution images of the ski trails and surrounding area used during the competition.

Created with the same accuracy, map detail, and social aspects of the award winning AccuTerra GPS, the Whistler-Blackcomb app lets visitors use the full functionality of the topographic map, while toggling between Google Maps for on-road data – essentially creating an all-in-one mapping app for the 2010 events. Similar to all AccuTerra iPhone applications, the snow sport terrain apps allow users to create personal tours and record and share outdoor experiences through photos and videos. In essence, create an interactive personal journal.

“As spectators and home viewers watch the winter events, the AccuTerra application serves as another way to participate in the experience with the most detailed terrain images available of the Whistler-Blackcomb area,” says Michael Bullock, vice president, Intermap Consumer Electronics. “The AccuTerra experience goes beyond the 17 day event as people come to visit Whistler year after year and can use the map to ski the same trails they watched on TV.”

“We have taken the foundation of the AccuTerra GPS application and extended it to provide the same experience for the snow sport enthusiast,” said Kevin Thomas, vice president of marketing, Intermap. “By adding weather features and 3D terrain to the snow sport applications, we are incorporating specific features that will appeal to the outdoor enthusiast who spends most of his or her time looking for fresh powder.”

Contact Information:

InterMap
http://www.intermap.com

Brisbane’s new 12.5cm imagery, 3D building models and more

Above: 12.5cm resolution image of Brisbane

- New 12.5cm orthophotos
- Online oblique imagery and measurement tools
- Photorealistic 3D building models
- Building footprints for the CBD

The 12.5cm aerial imagery was captured in late 2009 for an area about 1400 sqkm in size; while the powerful online multiangle obliques Pictometry predate 2009. The incredible photorealistic building models exist for an 80 sqkm area and are available in a range of formats.

Customised products can also be tailored to your needs using our four band multispectral aerial imagery with 12.5cm resolution in combination with our LiDAR terrain data sets.

All of these new data sets are available for purchase from our GeoExtraTM data library.

The sensational, photorealistic building models can be experienced on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42q_KMjD2VE&feature=player_embedded or at www.aamhatch.com/3dcitymodels

For more information on these products, email us at info@aamhatch.com or visit our website www.aamhatch.com/data

Contact Information:

AAMHatch
http://www.aamhatch.com
Megan Bock, Marketing Coordinator
07 3620 3111
m.bock@aamhatch.com

Expanded Street Map Coverage

The latest release of ESRI's ArcGIS Data Appliance includes significantly enhanced maps in a new tiling scheme and simplified licensing. All the datasets
on the preconfigured network storage device have been updated, and coverage has been expanded to ensure that users have access to the most efficient and consistent data they need for their geographic information system (GIS) projects. ArcGIS Data Appliance is used by many organizations that need reliable access to high-performance data and tasks behind their firewalls.

Contact Information:

ESRI
http://www.esri.com

Leica Geosystems and INOVx Announce New Partnership

Leica Geosystems HDS and INOVx announced at the SPAR 2010 conference and at the ARC World Industry Forum a partnership to jointly develop advanced software for converting laser scan data into intelligent plant models. Integrated products will be based on Leica Cyclone software and INOVx RealityLINx software. Availability of first integrated products is planned for the second quarter 2010 .

Interoperability of complementary, industry-leading solutions accelerates adoption

As the use of 3D laser scanning to capture as-built geometry of plants has rapidly grown, industry is increasingly taking advantage of intelligent 3D models based on this data for better plant Operations & Maintenance and better Design & Construction. This has, in turn, led to increased demand for (1) more accurate intelligent models, (2) more office-efficient software for creating these models, and (3) open solutions that can be deployed regardless of the specific type of
laser scanner used or plant design software involved. By improving the process for converting point cloud data into intelligent objects, the partnership will create new, interoperable software solutions optimized to meet this increasing demand and accelerate adoption.

Joint development will leverage each vendor’s complementary strengths. From Leica Geosystems strengths, integrated solutions will reflect fast, highly accurate geometric modeling of as-built laser scan data using advanced, geometric modeling algorithms and the powerful point cloud engine (pcE) in Leica Cyclone software. In addition, solutions will reflect Cyclone’s multi-vendor support of scan data formats, including native formats.

Efficient, accurate attachment of intelligence to the geometric model will take advantage of INOVx’ rich plant design catalog links and the friendly user interface of INOVx’ RealityLINx software. Users will further benefit from INOVx’ strength in seamless, open systems data exchange of the resulting models with all major plant design systems.

Compared to other options for creating intelligent models from laser scanning, the integrated Leica Geosystems & INOVx solutions will support more scanners natively and deliver more rigorous geometry models faster. It will be easier to attach comprehensive intelligent plant information to these geometry models and it will provide better data exchange to more types of plant design software.

What they’re saying

“We’re very excited about this partnership,” states Juergen Dold, President, Leica Geosystems Geospatial Solutions Division. “We see continued strong demand for our CAD plug-in solutions and our standalone plant modeling solutions. INOVx is a great partner for making plant models intelligent for Operations & Maintenance with seamless exchange to plant design software. Our integrated solutions
will provide significant accuracy, efficiency, and open systems benefits.”

Dold adds, “This new partnership was facilitated by our strong relationship with INOVx, which began in the mid-1990’s when they were the as-built services & technology team of Fluor Corporation and a pioneer adopter of our laser scanners and point cloud software. Today, INOVx’ software stands on its own merits for bringing the benefits of intelligent plant models to plant Operations & Maintenance and Design & Construction.”

“Partnering with Leica Geosystems, the industry leader in laser scanning, is a great fit for expanding and enhancing our software product offerings and our reach into the global market. Further improvements to the creation of intelligent models from as-built geometry based on laser scanning will support our Asset Virtualization solutions by sustaining virtual models that accurately reflect plant
changes and thus maximize value to our customers,” says Costantino Lanza, CEO of INOVx.

“INOVx’s process plant know-how combined with Leica Geosystems’ scanning technology and worldwide reach will drive asset owner/operator efficiency, safety and regulatory compliance initiatives to new levels,” Tom Greaves, Managing Director, Spar Point Group.

"The integration of Leica Geosystems’ point cloud management software with INOVx’s object modeling and information software provides improved capability and workflow with faster time to benefit” comments Ralph Rio, Research Director, ARC Advisory Group. Mr. Rio continues, “This combination enables increased use of 3D laser scanning technologies for improved plant maintenance.”

Contact Information:

Leica/INOVx
http://www.leica-geosystems.us

International LiDAR Mapping Forum Highlights Lidar use in Haiti

A new last minute addition to the International LiDAR Mapping Forum conference program will include two presentations on how LiDAR is being used in Haiti to assess the damage from the recent earthquake and the future probability of subsequent earthquakes.

Imagery of the region damaged by the M 7 Haiti earthquake, including high-resolution photography and airborne LiDAR, has revealed a variety of ground failure that resulted from shaking. Surprisingly, the Enriquillo Fault seems to have not ruptured at the ground surface, so the negative result obtained from imagery has significant implications. The USGS issued a statement, based on imagery analysis, that because it is clear that the rupture of the Enriquillo Fault was
clearly farther west than Port-au-Prince, and because rupture was buried deep on the fault, there is a significant risk of not only regular aftershocks, but also the threat of a subsequent large event that could occur even closer to Port-au-Prince. The probability of one or more subsequent earthquakes of M 7 or greater increased by about 3% for the 30 days following 21 January 2010. Although this is a low probability, it would be a potentially very high impact event. High-resolution imagery was crucial to this assessment.

Kenneth W. Hudnut, Ph.D, Geophysicist at the U. S. Department of the Interior - U. S. Geological Survey will present ‘The M 7.0 Haiti Earthquake of 12 January 2010: How LiDAR Helps’ at the upcoming International LiDAR Mapping Forum. The Paper will focus, not only on the future probability of aftershocks, but also on how LiDAR data is being used to assess the distribution of earthquake-induced landslides in Haiti and in the general relief effort by assisting agencies with
assessing the damage to buildings, roads, bridges and port facilities.

Building on the overview presented in Dr Ken Hudnut's paper, John Antalovitch, President and Andrew Mitchell, LiDAR Processing Specialist of Kucera International in Willoughby,OH, are then giving a paper on their LiDAR missions in January this year covering the Haiti earthquake fault area and Port Au Prince and Leogane.

Kucera International Inc. in collaboration with the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and ImageCat of Long Beach, California was sponsered by the World Bank to perform a high resolution aerial lidar and multispectral image survey of primary earthquake damaged areas and fault zones. The surveys were performed from Kucera's dual-sensor port twin-engine aircraft using Kucera's Leica ALS60 aerial lidar system and RIT's WASP multispectral sensor. The aerial flyover was conducted from January 21 through January 27 and covered Port-au
Prince, Leogane, Petit Goave, Grand Goave, Fermante, Jacmel, and the western and central Enriquillo fault line. The team members worked round-the-clock to process and distribute the aerial data immediately following acquisition to the World Bank and other assisting organizations. The data is currently being used for the ongoing relief and rebuilding effort.

Kucera's presentation will review the performance of the aerial survey, the expedited processing and distribution of the aerial data, and potential future refinement and applications of the data.

Contact Information:

International LiDAR Mapping Forum
http://www.lidarmap.org

Sidwell to Offer GIS Forum in Iowa

The Sidwell Company will host a free, daylong GIS Forum for local government users across the state of Iowa. This event will be held at the Holiday Inn-Airport in Des Moines on February 10, 2010. You are encouraged to join the many who have already registered for this educational forum, which is being held in conjunction with the annual Iowa Supervisor’s Conference.

The theme of this year’s forum is “Making GIS Work for Everybody!” Veteran GIS experts from Sidwell will offer practical lessons and insights on topics such as verifying and protecting the integrity of your GIS data, and how you can make sure your data is not only serving the needs of your office, but also providing tangible benefit to users throughout your jurisdiction. Technical experts from Sidwell will also detail how to prepare for the next important software release from industry leader ESRI: ArcGIS^® 10. Additional topics include a discussion of the value of GPS in GIS, and the power that mapping and GIS bring to the process of emergency management and E9-1-1.

For event details and to register, visit www.sidwellco.com/IA2010GIS.

Contact Information:

The Sidwell Company
http://www.sidwellco.com
Karen Fouts, Marketing Manager
630-549-1065
kfouts@sidwellco.com

Ashtech Introduces ProFlex Lite Duo

Ashtech (formerly Magellan Professional) today announced the introduction of the ProFlex Lite Duo, a dual GNSS board sensor designed for heading, relative positioning, and long-range RTK computations. The ProFlex Lite Duo uses GPS, GLONASS and SBAS constellations to offer powerful real-time capabilities to suit a wide array of precise positioning needs in aircraft, UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles), ships and earth moving equipment, including tasks such as vessel or machine guidance and heading determination, antenna pointing, or structure deformation monitoring. The ProFlex Lite Duo is a further development of the Ashtech ProFlex product line, which also includes the ProFlex 500 and ProFlex Lite.

ProFlex Lite Duo is available in a variety of configurations to meet up to the most demanding application needs with optimal cost-efficiency. Embedded BLADE technology secures the best possible measurements from the GPS, GLONASS and SBAS constellations to deliver outstanding L1 and L1/L2 heading or relative positioning while securing RTK accuracy and fast initialization. The combined GPS and GLONASS computations are recommended for applications in shaded environments or in high latitudes.

Heading and Relative Positioning

In the heading mode, the ProFlex Lite Duo delivers highly accurate heading information (0.1 degree accuracy for a two-meter baseline) and pitch or roll. Fast and secure automatic calibration relieves users of tedious pre-adjustments or settings. In relative positioning mode, the ProFlex Lite Duo allows a robust moving baseline RTK solution to be computed between the two antennas connected to it. When connected to an external demodulator, such as a radio or GSM/GPRS, the ProFlex Lite Duo provides heading or relative positioning at the same time as it delivers centimeter-level RTK precision for machine control in mining, earth moving or dredging applications.

Dual RTK Flexibility

Each GNSS board embedded in a ProFlex Lite Duo can process GNSS data independently from one another. The two boards may be receiving two different sets of corrections to compute two independent RTK solutions while using the same GNSS antenna. This dual RTK processing is ideally suited for positioning back-up on large scale sites with multiple reference stations or for safety reasons, such as in offshore applications calling for redundancy with the constant collection of two independent fixes. ProFlex Lite Duo can even provide dual RTK solutions to enable heading computation via specific data acquisition software. The boards will be connected to two different antennas, using the same set of corrections to compute independently two RTK solutions.

Rugged and Easy to Integrate

The ProFlex Lite Duo is housed in a compact, impact-resistant aluminum enclosure rated to MIL-STD 810F for shock and vibration, waterproof and dustproof to an IP67 rating, and designed to withstand a large temperature range. Integrated mounting brackets enable easy incorporation in limited spaces and with existing equipment installed onboard ships, machines, UAVs, or any vehicle. ProFlex Lite Duo also features low power consumption (3.5W) and offers a wide variety of output messages and data formats for extensive solution
interoperability. Additionally, industry standard and independent I/O connectors simplify cabling for application developers.

Contact Information:

Ashtrech
http://www.ashtech.com

Maptek raises more than $12,000 for Make-A-Wish

In November 2009, the Denver Maptek office donated more than $12,000 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Colorado.

Employees participated in a “Growvember” contest, which encourages male participants to grow the best beard while raising money.

All of the 66 staff (bearded or not) joined in the fundraising effort, raising more than $7,000 for this worthy cause which grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions.

Sigma Phi Epsilon, Colorado Alpha in Boulder, Colorado, raised money as well, collecting and donating $266 to the foundation.

Mining Engineer, Chuck Winters, winner of the contest, chose Make-A-Wish to receive Maptek’s additional donation of $5,000, bringing the grand total to $12,300.

With the money raised, Maptek sponsored Drew, a 9 year-old-boy with multiple sclerosis, who will have a “Reptile Experience” with his family in Florida or Washington DC; and 3-year-old Gracie, with a Wilm's Tumor, who will visit Disneyworld with her family in April. Gracie wishes to "see where all of the
princesses live and go on train rides and merry-go-rounds”.

Other Maptek offices also got involved, with Australian operations raising $7,000 for their “Movember” cause in support of prostate cancer and mental health research.

Contact Information:

Maptek
http://www.maptek.com

Topcon and Mandli Communications to present at SPAR

Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS) and Mandli Communications, Inc. will present a seminar on ‘Building a 3D Mobile Mapping Vehicle for Highway Management Applications,’ at the SPAR 2010 conference.

The conference will be held at the Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center in Houston, Texas. The presentation is scheduled for February 9.

The joint presentation by Topcon and Mandli will focus on the core systems involved in mobile mapping data collection. Topcon will detail the functions and operation of their own core positioning components for mobile collection systems. This includes the IP-S2, which consists of a GNSS receiver, an IMU and wheel odometry. Mandli will present the point-of-view of an OEM working with their components, and how they can be integrated into an existing platform.

Richard Rybka, Topcon’s IP-S2 mobile mapping specialist and partner development manager, said, “The presentation discusses the details of a highway management application, but much can be learned by anyone who is interested in collecting accurate data quickly and safely for any asset management application. The integration of LIDAR, IMU, GPS and 360 degree photographs is a revolutionary change in field data collection that has the potential to save companies a lot of money in their data acquistion efforts.”

Ray Mandli, president of the company, said, “We have verified through rigorous field testing that the Topcon system meets our requirements for measuring precision positioning of assets. We plan to integrate the product into several of our projects in the 2010 collection year.”

Topics that will be highlighted at the SPAR 2010 conference include 3D Laser scanning, Mobile Surveying & Mapping, LIDAR, CAD/GIS Integration, Security Planning & Forensics, and Asset Management.

Contact Information:

Dr. John Holdren to Keynote

Dr. John P. Holdren, President Barack Obama's science and technology advisor and director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, will give the Keynote Address at the ESRI Federal User Conference (FedUC) on February 17, 2010, in Washington, D.C.

He will address an audience of government leaders and geographic information system (GIS) professionals from all levels of government. "The federal government is revolutionizing the way it uses technology to improve processes, make decisions, and strengthen democracy," said Jack Dangermond, ESRI president. "Holdren offers key insights into the important roles that science and technology play in addressing the issues of our time."

Trained in aerospace engineering and theoretical plasma physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University, Holdren is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the U.S. National Academy of Engineering, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is also a foreign member of the Royal Society of London and a former president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Prior to joining the Obama administration, he was a professor at both the Kennedy School of Government and the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Harvard University, as well as director of the independent, nonprofit Woods Hole Research Center. From 1973 to 1996, he was on the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley, where he cofounded and co-led the interdisciplinary graduate degree program in energy and resources.

In addition to experiencing a compelling Plenary Session, FedUC attendees will explore how GIS supports critical government initiatives such as economic recovery, renewable energy, health care reform, the smart grid, and climate change during paper presentations, technical workshops, a special national security session, and lightning talks. FedUC will be held February 17–19 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

Contact Information:

ESRI
http://www.esri.com/feduc

Infoterra Launches Interactive 3D City Mapping Service

Yesterday marked the launch of Skape, a new 3D city mapping service designed for architects, planners, local authorities and surveyors. Created and developed by Infoterra, a leading provider of geographic information products and services, Skape enables users to manipulate urban landscapes online by combining high resolution 3D textured city models with 2D mapping and terrain data - a technological first.

Through Skape, users can access major UK cities, enabling urban planners to rapidly develop highly detailed architectural models and save on both time and costs. With Skape, new buildings can be imported into a city and viewed in context with their surroundings, whilst existing buildings can be instantly removed and replaced. The high level of accuracy means that varying building textures, street
furniture, light and sun shadowing at different times of the day, and unlimited vantage points can be observed from anywhere in this online environment.

Skape launches with in-depth 3D coverage of major UK cities including London (centre), Birmingham, Leicester, Nottingham, Southampton, Brighton, Bournemouth, Glasgow, Manchester and Newcastle. By the end of 2010 Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield, Cardiff, Edinburgh and additional London coverage will be added to Skape's city coverage.

Skape Facts:

* 12 - the number of UK cities mapped so far
* 4 - the number of planes in the Infoterra fleet
* 52 - the number of experts on the Skape testing panel
* 11 - the number of industries that could use Skape
* 14 - the number of applications for Skape
* 52,660 - the number of buildings mapped in total
* 23,947 - the number of buildings mapped in London
* 3,750 - the number of hours it took to map the centre of London
* 960 - the number of hours it took to map Birmingham

Jamie Ritchie, responsible for the launch of Skape, explains: "In today's environment architects and planners are so dependent on modelling and 3D modelling. Their clients are demanding high quality, 3D visuals to bring concepts to life and to help them with their tendering and commissioning decisions. With Skape, highly realistic, complex modelling can now be done quickly and cost-effectively."

"Skape has been developed in conjunction with our user base, so we've called on an independent, expert panel of architects for feedback during the development process."

"During the feedback and development process, the majority of users viewed Skape as a significant improvement over current technology, showing that the market has been waiting for a service like Skape."

"The feedback has been extremely useful, and has meant that the service has been developed with our customer base constantly in mind. Skape will continually develop as we capture more and more data, and as our customers' needs evolve."

Skape has already been used by Bournemouth Borough Council's planning department to scope out a potential new regeneration project, allowing stakeholders to see a far more realistic visual concept than would have been possible previously, in the form of a flythrough of Bournemouth centre and 16 development sites.

"I am convinced Skape has a number of uses that will assist us in promoting the Town Centre Master Vision (TCMV) initiative and the Council's wider aspirations for the Town." - Martin Tiffin, TCMV Programme Leader, Bournemouth Borough Council.

Contact Information:

Infoterra
http://www.skapeworld.com

Trimble's Fourth Quarter Revenue Up 4%a as Compared to 4th Q 2008

Trimble announced revenue of $277.5 million for its fourth quarter ended January 1, 2010, up approximately 4 percent from revenue of $268.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Operating income for the fourth quarter of 2009 was $12.7 million, up approximately 21 percent as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008. Operating margin in the fourth quarter of 2009 was 4.6 percent, as compared to an operating margin of 3.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Amortization of intangibles was $13.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2009, as compared to $12.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2008. The impact of stock-based compensation expense was $5.3 million, as compared to $4.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2008. There was also $1.6 million in restructuring expense, no acquisition-related inventory step-up charges, and $0.8 million in non-recurring acquisition costs in the fourth quarter of 2009. This compares to $0.8 million in restructuring expense, $0.8 million in acquisition-related inventory step-up charges, and no non-recurring acquisition costs in the fourth quarter of 2008.

Excluding these items, non-GAAP operating income of $33.8 million was up 18 percent, as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008. Non-GAAP operating margin was 12.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009, as compared to 10.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008. Fourth quarter 2009 net income was $9.5 million, down 31 percent, as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008. Diluted earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2009 was $0.08, as compared to diluted earnings per share of $0.11 for the fourth quarter of 2008.

Adjusting for the items noted above, non-GAAP net income of $25.3 million for the fourth quarter of 2009 was down 13 percent, as compared to the fourth quarter of 2008. Non-GAAP earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2009 was $0.21, as compared to non-GAAP earnings per share of $0.24 in the fourth quarter of 2008. The tax rate for the fourth quarter of 2009 was 27 percent, compared to a tax benefit of 48 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008.

For the full year 2009, Trimble's revenue was $1.13 billion, down approximately 15 percent from revenue of $1.33 billion in 2008.

Operating income for the full year 2009 was $85.8 million, down approximately 54 percent from 2008. Operating margin in 2009 was 7.6 percent, as compared to operating margin of 14.0 percent in 2008. Amortization of intangibles was $52.5 million in 2009, as compared to $44.9 million in 2008. The impact of stock-based compensation expense was $18.7 million, as compared to $16.2 million in 2008. There was also $10.8 million in restructuring expense, $0.5 million in acquisition-related inventory step-up charges, and $3.8 million in non-recurring acquisition costs in 2009. This compares to $4.6 million in restructuring expense, $1.4 million in acquisition-related inventory step-up charges, and no non-recurring acquisition costs in 2008.

Excluding these items, full year non-GAAP operating income of $172.1 million
was down 32 percent, as compared to 2008. Full year 2009 non-GAAP operating margin was 15.3 percent in 2009, as compared to 19.0 percent in 2008.

Net income for the full year 2009 was $63.4 million, down 55 percent as compared to 2008. Diluted earnings per share for 2009 was $0.52, as compared to diluted earnings per share of $1.14 in 2008.

Adjusting for the items noted above, non-GAAP net income of $126.5 million for the full year 2009 was down 34 percent, as compared to 2008. Non-GAAP earnings per share for 2009 was $1.04, as compared to non-GAAP earnings per share of $1.54 in 2008. The tax rate for the full year 2009 was 27 percent, as compared to 26 percent for the full year 2008.

Cash flow from operations for the full year 2009 was $194.6 million, as compared to $176.1 million in 2008.

"The macroeconomic environment represented a significant challenge for Trimble throughout 2009. Although difficult, we saw improving stability in the second half of the year which provided us with the opportunity to demonstrate year-over-year progression in the fourth quarter," said Steven W. Berglund, Trimble's president and chief executive officer. "This reinforces our anticipation of meaningful revenue growth in 2010, with strong operating leverage providing the potential to grow earnings significantly faster than revenue. Trimble employees have distinguished themselves in a historically unprecedented period by confronting the needs of the short term while continuing to develop the platform for future growth. As a result, our fundamental long-term strategy and financial model remain intact and have not been impaired by the cost reductions taken during the recession," concluded Berglund. Read More

Contact Information:

Start Off the New Year with a Business Plan

Many folks groan at the idea of creating a formal (read: static) business plan: “Why bother? It’ll change next month!” That’s where the “Plan as You Go” concept comes to the rescue. This idea concentrates on the process of planning rather than the formal document. This type of plan is a “living document” that changes with your business. Read all about it on the OpenForum site Business Plans: “Plan as You Go” vs. “Traditional”.

Adapx Unveils New Capturx Mobile Software

Adapx today announced the availability of Capturx Mobile, enabling mobile workers to instantly send and share data collected on paper using Capturx digital pens with
Bluetooth-enabled BlackBerry and Windows Mobile devices. Central teams can now get immediate access to field data without requiring workers to bring mobile computers, applications, or source files into the field. Mobile workers simply collect data on standard paper forms, notebooks, or maps and then Capturx instantly sends and automatically integrates handwritten data into Microsoft Office, SharePoint, or ArcGIS.

"We've been using Capturx for two years and we're looking forward to the addition of Capturx Mobile. From wildfires to the latest damage caused by last week's heavy rains, we can now use Capturx to help us manage data about fast changing situations," said Captain Michael Hoose, 15-year veteran of the Santa Barbara City Fire Department. "With the new Capturx Mobile capabilities, we can instantly collect and share immediate updates from any type of emergency situation which makes it safer for everyone."

Capturx Mobile: How It Works

Capturx Mobile supports the entire Capturx product line and is an add-on to Capturx Forms for Excel, Capturx for OneNote, Capturx for ArcGIS, and Capturx for SharePoint. Handwritten data can be sent from mobile devices through email or directly uploaded into SharePoint Server. In both scenarios, teams simply pair their Blackberry or Windows Mobile device with the Capturx digital pen. Data sent through email is instantly integrated into Microsoft Office or ArcGIS once the recipient opens the email message and attached file. With Capturx for SharePoint Server, Capturx Mobile automatically aggregates data from multiple field workers into central servers for immediate data access, workflow, and archiving.

Utility teams in the field, for example, can instantly document inspections and service records for pipelines or transmission lines. Teams simply fill out paper forms or update asset data on paper maps using field-ready digital pens. Copies of the forms and GIS updates are instantly sent through cell phones to central offices, where they are automatically integrated into ArcGIS or Microsoft Office. Central teams get immediate visibility to field conditions without requiring field teams to deploy mobile computers or custom applications. With instant copies of the original handwriting, teams dramatically reduce the compliance risks of
missing documents. With the converted digital data, they can also easily trigger workflows or integrate data into other back-end field service and asset management systems.

Contact Information:

Adapx
http://www.Adapx.com

New Mobile GIS Software, SuperPad 3, Supports More Languages

German, Japanese, and Spanish interface of SuperPad 3

SuperGeo Technologies, the leading global provider of complete GIS software and solutions, announces that its full-function mobile GIS software, SuperPad 3, now supports German, Spanish, and Japanese.

SuperPad 3 is the brand new full-function mobile GIS software released by SuperGeo Technologies. The complete and powerful GIS functions of SuperPad 3 enable field-workers to effectively collect, edit, measure, etc. the spatial data in the field with any mobile devices or handheld devices supporting .NET CF 2 or above, so the validity and usability of the data can be improved greatly.

In order to better serve the users all over the world, SuperPad 3 now supports German, Spanish, and Japanese in addition to the built-in traditional Chinese and English. Moreover, SuperPad 3 is going to support French and Simplified Chinese in the near future. More languages will also be supported with the growth of its global network. Therefore, users will have more language options in SuperPad 3 and operate the powerful mobile GIS application more conveniently.

If you would like to experience the multi-language support of SuperPad 3, you can now download the trial software for free at http://www.supergeotek.com/download_6.aspx.

Contact Information:

SuperGeo Technologies
http://www.supergeotek.com/
Sarah Liu
886-2-25467700
sarahliu@supergeotek.com

Trimble Introduces 3D Scanner for Building Construction Applications

Trimble introduced the Trimble CX 3D Scanner for building construction applications. This advanced, high-accuracy sensor captures more than 50,000 position points per second - enough data to record the details of a target's shape, size and position with very high precision. It is ideal for building construction applications requiring the accurate measurement of as-built structures, in particular, by mechanical, engineering, and plumbing contractors involved in HVAC and pipe installations.

The announcement was made today at World of Concrete 2010, the concrete industry's annual international event dedicated to the commercial concrete and masonry construction industries. When preparing to install a new HVAC or pipe system, contractors can use the Trimble CX 3D Scanner to accurately record existing systems and spaces to ensure the new installation will fit correctly - even before it is designed. This capability can prevent errors and rework, increase
overall efficiency, and help provide contractors with a competitive edge.

Trimble proprietary WAVEPULSE technology in the Trimble CX 3D Scanner combines the high short-range accuracy of phase-shift technology with the low-noise sensitivity and high-distance characteristics of time-of-flight technology. This ensures high-precision measurements over the full operating range to provide
clean 3D data. An integrated camera collects additional image information, which improves the visualization, post-processing and communication of captured data. A rugged design with IP54 rating and protective housing for the rotating laser ensures the Trimble CX 3D Scanner delivers continuous, reliable results even in difficult building construction environments.

With the intuitive, streamlined Trimble Access software running on the Trimble Tablet Rugged PC, capturing data with the Trimble CX 3D Scanner is fast and easy to learn. Data can then be seamlessly transferred from Trimble Access to Trimble RealWorks or Trimble LASERGen office software. Trimble RealWorks provides tools to identify features captured and simplify the interpretation of data. The Trimble CX 3D Scanner is available now from select dealers in Trimble's North America Building Construction Distribution Network.

Contact Information:

Aero-Metric Puts Intergraph's 100th Digital Mapping Camera into Operation

Aero-Metric, a major provider of professional geospatial services with locations across the United States, has acquired its third IntergraphR Z/I Imaging Digital Mapping Camera (DMCR) to expand its high-quality, aerial imaging capabilities. The deal marks the 100th Intergraph large-format DMC to be put into operation and in flight by customers around the globe.

"As we headed into 2010 with the largest backlog in our company history, we needed to expand our image acquisition capacity," said Pat Olson, president and CEO of Aero-Metric. "Due to its superior accuracy, reliability and ease of use, we decided to purchase our third DMC to meet our client commitments and rising demand for large digital image acquisition projects."

"Intergraph cameras continue to be the sensors of choice for the most successful geospatial and image acquisition firms across the world," said Jack Ickes, vice president of photogrammetry at Intergraph. "The 100th DMC purchase by Aero-Metric is another milestone of Intergraph's leadership role in advanced digital imagery technology. It affirms the true value of Intergraph's photogrammetric solutions and our commitment to preserving customer investments, streamlining operations and maximizing efficiency."

The Intergraph DMC was the industry's first large-format frame digital aerial camera, the first to be certified by the United States Geological Survey and the first to offer an innovative Solid State Disk (SSD) storage technology to decrease camera weight and footprint. Intergraph has also recently introduced the RMK DT, a versatile, medium-format digital aerial camera designed to replace film-based technology for smaller mapping and remote sensing projects and for high-resolution engineering projects.

In addition to digital sensors, Intergraph's end-to-end earth imaging solutions include photogrammetric workstations, flight management and post-processing systems and a full photogrammetric data exploitation software suite. Users of Intergraph's end-to-end photogrammetry solutions benefit from speed, ease of use, data accuracy, precision, high performance and cost efficiency from project start to finish.

Aero-Metric has been an Intergraph customer since 1983. In addition to the three DMCs, the company also leverages Intergraph's ImageStationR geospatial data production software suite.

Further information on Intergraph's photogrammetry solutions can be found at: http://www.intergraph.com/photo/default.aspx.

Contact Information:

Aero-Metric
http://www.aerometric.com

Carnahan Elected to Merrick Board of Directors

Douglas E. Carnahan, Jr. has been elected to Merrick & Company’s board of
directors, it was announced by Ralph W. Christie, PE, chair and chief executive
officer. Carnahan has been with the firm for the past seven years, and upon retiring in late 2009, was elected to the board to continue his contribution to the firm.

“We’re pleased to have Doug continue supporting Merrick. He’s had a significant influence on our employee-owned company during his tenure and the continuity of his input into our strategic plans will help to support our continued growth,” said Christie.

Carnahan has been located in the firm’s Oak Ridge office for the past two years, where he was program manager on a major design project for the Department of Energy at the Y-12 National Security Complex , Tennessee. Prior to that he was chief operating officer for Merrick from 2005 until 2008. During his tenure at Merrick, he’s also been involved in projects over $100 million in size at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, the Los Alamos National Laboratory, and the Argonne National Laboratory.

Prior to joining Merrick, Carnahan served as a senior vice president for Washington Group International and Raytheon Engineers & Constructors. He’s a graduate of
Louisiana Tech University.

Contact Information:

Merrick
http://www.merrick.com

Topcon Layout and LayoutMaster Provide Construction Layout Solution

The art of construction layout just got a lot simpler.

Topcon Positioning Systems has introduced the industry’s most advanced software solution for construction layout – Topcon Layout and LayoutMaster.

The new software technology is designed to assist a contractor or builder with virtually any type of construction staking and layout application, regardless of terrain, regardless of weather, regardless of job site restrictions.

Mark Contino, vice president of product marketing, said, “Topcon Layout and LayoutMaster software is easy to learn and use, and will guide a user effortlessly through almost any layout task.”

The foundation of this new solution is the complete integration with Topcon’s industry-leading instrument and field data collection technology, which Contino said, “provides complete input/output integration capabilities. This allows end-users to work with design files in the office, job trailer or in an onsite vehicle and export customized design data directly to the field controller to start laying out the project.”

Layout and LayoutMaster also provide seamless integration with AutoCAD(TM), as well as a number of other engineering design software suites, with Topcon’s total stations including the GTS-100N series, the GTS-230W and the CTS-3000.

Features of the new software suite include:

Simple user interface for total stations
-- Drive robotic total stations with the optional robotic module.
-- Turn measurements from total stations into graphical data.
-- Special software features reduce the potential for angular mistakes.

Live map with touch selection
-- Touch any point or line on the map and press the Stake button to layout the point.
-- Touch any line to quickly calculate offsets.

Fast Plan Entry
-- Directional arrows for entering fast plan line jogs.
-- Plans stored in format to send to DXF files.

Quick dimensions
-- Click the tape measure icon to quickly get the dimension between points.
-- View summary of multiple point selections.

Simple offsets
-- Offset line segments, figures and create offset points from lines.
-- Calculate down and out from any line to a point.

The software will also store bolt patterns, as well as plot bolt patterns from any project point.

Contino also said that Topcon University, Topcon’s industry-leading training organization, is scheduling comprehensive training sessions via special webinar. Information about future webinars can be found at www.topconpositioning.com.

Contact Information:

Trimble Acquires Pondera Engineers Assets

Trimble announced today it has acquired the assets of privately-held Pondera Engineers LLC based in Post Falls, Idaho.

Pondera is an engineering and development company offering services and software tools for siting, designing, optimizing, and maintaining high-voltage power transmission and distribution lines. The acquisition is part of Trimble's strategic initiative to bring productivity solutions to the electric utilities industry. Financial terms were not disclosed. Pondera provides enterprise software solutions and design services for electric transmission line system operators (ISOs), engineer, procure and construct contractors (EPC) and vertically integrated utilities (IOUs). Its software suite includes TL-Pro Design Studio, PoleSTAR, and Nip&Tuck solutions.

TL–Pro allows users to model multiple scenarios and manage design standards in its interactive design environment. It includes sag and tension calculations, finite element structural analysis, true 3D global optimization, and project estimates and material lists via its powerful material manager module. Accuracy, flexibility and user productivity is enhanced by a 3D visualization terrain model and can be applied in a variety of situations, including project reviews, marketing, siting and permitting.

Pondera's PoleSTAR software allows users to model and analyze complicated pole structures using 3D graphical interfaces. Nip&Tuck software for re-tensioning transmission line conductors is used to test various techniques to resolve clearance problems on a span-by-span basis.

"Innovative technology is transforming the way utilities are planned, managed, built and maintained. Pondera software solutions and design services provide utility customers the tools to save time and cost during the design cycle as well as develop more accurate and complete infrastructure models, improving decision making and operational efficiencies," said Doug Merrill, general manager for Trimble's Utilities Initiative. "In addition, Trimble survey, mapping & GIS and GeoSpatial solutions provide data for TL-Pro analysis. The acquisition of Pondera will enable Trimble to provide additional capabilities for creating infrastructure models that leverage design information across the complete utility asset lifecycle."

"Pondera has developed solutions for the power line industry for many years, constantly evolving and innovating solutions to fit industry needs," said Yair Berenstein, a principal owner of Pondera. "Trimble is a leading provider of positioning technology to the utilities market and has complementary solutions that can move our products to the next level in power line infrastructure modeling, design and analysis. Trimble is the right fit for Pondera and our customers and we are very excited about how our combined solutions can address the needs of the electric utilities industry."

The Pondera business will be reported in Trimble's Field Solutions segment.

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Virginia Says Stop to Cul-De-Sacs

I live on a cul-de-sac, grew up on one too. I, as do many others, find them cozy, quiet and desirable. So why is the state of Virginia putting an end to them? Here’s an article that explains their decision and offers an upgraded alternative to the time-honored, but threatened, design. Read Suburbs & Cul-de-Sacs: Is The Romance Over? on NewGeography’s website.

Contact Information:

Professional Surveyor Magazine

FARO Technologies Donates $20,626 for Haitian Relief

FARO Technologies, the world’s leading provider of portable measurement and imaging systems, and its employees have donated $20,626.00 for Haitian Relief, including the Red Cross’s Haitian Relief and Development Fund, UNICEF, and other charitable organizations by wearing jeans to work and simply opening their wallets and hearts to support the cause.

The FARO Cares Committee, an employee-based community outreach group, started the ‘Jeans for Charity’ initiative last year. This program allows employees to wear jeans any day of the week for a $2 donation per day. The contributions have gone to various charitable organizations in the past, such as the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and the Lake Mary Fire Department. Due to the recent devastating events in Haiti, the committee decided to send all January charitable donations to disaster relief in Haiti and FARO agreed to match each employee contribution dollar for dollar.

“I’m proud to say, we have so many great employees that have wanted to help and donate money to the relief efforts in Haiti. Every dollar makes a difference and FARO has agreed to match each employee donation to support the recovery effort after this incredibly tragic earthquake,” said FARO Technologies Senior Vice President & Managing Director for the Americas, David Morse.

“Whenever there has been a call for help, the FARO team has always lent a hand and done our part to reach out to those in need.”

Contact Information:

FARO
http://www.faro.com

Imagemaps Appoints First Reseller in China

Imagemaps Pte. Ltd., Vexcel Imaging’s sales representative responsible for the People’s Republic of China, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand and ASEAN, has appointed Beijing Siwei Spatial Data Technology Co., Ltd as its first reseller for Ultracam photogrammetric products in the Chinese market. Beijing Siwei is a subsidiary of the Chinese Academy of Surveying and Mapping under the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping. Given the company’s many major aerial and mapping projects for the Chinese government and relationships with major aerial survey companies in China, Imagemaps identified Beijing Siwei as an ideal partner for the Imagemaps territory.

"The appointment of Beijing Siwei Spatial Data Technology Co., Ltd is the start of our aim to achieve better market coverage, increase product market share and provide better customer care services for our customers," said Lee Sze Keong, General Manager, Imagemaps Pte Ltd. "Beijing Siwei is an ideal partner, considering its experience in the field and its sales and technical support capabilities. We are pleased to have a strong partner like Beijing Siwei and will be organising many exciting marketing and sales activities in 2010 for our customers."

The new partnership extends the availability within the Asian market of Vexcel Imaging’s aerial mapping products that include the UltraCamXp and UltraCamXp Wide Angle large format digital aerial sensors, the UltraCamLp medium format sensor and the UltraMap 2.0 digital workflow software system.

“Vexcel Imaging congratulates Beijing Siwei and Imagemaps on this new partnership,” said Alexander Wiechert, Business Director of Microsoft and Managing Director for Vexcel Imaging GmbH. “This appointment underscores the commitment by Vexcel Imaging and Imagemaps to meet the demand from the Asian market for premium aerial mapping products.”

Contact Information:

ImageMaps
http://www.imagemaps.com

Topcon FC-250

Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS) introduces ‘next-generation’ field controller technology with its new FC-250. The FC-250 is designed to give users increased power and performance in a rugged and compact unit.

The FC-250 has the operating system power of the latest Windows Mobile Version 6.5. The PC performance with 806MHz processor and 256MB SDRAM is designed to significantly speed up data collection in the field. The FC-250 also has a built-in Bluetooth modem and wireless LAN capability as standard features.

Scott Langbein, TPS senior product manager, said, “The FC-250 is not a simple improvement over the successful FC-200. It offers improved graphics and user-interface as well as the highest PC performance ideal for handling video images. It offers a blazing-fast processor – lists work better, and the speed is fast.

“When used with Topcon’s IS Imaging Station, the FC-250 displays real-time images transferred from the IS via wireless LAN, allowing users to work with live images. This feature will certainly drive forward one-person survey technology,” Langbein said.

“While the FC-250 is extremely compact, it is truly ‘heavy duty.’ Rated at an IP66, inclement weather is not a deterrent to using the FC-250,” Langbein said.

Additional features of the FC-250 include:

-- 3.7” touch-screen display;
-- Optional Spread Spectrum Radio (RS-1) can be attached;
-- Optional long-range Bluetooth modem (RS-1B) can be attached;
-- Quick access to swap the battery;
-- SD and CF card slots; and
-- USB, and DE-9 com ports.

Langbein said, “Topcon has listened to customers and distributors to design this compact field controller with features that are invaluable to increased efficiency in the field. The FC-250 is a very rugged, advanced, affordable and powerful field controller for today’s market. The FC-250’s easy-to-navigate, intuitive user interface is another definite benefit that allows every user, including new Topcon users, to easily utilize full functionality of all Topcon GNSS receivers, total stations and Imaging Station.”

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Optech's Chairman Dr. Allan Carswell

Optech Incorporated, the worldís leading manufacturer of advanced lidar survey instruments, is pleased to announce that Dr. Allan Carswell, Chairman of Optech, will keynote SPAR 2010, on Monday, February 8. Dr.Carswell will discuss the growth of the use of lasers and lidar in surveying, and the lidar industry as a whole, from his perspective.

On the 50th anniversary of the invention of lasers, Dr. Carswell is a highly suitable choice as Speaker. Dr. Carswell has been a respected member of both the research and commercialization streams in lidar since its inception, and is a senior figure in atmospheric lidar research. He was the Science Lead for the lidar system in NASA's recent Mars Phoenix Lander, which captured the first data proving the existence of snowfall on Mars. Back on Earth Dr.Carswell's company, Optech, has been at the forefront of lidar surveying technology for over 35 years, driving its practical applications to answer real-world survey needs.

Dr. Carswell will address pioneering efforts in collaboration with many other commercial and research stakeholders, and their role in the research and development of lidar. The impact of three-dimensional imagery and information, which is now the norm in many surveying applications, will be discussed. The use of lidar in numerous applications, including ground-based static and mobile mapping as well as airborne terrestrial and bathymetric scanning, will also be discussed and illustrated.

The driving spirit of Optech will change your perception of what surveyors can achieve. This will enlighten all attending about the rich history of lidar and its bright future for surveyors today.

Contact Information:

Optech
http://www.optech.ca

New Monitoring Solutions from Trimble

Trimble introduced a new version of its Trimble 4D Control software, the core of Trimble monitoring solutions, that combines Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and optical technologies for real-time deformation monitoring applications. The software is ideal for monitoring dams, bridges, buildings, pipeline support piers, large-scale construction and excavation sites, underground and open pit
mines, landslides, tunnels, and other structures.

"With heightened safety concerns about aging infrastructure, deformation monitoring is a growing market," said Chris Gibson, vice president for Trimble's Surveying Division. "The new software allows users to leverage the optimal combination of sensor technologies to control, manage and analyze deformation measurements for a wide variety of engineering projects and alert project staff of potentially unsafe conditions requiring action."

Trimble 4D Control software is a comprehensive solution for both real-time and postprocessed monitoring. The fully scalable and versatile approach of the system makes it easy for surveying organizations to get started in monitoring. By leveraging surveying instruments and tools they already have, Trimble enables surveyors to customize a monitoring solution to meet the needs of even the most
demanding applications.

Leveraging GNSS Technology for Monitoring
Surveyors can now integrate positioning data from Trimble GNSS receivers to detect rapid motion and long-term movement trends. GNSS receivers can also be used in conjunction with optical target monitoring to examine the stability of control to ensure accurate optical measurements. The software works seamlessly with the TrimbleNetRS GPS, NetR3 Reference Sensor, NetR5 or NetR8 GNSS receivers.

The data from both the optical instruments and the GNSS receivers is combined, processed and analyzed in Trimble 4D Control software. Trimble 4D Control software monitors these measurements and triggers alarms if motion is detected, enabling project teams to take appropriate action to ensure a safe environment.

New Total Station Specifically Designed for Monitoring
For optical measurements, Trimble 4D Control software can be combined with the Trimble S8 Total Station, Trimble's most advanced Autolock and Robotic total station. The recently announced version of the Trimble S8 provides options for 0.5", and 1" angular accuracy combined with the Trimble DR High precision EDM for the most accurate distance measurements.

Other features of the Trimble S8 Total Station make it the optimal optical solution for a range of monitoring applications. Trimble FineLock technology provides a smart tracker sensor with a narrow field of view that enables the Trimble S8 to detect a target without interference from surrounding prisms. For long-distance monitoring applications (such as open pit mines) Trimble Long Range FineLock
provides the capability to monitor a prism at ranges up to 2,500 meters (8,202 feet). Trimble's MagDrive™ servo technology ensures the total station is fast and precise so users can monitor more targets in less time, detect movements faster, and initiate alarms earlier.

Availability
The new Trimble 4D Control software version 2.0 featuring integrated GNSS and optical measurement monitoring is expected to be available in March 2010 from Trimble's worldwide survey distribution network.

Trimble's Connected Site Solutions
Trimble's Connected Site solutions for surveyors create seamless working relationships among Trimble products, technologies and services through support, infrastructure and partnerships. Through the Connected Site, Trimble is focused on providing solutions that address the customer's full work process. By carefully combining technology innovation with a deep understanding of the users' workflows, data integration and maintenance needs across the lifecycle of the project, Trimble helps surveyors reach new levels of productivity for their
business.

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Topcon’s Frost, Moser Fill New Sales Positions

Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS) recently named Joel Frost as national sales manager of network products and services and Fred Moser as laser scanner sales manager. Both positions are new at TPS.

Joel Frost is a former senior regional sales manager for the Topcon Survey Business Unit. As the national sales manager of network products and services, Frost reports to Charles Rihner, vice president of planning for the Topcon Emerging Business Unit.

Rihner said, “Joel’s history with Topcon and knowledge of the industries we serve will greatly benefit our focus on expanding RTK network solutions.”

Fred Moser has assumed responsibilities as laser scanner sales manager reporting to Brice Walker, vice president of sales for the Topcon Survey Business Unit. Moser, who formerly served as TPS technical sales representatives, will work with all survey regional managers to develop opportunities and offer technical sales assistance.

“Fred’s technical expertise and commitment to success are becoming well known to dealers and to many customers who have benefited from his knowledge and expertise,” Walker said. “The nature of the scanner business is tailor-made for Fred’s skill set and I am very pleased to see him take on this new challenge, assisting us in expanding our distribution and ultimately growing all of our businesses.”

Contact Information:

NOAA Signs Contract for Seven SeaBat 7125-SV Multibeam Sonar Systems

NOAA is a federal agency within the United States Department of Commerce
focused on the conditions of the oceans and the atmosphere. The fleet ranges from oceanographic research ships capable of exploring the world's deepest oceans, to smaller ships and launches responsible for charting the nation's coastal waters. The fleet supports a wide range of marine activities, including fisheries and coastal research, nautical charting, and long-range ocean and climate studies. NOAA's ships are specially equipped and designed to support the agency's programs, and have capabilities not found in the commercial fleet. Six of the SeaBat sonar systems are to be mounted on Hydrographic Survey Launches of the SV Rainier, SV Fairweather, SV Thomas Jefferson and SV Ferdinand R. Hassler while the seventh system will be mounted on the SV Nancy Foster. These sonar systems will be used primarily to continue the legacy of NOAA’s 200 year mission of coastal and international charting.

SeaBat 7125-SV offers a number of new and unique features. The new transceiver provides an integrated multiport serial card and is optionally available with PDS2000 pre-installed for data acquisition and display as well as data processing on the same hardware platform. Four video outputs allow multiple survey and helm displays to be run. Roll stabilization and variable swath coverage of up to 140° featuring 200kHz/400kHz frequencies offers the preferred combination of swath and resolution.

A real-time uncertainty output from the SeaBat 7125 may be used in PDS2000, along with information from other sensors to calculate a TPE (Total Propagated Error). Soundings may be filtered by setting either the relevant IHO order or by
defining a custom vertical error limit. Other new features in SeaBat 7125-SV include roll stabilization, XYZ offsets for flexible transducer installations, Quality
filter and advanced diagnostic which increase survey efficiency. Further, AutoPilot uses sonar tuning values from a default or user generated look-up table for hands free sonar operation.

Mike Mutschler, of RESON states: “We are pleased to be able to continue this important relationship that is focused on Hydrographic survey efficiency. For many years, RESON has delivered a large number of SeaBat multibeam sonar systems to include the 8101, 8111, 8124, 8125, 8160, 7111, 7125 and now the SeaBat 7125-SV multibeam sonar model. With this continued investment in RESON SeaBat solutions we remain committed to the success of the NOAA fleet.”

Contact Information:

Reson
http://www.reson.com

Latvian State Forest Service Re-elects Ashtech MobileMapper GPS Devices for Forestry Control

A year after replacing its measuring tapes and survey compasses with 124 MobileMapper CX handheld GPS/GIS data collectors, the Latvian State Forest Service (SFS) is renewing its faith in Ashtech products with a new purchase of an additional 115 MobileMapper CX devices. Based on the success of its 2008 mobile GIS device deployment and use, SFS is targeting to equip as many field inspection crews as possible with Ashtech GPS/GIS data collectors for larger forestry management and control operations.

SFS foresters use the MobileMapper CX receivers to map forest parcels and locate forest and timber cutting boundaries. The MobileMapper CX units support a localized Latvian version of the popular ESRI ArcPad mapping software into which is loaded forest GIS data and orthophoto background maps from the state forestry registrar databases.

Following the national tender process, the Ashtech device was compared with two competitive brands and chosen once again for its convenience, simplicity and accuracy. MobileMapper CX is a rugged GPS handheld that delivers sub-meter real-time and even down to sub-foot post-processed accuracy at a very competitive price. Lightweight design, sun-readable touch-screen, large SD card support, Bluetooth and long-lasting swappable batteries are some of the embedded features that make the device very productive, easy-to-use and easily deployed to field crews.

12 MobileMapper 6 Devices

In order to equip its hunting inspectors and forest reproductive material inspectors with a GPS device containing an integrated camera, the SFS purchased 12 MobileMapper 6 devices with integrated 2-megapixel cameras. The MobileMapper 6 can take photos and tag them with the GPS location for use as a point attribute in any GIS application. The MobileMapper 6 is a rugged GPS/GIS handheld receiver perfectly adapted for harsh outdoor applications that offers professional GPS/GIS features at a price competitive with consumer-grade GPS devices.

All MobileMapper products were purchased from Ashtech distributor SIA Envirotech. Headquartered in Riga, SIA Envirotech is the leading company in Latvia supplying GIS/GPS technologies and implementing spatially enabled IT solutions.

Contact Information:

Ashtech
http://www.ashtech.com

Merrick Supporting Haitian Recovery Efforts With Technical Software Application

Many individuals and companies are supporting the Haitian relief and recovery activities. Because of Merrick’s expertise in light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data acquisition, processing, analysis, and application, the firm is providing a technical software application that will help teams to process and analyze LiDAR data that is currently being acquired in Haiti. The effort is being led by the Rochester Institute of Technology and being funded by the World Bank.

Contact Information:

MERRICK
http://www.merrick.com

Trimble Introduces DPS Mobile Data Transfer for Digital Pen Solutions

Trimble today announced remote data transfer capabilities for its family of Trimble
Digital Pen Solutions. Designed specifically for the construction contractor, the Trimble portfolio of Digital Pen Solutions and supporting software capabilities provide the simplicity of working with pen and paper with easy conversion to digital data by using a digital pen. Using Trimble DPS Mobile software, contractors can streamline the transfer of field data captured with the Trimble Digital Pen Solutions to the office for faster, more accurate data transfer and communications.

The announcement was made today at the AHR Expo 2010, the world's largest show targeting air conditioning, heating and refrigeration contractors. Designed for use with the BlackBerry smartphone, Trimble's new DPS Mobile data transfer application enables workers to easily transfer data from the Trimble Digital Pen to the office. Mobile workers can use Trimble DP20 digital pens to write on printed Microsoft Excel forms and PDF files. The written information can then be transferred to a BlackBerry smartphone via a Bluetooth connection and emailed to the office for integration into the original Excel and PDF files using Trimble DPS software.

Trimble DPS Mobile further improves productivity of field workers by enabling them to deliver field reports directly from the field without having to return to the office. This results in the faster transfer of critical information to minimize downtime, report progress for payment, and address quality issues.

Once digitized, the documents can be shared with project teams and designers to improve change documentation, track construction progress and reduce project risk. With immediate access to job site data, teams can keep projects on-track and minimize errors from poor documentation without the costs and delays of scanning and transcribing data from paper.

Ideal for superintendents, supervisors, engineers, foremen, safety inspectors, crew chiefs, detailers, construction managers and project managers, the Trimble Digital Pen Solutions allow project teams members to simultaneously collect form and markup data using individual pens and print outs. Digital notes, sketches, form data, and markups can be aggregated into the original file, tracking data by user, pen, and time. The digitized data can be added to emails or stored on centralized networks to consolidate and share information among teams.

The Trimble family of Digital Pen Solutions for the contractor includes:

Trimble DPS200 Forms for Microsoft Office Excel
Users can create forms in Microsoft Excel, such as site inspection punch lists or percentage-of-completion reports, and print them on ordinary paper. The handwritten data is immediately digitized and formatted back into the original Microsoft Excel fields for automated reporting and issue tracking.

Trimble DPS200 Markup for PDF
Users can print digitally-enabled designs, such as CAD documents and blueprints, on normal paper in small or large formats. Printed designs and as-builts can be marked-up and redlined in the field with a digital pen, which digitizes and uploads the data into the original Adobe PDF files. Teams can immediately track and share changes digitally without waiting or paying for data on paper to be sent or transcribed.

Trimble DPS100 for Microsoft Office OneNote
Automatically digitizes handwritten notes and sketches captured in the all-weather notebook for easy sharing, storing, and searching through Microsoft Office OneNote.

"The Trimble DPS Mobile applications reflect our commitment to provide innovative solutions that increase construction productivity," said Pat Bohle, general manager of Trimble's Building Construction Division. "These simple solutions work the way our customers work, improve communication, and reduce lost time driving between the project site and office. They also seamlessly integrate changes and ensure more efficient collaboration so that design and building project teams can reach decisions faster."

The Trimble Digital Pen Solutions leverage the Capturx technology—a jobsite proven technology used by hundreds of organizations to automate paper-based data collection. A broad range of industries and agencies use Capturx products as natural interfaces into Microsoft Office, GIS, and CAD systems through digital pens.

Trimble DPS Mobile software for the BlackBerry smartphone is expected to be available during the first quarter of 2010 through select dealers in Trimble's North American Building Construction distribution network.

Contact Information:

GIS-Pro 2010

Since 1963, URISA members and friends have convened annually to learn about, share and discuss all things geospatial. And now the name of URISA’s annual conference has been updated to better reflect that focus. URISA is pleased to announce GIS-Pro 2010: URISA’s 48th Annual Conference for GIS Professionals. The first conference under the new banner will take place September 28-October 1, 2010 in Orlando, Florida.

Along with the new conference name, GIS-Pro will reflect what GIS Professionals are looking for in a modern conference. Gone are restrictive conference tracks - what's in are coordinated themes, designed to move the conversation forward and interactively share information among conference participants. The Conference Committee invites your participation. Proposals for presentations, interactive
discussions, roundtables, and other content is invited and should fit in to one or more of these conference themes:

Value of GIS – The value of GIS can theoretically be quantified in terms of Return on Investment (ROI), but the methodology for determining ROI for GIS has not been standardized. Proposals on this topic could include information on measured return on investment (as opposed to estimated cost/benefit analysis performed prior to implementation); various methods for funding and justifying funding for
GIS implementation; and ways to articulate the financial/liability, economic, social or environmental impact of GIS for a jurisdiction, region or organization.

One Government – This concept is about multiple jurisdictions and overlapping levels of government (federal, state/provincial, regional, local) acting collaboratively. Proposals could include data sharing challenges and approaches; standardization and integration of data, applications and services; collaboration and communication that leads to a "one government" approach, and activities
that promote government transparency and accountability.

Stewardship – The notion of stewardship is one of service and support to a community of data users. Often, the steward has a vested interest in maintaining particular data set(s) for his/her organization, but no mandate (or funding) to maintain it for the rest of the community. Proposals could include data management, maintenance and integration topics, metadata issues and processes, data governance approaches, and methods for treating data as an infrastructure, or other, asset.

Data-based Decisions – This is a hot topic in 2010 at every level. U.S. Congressional Hearings are even focusing on ways to drive decisions based on data and "place". At last year’s Annual Conference, Dr. Wellar’s keynote focused on the need to manage various interrelated information infrastructures to make well-informed, accurate decisions, and the categorical need for GIS technology and geospatial sciences in that endeavor. Proposals could include Web 2.0 and social networking tools as a means of bringing information together and presenting it
appropriately to everyone; promoting GIS use to decision makers; better ways to visualize change spatially and temporally; and managing interdependent information infrastructures with geospatial tools and techniques.

Training & Education – With geospatial technology changing more and more rapidly, the need for high quality training and education continues to grow. And with the economic downturn, training budgets have taken a significant hit. Proposals could include ideas and tactics for promoting K-12 geographic/geospatial education; use of social networking tools for training; and information on technology updates and issues.

Abstracts are due on or before February 23, 2010.

Contact Information:

URISA
http://www.urisa.org

ASPRS LIDAR Committee

The American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing ( ASPRS ) will once again host a Hot Topics session at the upcoming International Lidar Mapping Forum (ILMF) event scheduled for March 3 – 5, 2010.

The Hot Topics session is being coordinated by Randy Rhoades, Chairman of the ASPRS LIDAR committee, but with the involvement of some of the key players in the newly formed ASPRS Mobile Mapping Systems committee.

With the close synergy yet unique differences between airborne Lidar and Mobile Mapping Systems, the ASPRS has recognized the need to develop a separate committee. This new committee will host its inaugural meeting at the spring 2010 ASPRS Annual Conference in San Diego, but in the meantime the LiDAR Committee will incorporate specific talks in the HOT Topics session.

Lewis Graham, President and CTO of GeoCue, will provide an overview of Mobile Mapping Systems and Jamie Young, Director of Operations at Sanborn, will discuss the Integration of Airborne, Terrestrial and Mobile Mapping Datasets.

Additional presentations will be made by Karen Schuckman, Professor at Penn State University, who will look at what is good   versus what is lacking in terms of personnel training and Matt Bethel, Manager of Systems Engineering at Merrick & Company, who will focus on high performance computing for LiDAR Data Processing.

The session will be held on the opening morning of the ILMF conference and all registered delegates will be able to attend free of charge.

Contact Information:

ASPRS LIDAR Committee
http://www.asprs.org/society/committees/lidar/

Digital Edition of ASPRS Journal Now Available

Starting with the January 2010 issue of the ASPRS journal, Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing (PE&RS), ASPRS members will have access to the full digital version of the journal online at www.asprs.org. This digital edition is complete with peer-reviewed articles, just as they appear in the printed version.

Members of ASPRS have exclusive assess to the peer-reviewed articles for 24 months from publication. After that, all articles will be available on the public side of the website. Members will have to log into the ASPRS website with their log in and password to see the complete digital version.

The enhanced version of PE&RS contains hot links for all ASPRS Sustaining Member Companies, as well as hot links on advertisements, ASPRS Who’s Who, and internet references.

A public version of the issue also is available on the ASPRS website, but it does not contain the complete peer-reviewed articles. To view the complete peer-reviewed articles, individuals may sign up for membership.

ASPRS will continue to publish and mail the paper version of the journal to all members for the foreseeable future.

Contact Information:

Topcon Tierra Relaunches Website with ‘New look, feel’

Topcon Tierra’s redeveloped website is up and operating, according to Mark Bittner, senior vice president and general manager, Topcon Telematics Business Unit.

The site offers new features – Dealer Locator and an Access link that takes visitors directly to the Tierra log-in page for registered users.

The new site, Bittner said, also offers the ability to provide information in multiple languages; the first to be added will be Spanish and Italian.

The site can be accessed at www.topcontierra.com

Contact Information:

Topcon Tierra
http://www.topcontierra.com

Seazone Launch Latest Version Of Marine Data Management Software

Oceanology International ‘10 (ExCel, London, UK, 9 - 11 March 2010) will see the release of the latest version of SeaZone GeoTemporal Editor, an innovative software solution to improve and simplify the management, analysis and presentation of geographic and environmental data where time is an important component.

SeaZone GeoTemporal Editor manages tide, current and wave datasets captured from Acoustic Doppler Profilers, together with other oceanographic, hydrographic and meteorological information such as water quality and wind speed data. The software allows the import of custom datasets and links to GIS and external databases, bringing a wide variety of data together for further spatial analysis and improved reporting and decision making.

Many organisations face the challenges of capturing, using and managing complex survey and environmental monitoring data, often relying on high end programming expertise and specialist software, which can be costly and inflexible.

SeaZone's GeoTemporal software provides marine surveyors, engineers, scientists, researchers, data managers and consultants with a new generation of tools to navigate and browse environmental data.

Through an easy to use interface, users can import, quality control, visualise, analyse and present data from multiple sources. Additional capabilities allow the export of data in open formats for further use in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and other applications such as environmental modelling.

SeaZone GeoTemporal replaces SeaZone's ADCP Processing Suite, offering greater flexibility, faster processing power, improved levels of interoperability and smarter delivery of project data to customers.

Oceanology International is the world’s premier event for marine science and ocean technology incorporating a conference, exhibition plus vessel demonstrations. It takes place at the ExCel, London, UK, 9 - 11 March 2010. SeaZone are located on Stand P455, opposite the bar where free demonstrations of the software are available.

Contact Information:

SeaZone
http://www.SeaZone.com

European Developer of Paving Control Systems Joins Topcon Group

Topcon Corporation announces that Topcon Europe Positioning B.V., a wholly-owned subsidiary in the Netherlands, acquired all business and assets of Roadware B.V., a leading developer of software and hardware for paving machine control solutions. Roadware is also headquartered in the Netherlands.

Joop Mennink, founder of Roadware, said, “After many years of close partnership with Topcon, this company integration is an important step to take our technology to the next level. The products of both companies are highly complementary and will offer our customers a truly seamless product portfolio, covering basic and most advanced automation needs.”

“In addition,” Mennink said, “Topcon’s global presence and extensive dealer network provide access to customers in every part of the world. I look forward to an exciting future together.”

Leveraging Roadware’s broad experience and expertise in automated asphalt/concrete paving solutions, Topcon will accelerate the development of next-generation machine control systems that save time, labor, material, fuel and CO2 while maximizing quality and profitability.

Contact Information:

DotSoft Releases MapWorks 3.0 for AutoCAD 2007 or Higher

DotSoft has released the third version of their Civil/Survey and Mapping software, MapWorks 3.0. With this version the product moves from a loose collection of utilities to a complete multiple module system.

+ Base module Projections section enhanced with alternate coordinates, cursor tracker and more. Import contains support for more formats and Export functionality has been added.

+ Design module contains centerline tools, curve solutions, parking layout tools and labels (that update when moved), etc.

+ Points module contains numerous additional point creation and editing tools along with support for more point file formats.

+ Surface module now contains contouring (with labels), surface creation, volumes, spot elevations, slope arrows, and more.

+ Sections module (includes profiles), can generate from objects in the drawing, points, sampling of multiple surfaces, etc.

+ Additions to all other modules including dozens of mapping oriented polyline tools, AutoCAD Map object data tools, etc.

Note: Requires AutoCAD, Land Desktop or Civil3D 2007 or higher!

Contact Information:

DotSoft
http://www.dotsoft.com/mapworks.htm

Psomas Announces Five New Principals

Psomas is pleased to announce the appointments of Craig Ahrens, PE, PLS; Alejandro Angel, PhD, PE, PTOE; Joseph Boyle, PE; Leslie Morton, PE; and Dave Moritz, PLS, EIT as Principals of the Firm.

Ahrens is a Utah licensed professional engineer and land surveyor with 16 years of experience in site development, transportation, and transit projects. Ahrens’ expertise is in managing large-scale transportation and development projects. He is a team leader for the Survey Department in Psomas’ Salt Lake office and has been with Psomas for 12 years.

Ahrens graduated from the University of Utah with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering with an emphasis in Environmental Engineering. He resides in Salt Lake City.

Angel is a Vice President of Transportation in Psomas’ Tucson, Arizona office. Angel’s background includes a unique combination of roadway and traffic engineering design, with experience in highway design, traffic engineering studies, research projects, and the development of standards for local and national agencies. Angel and his design team have been instrumental in developing traffic engineering services for Psomas.

Angel is also involved in several professional organizations and volunteer activities, including the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and the University of Arizona, where he serves as adjunct faculty for highway design. In 2009, the ITE Western District, which includes 5,000 professionals in 13 States, recognized Alejandro with the Young Professional Achievement Award for members under the age of 35. Angel earned his Masters Degree and PhD from the University of Arizona in Civil Engineering, with a focus on transportation, and he resides in Tucson, Arizona.

Boyle, a Vice President and team leader for Water/Wastewater Infrastructure in Southern California, has over 25 years of experience in the planning and design of water transmission, distribution and storage facilities. Boyle received his Bachelors Degree in Civil Engineering from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. He lives in Laguna Niguel and is based in Psomas’ Orange County office.

Morton is a Vice President and Regional Manager in the Psomas Salt Lake City office. A Utah licensed professional engineer with 16 years of experience in civil engineering, Morton’s expertise is in managing large-scale public and private-sector projects. She and has been with Psomas for 12 years.

Morton has a Master of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Colorado and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Utah. She resides in Salt Lake City.

Moritz is a Senior Project Manager in Psomas’ Orange County office. He has over 18 years of experience in large scale surveying and mapping projects, including rail corridors, gas transmission pipelines, multi-site ALTA Surveys, environmental monitoring surveys, and municipal and transit agency on-call contracts. Moritz received his Bachelors Degree in Civil Engineering from Cal Poly Pomona. He currently resides in Huntington Beach.

Contact Information:

Psomas
http://www.psomas.com

LizardTech Releases MG4 Decode Tool

LizardTech, a division of Celartem Inc. and a provider of software solutions for managing and distributing geospatial content, announced the release of MG4 Decode. MG4 Decode is an easy-to-use decoding tool for decompressing MrSID-encoded LiDAR files out to LAS or ASCII text format.

“Our goal is to create easy-to-use, efficient tools for geospatial professionals,” said
Jon Skiffington, LizardTech’s director of marketing. “With the release of MG4
Decode, users will be able to use a simple graphical interface to turn their compressed MrSID LiDAR files back to LAS or text format.”

MG4 Decode is available now as a free download on LizardTech’s website: http://www.lizardtech.com/download/dl_options.php?page=tools

Contact Information:

LizardTech
http://www.lizardtech.com

Geotagged Photos Facilitate Requests for Federal Aid after Disasters

Brown County, S.D., relies on GPS-enabled digital cameras and photo-mapping software to speed the deployment of resources and facilitate requests for federal assistance following natural disasters. The photo-mapping process, known as geotagging, utilizes GPS-Photo Link software from GeoSpatial Experts and the GPS-enabled Ricoh 500SE camera.

Brown County faces periodic spring flooding from snowmelt and heavy rains. As flood waters move across the county, officials acquire digital photos by air and by land with Ricoh 500SE cameras. A GPS receiver built onto each camera stamps the photos with precise coordinates of where each picture was taken. And a magnetic compass attached to the camera records the direction from which each photo was acquired.

The photos are uploaded along with their location data onto computers at the Brown County Emergency Operations Center. These computers run an easy-to-use photo-mapping software called GPS-Photo Link which automatically displays the photos in their correct geographic locations on a digital map of the county, either in a GIS or Google Earth environment.

County officials examine the photos to assess the damage and determine where emergency response teams should be deployed, explained Scott Madsen, County GIS Coordinator. The location coordinates on the photos help the responders quickly navigate back to those hardest hit areas. In addition, the county’s Emergency Management Director relies on the mapped photos to see where flood waters are headed so that resources can be sent downstream to warn the public and protect vital infrastructure.

Brown County has also discovered the geotagged photos are crucial for speeding their applications for disaster assistance from FEMA. Federal officials typically arrive to make their formal assessments after the flood waters have receded. The time- and location-stamped photos, however, provide them with exact records of the extent of damage that occurred in specific locations.

“When [FEMA] comes in to decide whether to declare a disaster for federal funding, they need to have documentation,” said Madsen. “They want to look at specific infrastructure damage…to put a dollar figure on it.”

Rick Bobbitt, President of GeoSpatial Experts, said that local government users of the GPS-Photo Link software are increasingly relying on geotagged photos taken during or shortly after a natural disaster to help determine the precise causes of damage. Rebuilding infrastructure to withstand future storms and floods depends on knowing whether damage was inflicted by winds, flood waters or floating debris. Brown County’s Madsen confirmed that these subtle differences can often be determined by mapping and examining geotagged photos of damage sites in the county GIS.

The Brown County GIS Office has been so pleased with the geotagging technology that it has purchased additional GPS-enabled Ricoh cameras with magnetic compass modules for use in other county departments. Most notably, the county’s Zoning Department uses the cameras to document zoning violations and conduct site inspections.

While GPS-Photo Link is used in conjunction with the Ricoh 500SE camera in Brown County, the photo-mapping software is compatible with any handheld GPS receiver and digital camera as well as some cell phones cameras with geotagging capabilities. The software can display the digital photos in most GIS and KML-based digital maps.

GeoSpatial Experts offers GPS-Photo Link in two editions: GPS-Photo Link GIS Pro for geospatial professionals mapping their photos in a true GIS environment, and GPS-Photo Link Express for business users who map photos on a digital or web-based map and generate reports from their photo inventories. GeoSpatial Experts sells the software as stand-alone packages or bundled with digital cameras and GPS receivers. To place an order, visit www.GeoSpatialExperts.com

Contact Information:

GeoSpatial Experts
http://www.GeoSpatialExperts.com

Intermap Technologies’ 3D Map Data Enables Accurate Planning

Intermap Technologies, the foremost worldwide 3D digital mapping company, today announced its high-resolution NEXTMap digital elevation data, currently available in numerous regions around the world including Europe and the United States, is being used to develop an advanced terrain and obstacle solution in advance of the ICAO’s eTOD (Electronic Terrain Obstacle Data) initiative. The process for collecting the NEXTMap dataset is currently undergoing certification by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). NEXTMap data will ultimately
enable an eTOD solution, which will help address cross-border harmonization issues in an effort to satisfy the need for uniformity and consistency in the provision of aeronautical information.

Developed in concert with several European-based air navigation service providers, the solution can potentially reduce the risk of collision with terrain and other obstacles by satisfying new reporting and accuracy requirements within well-defined distances surrounding aerodromes throughout Europe.

Available as early as Q2 2010, the solution will be compatible with existing planning tools and software, enable low upfront costs to the member states, and provide easy access to a seamless terrain and obstacle database that is centrally located.

“One of the most exciting aspects of helping make this solution available,” said Adam Denman, Intermap’s vice president and general manager for Europe, “is it will increase the safety of flights for crews and passengers by significantly reducing errors in the terrain and obstacle dataset here in Europe and by removing current issues associated with utilizing data in different coordinate systems from
neighboring countries.”

Contact Information:

Intermap
http://www.Intermap.com

RapidEye Successfully Completes Imaging Campaign in Afghanistan

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that it has completed a baseline image campaign covering the Helmand river basin in Afghanistan. The project was requested with an imaging window from November 3rd to December 4th, 2009 with the majority of the collection taking place during a 10 day from November 18th to 28th.

Covering over 250,000 square kilometers, the Helmand river basin is the largest in Afghanistan, accounting for almost half of the country's territory. It is the world’s largest opium production region. The project was initiated to obtain baseline imagery maps and ground cover information prior to the beginning of the 2010 growing season.

Since the river basin contains the largest production of opium in Afghanistan, it is essential to understand growth patterns and estimate yields in this area as part of the United Nations (UN), US and other efforts to suppress production. The wholesale value of the opium trade in Afghanistan was estimated at about $3 billion USD in 2008. With its red-edge band and broad area coverage the RapidEye satellite constellation is ideally suited for collecting and characterizing agricultural fields and can contribute greatly to these efforts.

Timeliness and accuracy of information is key when providing frequent agricultural monitoring. The RapidEye constellation of five satellites has the unrivaled ability to image individual fields, counties, states or countries on a frequent revisit cycle. The Helmand river basin project reinforced these capabilities, as the area around and including Lahkar Gah, the capital city of Helmand, was collected seven times in 23 days. RapidEye’s satellites can collect up to 4 million square kilometers of Earth Observation imagery every day and revisit any region on Earth on a near-daily basis thus assuring quick and reliable coverage of large areas at high resolution.

The imagery covering the Helmand river basin is now available for purchase to clients and partners worldwide. Additionally, many more million kilometers of Earth Observation data can be accessed through the RapidEye Library, which contains their entire catalog of products including their most recently collected satellite imagery, or through the RapidEye Geodata Kiosk by visiting www.geodatakiosk.com.

More information on RapidEye Products and Services can be found at the company’s website www.rapideye.de. Inquiries may be directed via email to sales@rapideye.de.

Contact Information:

RapidEye
http://rapideye.de

Stimulus SBA Loan Program Extended

The Small Business Administration has loan packages that include two important provisions credited with bringing back banks to small business lending. End result? Loans that are cheaper and easier to get. This program has been extended through February. A major package working its way through Congress, the Jobs for Main Street Act, if passed, will extend the program through next September. Read "Stimulus Relief Extended for SBA Loans" on the WSJ's website.

Contact Information:

Professional Surveyor Magazine
http://www.profsurv.com

Stephen Gregerson Joins Hunsaker & Associates-Los Angeles

Hunsaker & Associates-Los Angeles (H&A-LA),a Valencia-based civil engineering firm, has added professional land surveyor Stephen Gregerson to its team. Mr. Gregerson brings more than thirty years’ experience in the application of surveying and project management principles and will assist H&A-LA and its clients in the budgeting, preparation and management of land surveys, as well as in all phases of planning, permitting and engineering design. He was previously with Psomas for fifteen years, beginning as Project Manager and advancing to Vice President.

“We’re excited to have such an accomplished professional join our firm,” said
H&A-LA Principal Jeannine Giem. “Steve’s comprehensive surveying and management skills combined with his successful leadership of project programs will be vital assets as we continue to expand and provide land surveying and engineering services.”

Most recently Mr. Gregerson provided consulting services for several large
developments in the southwestern U.S. Mr. Gregerson’s consulting services for these projects included preacquisition due diligence, planning, agency negotiations, permitting/entitlements, budgeting and title surveys for the various projects. He is also an acknowledged expert in the preparation of ALTA Surveys, including providing management and coordination services on a national basis for REIT’s, portfolio managers and lenders. Clients include the national divisions
of all major U.S. title insurers and real estate law firms, including the Times Mirror Corporation, Farmers Insurance, Hometown America, Affordable Residential Communities, Pirtcher, Nichols & Davis, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and Tosco/Unocal.

H&A-LA’s survey team has extensive expertise in all phases of surveying,
involving hundreds of projects throughout Southern California including specialized surveying for ALTA Surveys, aerial control surveys, construction/environmental staking, transportation, boundary, and property records. It is one of the few firms that pre-calculates 95% of the survey construction staking in the office, eliminating potential problems and construction delays.

Contact Information:

Hunsaker & Associates
http://www.hunsakerla.com

Tangible Construction Site Management

Strategic partners RIB and TOPCON will be staging an impressive live presentation of their joint solution at the Bauma 2010 trade fair. A construction machine will be linked wireless via TOPCON’s SiteLink server to RIB’s STRATIS software at the fair booth.

Visitors will be able to take a look at the office/machine interaction outside the building as well as at the TOPCON booth.

“The presentation in Munich is intended to introduce the benefits of the system by highlighting the effects of changes and the prompt reaction potential on the construction site enabled by the integrated solution,” explains Achiel Sturm, Construction Business Unit Manager of TOPCON EUROPE POSITIONING B.V. Andreas Dieterle, Product Manager Sales at RIB, adds: “Cross-section data is directly transmitted from the fair booth to the machine working outside. As soon as the machine has done its job, the information is sent back online to our software system via SiteLink.

Exact actual-target comparisons are possible at any time. Whenever there is a
change of plan, the machine is given the necessary data direct and can initiate
its new working processes immediately.”

The partners will present the integrated solution, consisting of TOPCON’s SiteLink and RIB‘s STRATIS, in Hall A3 at booth no. 227-229. Details of new products to be
exhibited in Munich will be given on the partners’ websites just before the fair begins.

Contact Information:

RIB/Topcon
http://www.rib-software.com

ESRI Assists Haiti Earthquake Response

ESRI is working closely with the geographic information system (GIS) community and agencies responding to the Haiti earthquake by providing software, technical support, GIS data, and personnel. In the immediate aftermath of the earthquake—characterized as one of the worst natural disasters ever in the Western Hemisphere—GIS- is assisting in identifying areas of extreme damage, impacts to critical infrastructure, areas suitable for food and water distribution, and more. It gives officials critical information used for making all types of decisions.

Personnel and agencies helping the relief effort can take advantage of maps, data, software, and Web services available online through the ESRI Web site. Some of the data and services include a 25-meter reference grid of Haiti, an ESRI Geo Viewer, and Haiti basemap data from United Nations available on ArcGIS Online. In addition, ESRI-generated earthquake and recovery maps are available for both the media and public. ESRI will provide updates as they become available.

"Our job is to help where we can empower our users with better GIS support,” says Russ Johnson, director of public safety solutions for ESRI. “As soon as we learned of the terrible event in Haiti, we activated our emergency operational procedures to assist emergency services, humanitarian relief, health professionals, NGOs [nongovernmental organizations], and others. These organizations are working extremely hard to make a difference. We’re working to assist their efforts."

As aid and rescue workers pour into Port-au-Prince and other regions, GIS is playing an essential role in the assessment of priorities to get resources and people to the most critical areas. Organizations around the world are working around the clock to transport supplies to the hundreds of thousands of people in need. ESRI is supporting these activities to achieve the best possible response given the complex circumstances.

Contact Information:

ESRI
http://www.esri.com/haiti

DeLorme Earthmate GPS Receivers Now Compatible with MyTopo Terrain Navigator Software

DeLorme, the innovation leader in mapping, GPS, and GIS technology, today announced a significant new compatibility between DeLorme Earthmate PN-Series handheld GPS receivers and MyTopo’s Terrain Navigator software suite.

Now, GPS waypoints and tracks collected on the PN-Series devices can be easily imported and displayed within Terrain Navigator map data.

This announcement represents a “best of both worlds” scenario for law enforcement, search and rescue volunteers, and others who rely on both Terrain Navigator mapping software and Earthmate PN-Series receivers.

PN-Series users can now simply save the waypoints and tracks onto an SD card in a .gpx file format. Terrain Navigator Pro will then import and directly display the waypoint and track files, which can be saved for a multitude of reference and planning needs.

“This simple enhancement is excellent news for both DeLorme and MyTopo,” said Jim Skillings, DeLorme Vice President, Business Division. “We can now provide users of Terrain Navigator software with direct access to our fast-growing portfolio of PN-series GPS technologies.”

“MyTopo is pleased that DeLorme has made changes to its GPS device to allow interoperability with our Terrain Navigator software,” added Kevin Toohill, CEO of MyTopo. “This will be welcomed by those who rely on both our products in the field.”

The DeLorme firmware solution avoids additional processing for format conversion. This is particularly important in time sensitive applications such as search and rescue.

Existing PN-Series users can download a free firmware update (Version 2.7) to enable the needed .gpx file saving capabilities. Henceforth, any PN-Series devices purchased with DeLorme XMap 7 software will already have the firmware update installed.

Contact Information:

DeLorme
http://www.delorme.com

WhiteStar Introduces Streaming Imagery for Oil & Gas Exploration

WhiteStar Corp., a supplier of cartographic data products and services to the
energy industry, today introduced the WhiteStar Streaming Imagery product. Available by subscription, WhiteStar Streaming Imagery enables customers to view and stream high-resolution imagery directly into their digital mapping projects. “WhiteStar Streaming Imagery is delivered online in the standard web mapping service [WMS] format,” said WhiteStar President Robert White. “This
means oil & gas companies using ArcMap, PETRA or GeoGraphix for their mapping projects can access the imagery without leaving the software environment.”

WhiteStar introduced the Streaming Imagery product to facilitate the use of
high-resolution aerial photography and satellite imagery in hydrocarbon exploration and production projects. The WMS-compatible streaming format eliminates the time-consuming process of importing, balancing and mosaicking large image files. The data can be accessed in any WMS-compatible mapping software including ESRI ArcMap and ArcView, Halliburton GeoGraphix and IHS PETRA, Data included in the Streaming Imagery product is recent aerial and
satellite imagery collected since 2003. The entire online database has been orthorectified, tonally balanced, edge matched and stitched together to create a seamless nationwide mosaic. Spatial resolution is 0.5 meters in urban centers and one meter in most rural areas.

Customers can pan out or zoom into any area of interest in the country to a level of 1:2000 map scale, which is equivalent to a USGS quad map. “Streaming
Imagery data sets will be constantly updated with new images, so the data will never be more than a few years old,” said White. The WhiteStar Streaming Imagery solution includes access to nationwide road network and topographic contour datasets that overlay on the images. For clients with existing storehouses of raster imagery, the WhiteStar solution provides the option of archiving their own GeoTIFF files into the secure Streaming Imagery database for their exclusive use. This will give them on-demand access to their digital mapping data along with the WhiteStar imagery in the same easy-to-use WMS format.

Contact Information:

WhiteStar
http://www.whitestar.com
Steve Pickett
303-781-5182

RapidEye Covers 70% of Australia in 11 Months

RapidEye coverage from Feb 2009 – Dec 2009

RapidEye archive satellite imagery now extends across some 5.3 million sq km of Australia, representing almost 70% of the continent. This represents recent archive coverage, acquired since February 2009, at less than 10% cloud cover, and generally less than 15 degrees off-nadir imaging angle. Other key areas across Western Australia, Northern Territory, and Queensland are being captured over coming months, in addition to routine and on-going repeat coverage of tasking sites and agricultural districts across Australia.

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, has acquired over 26 million sq km of multi-temporal imagery over Australia. This imagery has less than 10% cloud cover and comprises almost 42,000 image tiles of 25 km x 25 km (625 sq km). The constellation of satellites has been in operation for less than 12 months.

“The quick collection of satellite imagery by RapidEye has demonstrated one of the systems advantages. RapidEye can routinely capture large areas in short time frames, providing clients with timely, cost-effective data.” says Gail Kelly, Business Development Manager of AAMHatch “This imagery will prove useful for a range of applications, including agribusiness, environment and pre-feasibility stages of many projects.”

AAMHatch is the distributor in Oceania for satellite data products from RapidEye. If you would like to request a quotation or obtain documents outlining the key advantages of RapidEye products, please email us at imagery@aamhatch.com

For more information on RapidEye satellite imagery, visit www.aamhatch.com/rapideye

Contact Information:

AAMHatch
http://www.aamhatch.com
Megan Bock, Marketing Coordinator
info@aamhatch.com

John M. Palatiello & Associates

John M. Palatiello & Associates, Inc., a public affairs consulting firm providing government relations, public relations, association management, strategic planning, and management & marketing consulting services to firms and organizations, with an emphasis on the geospatial, engineering, infrastructure and technology communities, has been retained by PaMAGIC, the Pennsylvania Mapping and Geographic Information Consortium (www.pamagic.org), to facilitate the development of a GIS Coordination Council.

The coordination council was proposed in the Geospatial Coordination Strategic Plan for Pennsylvania that was developed under a Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) CAP grant and completed in May, 2009. Although legislation to create a council has been introduced in the Pennsylvania General Assembly, it has not been enacted. PaMAGIC has led efforts to win endorsement of a council among numerous geospatial stakeholders in Pennsylvania. John M. Palatiello & Associates, Inc. is assisting PaMAGIC with a facilitated “congress” of endorsers to develop a strategy for creating the council.“Pennsylvania is one of the few states that do not have a council. Such a body is essential to the full deployment and utilization of GIS by state and local government, universities, the private sector, and non-profit organizations to enable government and make it more efficient and effective. We are confident that a strategy for making such a council a reality in Pennsylvania will be developed and implemented,” said John Palatiello, president of JMP&A.

More than 65 individuals representing more than a dozen organizations supporting a council participated in a January 14 session in Enola (Harrisburg), PA, facilitated by JMP&A, to develop a plan for getting a council established in the Keystone State.

JMP&A serves as association manager for MAPPS (www.mapps.org), the national association of private geospatial firms, COFPAES (www.cofpaes.org), the Council on Federal Procurement of Architectural & Engineering Services, and BCFC (www.governmentcompetition.org), the Business Coalition for Fair Competition.

Formed in 1987, JMP&A has assisted more than 25 firms, organizations and
government agencies with public policy and commercial market issues with its staff of six professionals. The firm’s president, John M. Palatiello, is a member of the federal government’s National Geospatial Advisory Committee and was a member of an advisory panel to the Virginia General Assembly that led the effort to create a state council and program, the Virginia Geographic Information Network (VGIN).

Contact Information:

John M. Palatiello & Associates, Inc.
http://www.jmpa.us

MapMart Expands Online Offering to Include Ortho Imagery from Pictometry

MapMart , the most extensive online source of mapping and image data sets, announced an enhancement to its online offering: the availability of Pictometry orthogonal 6-inch resolution imagery for 38 cities in the United States and Canada which can be searched, previewed and purchased from the MapMart online geospatial portal at www.mapmart.com .

MapMart has offered individual tiles of Pictometry’s vertical and oblique imagery for several years and most recently made Pictometry Online software available on the MapMart Software portal giving users unlimited annual viewing of oblique and orthogonal images for an entire market.

“Pictometry’s vast image library contains imagery captured in all 50 states and locations and includes rural, high-growth, and urban areas which means there’s imagery that’s relevant to countless markets and users,” said Dante Pennacchia, Pictometry’s Chief Marketing Officer.

Pictometry International Corp. is the leading provider of geo-referenced aerial image libraries and aerial imagery solutions which offer users high resolution imagery that’s measurable. To learn more about Pictometry, visit www.pictometry.com and to learn more visit MapMart at www.mapmart.com or call 1-866-499-6277.

Contact Information:

MapMart
http://www.mapmart.com/

Brent Schwarz Named as Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Velodyne

Velodyne Lidar, Inc., a leading manufacturer of high definition lidar sensors,
today announced the appointment of Brent Schwarz to the position of vice president of sales and marketing. A 20-year veteran with proven success in sales and channel development, Schwarz will be responsible for implementing strategic marketing programs to educate customers on the benefits of using Velodyne’s lidar sensors in 3-D mobile mapping and autonomous navigation systems. He will also collaborate with potential customers on the best methods for utilizing lidar technology in new products and services.

“Brent brings extensive experience at start-ups as well as established enterprises where his sales experience and passion for marketing has propelled companies to the next level,” said Bruce Hall, president of Velodyne. “Brent’s strong background, especially in GPS technology, will be a tremendous benefit as more companies utilize our sensor in creating 3-D models to improve the performance and reliability of autonomous navigation systems and to collect 3-D data for use in GIS, smartphones, car navigation devices and other applications.” As a seasoned sales professional, Schwarz has held sales management roles at leading technology companies including Magellan Navigation, Intel and On Command Corporation.

Schwarz earned a Bachelor of Science degree in journalism from the University of Colorado at Boulderand a Masters of Business Administration from Santa Clara University. “I am excited to join Velodyne,” said Schwarz. “The company has already created distinctive new opportunities for its lidar technology with defense contractors, heavy equipment OEMs and 3-D mobile-mapping system integrators. I look forward to being a catalyst for Velodyne’s
continued success.”

Contact Information:

Velodyne Lidar
http://www.velodynelidar.com

EngineerSupply Launches New Web Store for Engineering, Surveying and Construction Equipment

EngineerSupply, a leading supplier of engineering, surveying and construction
equipment, is proud to announce the launch its redesigned web store.
EngineerSupply’s newly updated webstore offers quick navigation through our wide variety of engineering, surveying and construction equipment.

The updated professional design gives customers a simple yet fulfilling online
shopping experience. Products are easy to find with our user-friendly
navigation. Purchases are quick and simple. Customer information is kept secure
with sophisticated security safeguards. Customers can login to our website to
check on their order at anytime. This will display current order status as well
as a tracking number if it has shipped.

Professionals around the country can access EngineerSupply’s impressive
collection of products, tips and techniques, and other instructional material.
EngineerSupply offers everything a local walk-in store has, with the addition of
low prices and extensive educational resources. We offer online access to press
releases, industry news, media guides, product demos, tutorials and much more.

"The newly-redesigned Webstore is the direct result of our commitment to offer
the best service to professionals in the surveying, construction and engineering
communities" says Rob Powell, owner of EngineerSupply. "Updates to
EngineerSupply.com have been developed from customer feedback. We will continue to listen to customer comments and upgrade our services to better serve them.”

In addition to the updated webstore EngineerSupply has added links to social
networking services. This provides a unique opportunity to EngineerSupply
customers, allowing them to easily communicate with EngineerSupply.com.
Customers can receive EngineerSupply updates through a wide variety of sources. EngineerSupply’s Twitter Page helps members keep track of site updates and information. Our online Facebook Fan Page allows customers and industry
professionals to share thoughts and questions. EngineerSupply’s YouTube Page
offers informative product videos and tutorials to help customers understand the
products and services we offer. Our new website makes it easy for users to sign
up for updates and promotional alerts through Email Alerts and our blog through
RSS Feeds. In addition to making customer feedback easier EngineerSupply will
use these resources to offer specials to network members. Such specials include
coupons, closeout and overstock notifications, free shipping offers and other
exclusive promotions.

The look has been updated, but the address is the same. Experience it all at
www.engineersupply.com!

Contact Information:

EngineerSupply
http://www.engineersupply.com
Rob Powell
800-591-8907
rob@engineersupply.com

Riegl USA Announces New Airborne Laser Scanner LMS-Q680i

RIEGL Laser Measurement Systems GmbH has released its latest state-of-the-art
airborne laser scanner the LMS-Q680i. The new system is available for order in the United States immediately. With 266,000 measurements at the ground, this "Innovation in 3D" provides unrivaled point density performance and an unmatched laser pulse repetition rate of 400 KHz.

"The new LMS-Q680i offers the established industry-leading echo digitization for in-depth full waveform analysis, now smoothly combined with multiple-time-around signal processing. The combination allows the user to benefit from the high pulse rate also from high flight altitudes and thus to achieve high measurement densities on the ground," said Dr. Andreas Ullrich, RIEGL Laser Measurement Systems CTO.

A scan rate of up to 200 lines per second at a constant 60 degree field-of-view makes this product ideal for city modeling, power line monitoring and even large area and flood plain mapping. The scanner is also ideal for forestry, shoreline and DEM model generation applications.

"We are excited about the new system and we will continue with the exceptional workflows and best practices that our users find invaluable," said Riegl USA President, Jim van Rens.

There is an update available for current Riegl LMS-Q680 users. LMS-Q680 users
are encouraged to contact Riegl USA for additional details regarding the upgrade.

Contact Information:

Riegl
http://www.rieglusa.com

Merrick Providing LiDAR Services for Oklahoma Natural Resources Conservation Service

Merrick & Company is providing light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data collection and data processing services for 7,766 square miles of five watersheds located in Oklahoma. The work is being done under a contract with AMEC Earth & Environmental, who is the prime consultant, for the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS). It is part of a five-year engineering and geospatial service indefinite delivery indefinite quantity contract for the watershed rehabilitation program that includes dam safety assessment, design, design review, flood inundation, and construction management. The data will be used by the USDA-NRCS for use in dam assessment and hydrologic and hydraulic models.

The LiDAR data is being collected between December 1, 2009 and February 28, 2010 over a snow-free terrain. The collected LiDAR data will be filtered to remove 95% or more of the vegetation, buildings, artifacts, man-made features, and noise. Deliverables will include classified LAS files and ESRI Digital Elevation Models (DEMs).

The Watershed Rehabilitation Program covers over 11,000 dams located in 47 states that have been built since 1948. Many of these dams are nearing the end of their 50-year design life and rehabilitation of the dams is needed to address critical public health and safety issues in these communities.

These watershed dams are part of the U.S.’ aging infrastructure that includes highways, bridges, and storm sewers. Local watershed projects represent a $15
billion investment in the national infrastructure. Local projects are federally assisted, not federally owned projects. Local sponsors own the dams and are responsible for their operation and maintenance.

Some of the work in the Watershed Rehabilitation Program is being funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Benefits of Watershed Projects:

Watershed projects provide flood control, municipal and irrigation water supply, recreation, soil erosion control, water quality improvement, wetland development, and wildlife habitat enhancement on more than 130 million acres across the country. Annually the Watershed Program yields benefits of more than $1.6 billion.

Contact Information:

Merrick
http://www.merrick.com

Woolpert Upgrades Its Airborne Digital Sensors To Leica ADS80s

Woolpert announced today that the firm has upgraded its two Leica ADS40 airborne digital sensors to Leica ADS80 airborne digital sensors to support the firm’s commitment to advanced remote sensing and digital imagery collection.

The ADS80 is an upgraded version of the ADS40 and provides increased
resolution as well as improved hardware and engineering. Woolpert purchased the sensor head SH82 configuration, which allows for stereo viewing of infrared imagery to further support the firm’s advance remote sensing capabilities.

“Over the past five years, Leica’s ADS technology has proven to be a leader
in large-format digital imagery,” said Jeff Lovin, Woolpert vice president and director of geospatial services. “We have been both very pleased and impressed with the reliability and performance of this technology, which has been key in our decision to upgrade our Leica ADS40s.”

Woolpert has partnered with Leica Geosystems for imaging technology throughout the past 20 years, starting when the firm purchased the RC20 aerial camera system in 1989. Woolpert has completed many landmark projects using ADS technology, including several statewide imagery mapping programs and
various large-scale federal projects, since the firm first acquired the ADS technology in 2005.

Contact Information:

Woolpert
http://www.woolpert.com

Safe Software Introduces FME 2010

Safe Software is excited to introduce our greatest breakthrough yet. FME 2010 - which includes new versions of FME Desktop and FME Server – promises to make it easier than ever before for you to access and use spatial data. Discover for yourself why FME 2010 is out of this world.

Regional FME User Meetings: 2010: An FME Odyssey

Join us in a city near you as we blast off on a 10-city tour across North America. These complementary events will help you get all the highlights on FME 2010, gain new insights from user presentations and discover best practices for solving your spatial data access challenges.

Contact Information:

Safe Software
http://www.safe.com/aboutus/events/2010-An-FME-Odyssey/overview.php

RapidEye Delivers Images of Haiti's Damaged Areas

RapidEye, the only geospatial solutions provider to own and operate a constellation of five identical Earth Observation satellites, announced today that it has completed imaging of all of the regions in Haiti that have been most affected by the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that hit the area on January 12.
Despite the unfavorable weather in this area, RapidEye managed to image more
than 80 percent of this large area between January 13 and 17, 2010 from an orbit of 630 km. The images clearly show the extensive damage to the region around the epicenter of the earthquake at 18°27'05''N /72°26'40''W.

RapidEye is concentrating on delivering these and future images of Haiti at no cost to governmental and non governmental help organizations and institutions in need of the most current Earth Observation information available for this region. If your organization is involved in emergency efforts for this devastating
event, please contact sales@rapideye.de. Additionally, RapidEye makes the imagery available for purchase on the Geodata Kiosk at www.geodatakiosk.com. General inquiries for the imagery can be sent to sales@rapideye.de. More information on RapidEye Products and Services can be found at the company’s website www.rapideye.de.

RapidEye has made these images available for editorial use at their website www.rapideye.de. They may be published for editorial use only, in hard copy, electronic or in broadcast format, provided that credit is provided to “RapidEye”
on all such products.

Contact Information:

RapidEye
http://www.rapideye.de

Digital Aerial Solutions Enters LiDAR Market with Leica Geosystems’ ALS60 LiDAR Sensor

Leica Geosystems’ six-year relationship with Digital Aerial Solutions (DAS), a full-service commercial provider of digital aerial imagery and geospatial products, was further strengthened by DAS’ purchase of Leica Geosystems’ ALS60 airborne LiDAR scanner, the company’s third-generation LiDAR (light detection and ranging) system.

Already an avid Leica ADS40 digital airborne user, the new Leica ALS60 technology complements DAS’ existing aerial imaging capabilities to provide an efficient and cost-effective means to acquire accurate, terrain elevation data and create high-resolution digital terrain models (DTMs), digital elevation models (DEMs) and topographical map products for a variety of project applications. "We are excited to add new technology such as the Leica ALS60 LiDAR system, which
further enables DAS to compete in the highly technical field of geospatial surveying and remote sensing and increase our ability to serve our customers’ needs,” said Mitch Jordan, Vice President of Program Management for DAS, based in Tampa, Florida.

With the Leica ALS60’s modular platform, DAS will be able to integrate additional airborne sensors to offer concurrent, high quality airborne images from its LiDAR surveys, providing clients with an additional visual perspective of their survey area.

"We at Leica Geosystems are very pleased with this opportunity to help DAS, Inc. expand its business with their addition of LiDAR technology using the
ALS60 system,” said George Southard, Leica Geosystems’ Vice President
Americas, Digital Imaging. “It has been very exciting over the past several years to watch DAS grow and support its advance in this very dynamic industry we share."

Contact Information:

Leica/Digital Aerial Solutions
http://www.digitalaerial.com

Ashtech Introduces the ProMark 500 V4.0 GNSS Receiver

Ashtech (formerly Magellan Professional) today announced the release of the ProMark 500 V4.0 GNSS receiver for high-performance RTK surveying.

Key new features of the release include:
-Faster signal acquisition and improved tracking capability
-Auto dial for easier connection to RTK networks and automatic reconnect to last mount point.
-USB key plug and play product configuration.
-RTC bridge to relay GSM/GPRS RTK network corrections to multiple rovers via license-free radios
-U-Link TRx radio repeater support
-Virtual antenna for improved equipment integration within a heterogeneous set of surveying equipment.
-L2C signal support.
-20 Hz RTK and data output option.

New Software upgrades available for the V4.0 release include:
-FAST Survey field software upgrade.
-GNSS Solutions office software upgrade that includes new geoids and new utilities.

Current users can fully benefit from these new features via a simple system upgrade. Like virtually all Ashtech firmware and software upgrades, the upgrade is free by visiting the Ashtech FTP site for new software downloads. http://www.ashtech.com/en/support/ Current Users can also contact their resellers about the upgrade.

Contact Information:

Ashtech
http://www.ashtech.com

Juniper Systems introduces Everglade Comprehensive Wetland Delineation Data Collection and Mapping

Juniper Systems, Inc., a manufacturer of innovative mobile field computing solutions for rugged applications, announces the release of Everglade, a mobile wetland delineation data collection solution.

The Everglade solution combines the power and ruggedness of Juniper Systems mobile computing platforms with a rapid, accurate, and efficient wetland data capture and reporting solution. Everglade is a comprehensive mobile data
collection application that meets wetland delineation requirements as defined by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) for tabular and spatial data collection.

The Everglade solution simplifies the wetland delineation data collection process by providing easy to use forms and simple spatial data collection tools. Transcription errors and time-per-project are reduced through the use of drop-down menus and searchable databases. Map production is enhanced through a common data storage location and spatial projection of all spatial data.

The Everglade mobile component, EvMobile, captures required tabular data as specified in the USACE regional determination forms through a comprehensive, easy to use form driven interface. EvMobile provides access to an extensive plant database with associated regional wetland indicators for species. Using a directly connected or Bluetoothr GPS, EvMobile captures spatial data in standard shapefile format for mapping in any GIS application. Using real-time, sub-meter receivers, EvMobile captures spatial data that meets USACE standards for spatial data
capture. Spatial data generated using Juniper Systems, Inc. Everglade solution meets the USACE map projection requirements.

The Everglade desktop component, EvDesktop, is used to create, manage, and synchronize field projects while providing a platform to evaluate, edit, and export finalized reports. EvDesktop installs with five United States Army Corp of Engineers regions available for immediate use in wetlands delineation projects in the contiguous United States. EvDesktop manages field project deployment and facilitates evaluation and editing of data upon return from field data collection. EvDesktop completes prevalence and dominance worksheets and exports a completed USACE formatted wetland delineation form to the common .doc format
which may be opened in any common word editor. Exported forms may be printed, emailed, or pasted into final reports.

Demonstration software and additional information can be accessed by visiting www.junipersys.com or follow EvergladeMobile on Twitter.com for updates and notices.

Contact Information:

Juniper Systems
http://www.junipersys.com

U.S. Borders Redrawn

by Jeff Salmon
Now that I’ve got your attention, here’s an interesting look at several U.S. maps
redrawn to take into account political and economic trends. Plus, if you haven’t seen it yet, a version of Prof. Igor Panarin’s redrawn U.S. map. He’s the former KGB analyst and a dean of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s academy who is predicting a Soviet-style breakup of the U.S. in 2010. According to this map, I need to learn to add “eh” to my speech pattern, as Colorado will be part of Canada this year. Funny! Read “Borderline Reality” on New Geography’s website.

RIEGL Airborne Laser Scanner LMS-Q680i

Riegl LMS-Q680i provides 266,000 measurements on the ground, using a laser pulse repetition rate of 400 kHz. A scan rate of up to 200 lines per second at a constant 60 degrees field of view provides an evenly distributed point pattern of high resolution for various applications like city modelling, power line monitoring, and even large area and flood plain mapping. With its specific multiple target capability the new scanner is the first choice for forestry and DEM model generation applications.

"The new LMS-Q680i offers the established industry-leading echo digitization for indepth full waveform analysis, now smoothly combined with multiple-timearound signal processing. This combination allows the user to benefit from the high pulse rate also from high flight altitudes and thus to achieve high measurement densities on the ground" said Dr. Andreas Ullrich, CTO at RIEGL Laser Measurement Systems GmbH.

Contact Information:

RIEGL
http://www.riegl.com/

Trimble Introduces New Additions to its Optical Total Station Portfolio

Trimble introduced today a wide range of new additions to its innovative portfolio of optical survey systems, giving surveyors a comprehensive selection of solutions for surveying and engineering applications.

“Surveying firms require flexible and integrated solutions to stay competitive. This is why Trimble’s Connected Site solutions are becoming the industry standard in Integrated Surveying techniques,” said Chris Gibson, vice president for Trimble’s Surveying Division. “One of our key objectives is to deliver versatile and scalable solutions that enable surveyors to quickly adapt to new market conditions.”

Trimble S8 Total Station

Originally introduced in 2007, the Trimble S8 Total Station is Trimble's most advanced Autolock and Robotic total station. New 0.5” accuracy models have been added for demanding engineering projects such as monitoring, precision build, and high-speed railway applications that require the highest levels of accuracy available.

The Trimble S8 Total Station product line has also been extended to include a new model with video-enabled robotic control to improve surveyors’ productivity. Trimble VISION technology gives surveyors the ability to remotely see and measure with live video feed from the instrument on their data controller. Surveyors can see everything the instrument sees without a trip back to the tripod. The total station’s system integrates survey data with the live video on the controller so surveyors can verify their work and ensure that they have captured everything before leaving the job. Photo documentation also allows surveyors to complement the data they provide to clients with images of the job conditions, making the data easier to understand. This new Trimble S8 model also includes Trimble DR Plus™ technology, which dramatically extends the total station’s reflectorless measurement range, saving time by reducing instrument set-ups.

Designed to deliver unsurpassed performance and productivity for surveying, the Trimble S8 Total Station is supported by Trimble Access and Trimble Survey Controller field software and Trimble Business Center office software to take full control of surveying and data analysis. For engineering applications, the Trimble S8 Total Station can be paired with other office and field solutions such as Trimble 4D Control software and specialized applications for Trimble Access software.

Trimble S6 Total Station

The new Trimble S6 Total Station provides surveyors with scalability and flexibility. It includes the long-range EDM performance of Trimble DR Plus technology, making it capable of direct reflex measurements at more than double the range of previous models. Longer range means fewer instrument set-ups and easier access to more locations, saving surveyors time and money.

With Servo, Autolock and Robotic options now available, the Trimble S6 is fully upgradable, enabling surveyors with a path for long-term growth. Engineered with MagDrive servo technology, the Trimble S6 silently spins the instrument at 115 degrees per second for fast operations. With its exclusive MultiTrack technology and Target ID capabilities, surveyors can choose the type of target, passive or active, that best suits the jobsite conditions and be confident that they can find and lock to the correct target. The robotic Trimble S6 instrument also supports Trimble GPS Search, a feature in Trimble field software, which uses GPS to quickly locate a lost prism on a rover. In less than 3 seconds the Trimble S6 can move to the correct position and lock onto the robotic rover. With Trimble’s unique SurePoint accuracy assurance technology, the Trimble S6 Total Station aims and stays, despite windy weather, vibrations, handling, or tripod settling, to ensure accurate pointing and measurement.

Trimble S3 Total Station

The Trimble S3 Total Station product line now includes new Autolock and Servo-only models with an on-board control panel for streamlined performance in the field. The Trimble S3 includes everything needed to perform efficient surveying projects: precision positioning performance and powerful data collection in an integrated, ergonomic solution for convenient, all-day use. It is built on proven, reliable, Trimble functionality such as Trimble DR technology for range measurement without a prism to almost any type of surface.

With Trimble Survey Controller on board, the Trimble S3 provides the foundation for Trimble’s Integrated Surveying solutions. With Integrated Surveying, surveyors can seamlessly integrate complementary technologies on the job site, such as Trimble GPS/GNSS and optical measurements, which allows them to use the most appropriate tool for the jobsite conditions.

Trimble M3 Mechanical Total Station

Lightweight, compact and rugged, the new Trimble M3 Total Station delivers powerful mechanical technology, backed by Trimble’s world-class training, service and support network. Ergonomic controls, plus an integrated screen and keyboard, streamline and simplify the surveyor’s work. World-class Nikon optics provide proven clarity, quality and precision for improved aiming and operation.

Easy to learn and operate, the Trimble M3 is built on mechanical measurement expertise and proven Trimble software tools. The Trimble M3 includes robust data collection and calculation tools with the new on-board Trimble Digital Fieldbook software for fast results in the field.

Trimble VX Spatial Station

The new Trimble VX Spatial Station adds the long-range reflectorless capacity of Trimble DR Plus technology to collect more data with fewer instrument setups and extends the range of scanning operations. Surveyors can capture and combine 3D scanning, imaging and surveying deliverables as well as create enhanced 2D and 3D deliverables for rich information management on projects—all with a single, easy-to-use solution.

With the ability to capture metric images with the Trimble VX in the field, surveyors can continue taking additional measurements back in the office and further attribute data using the industry standard Trimble RealWorks software. With Trimble RealWorks, surveyors can easily show clients their detailed work via 3D walkthroughs of the job site combining survey data, images, and scanned information all from the Trimble VX.

First introduced in 2007, the Trimble VX Spatial Station continues to revolutionize the scope of services that surveyors, engineers, mapping and geospatial professionals can offer as well as provide them with an entry into spatial imaging and spatial information applications.

Trimble’s Connected Site Solutions

Trimble’s Connected Site solutions for surveyors create seamless working relationships among Trimble products, technologies and services through support, infrastructure and partnerships. Through the Connected Site, Trimble is focused on providing solutions that address the customer’s full work process. By carefully combining technology innovation with a deep understanding of the users’ workflows, data integration and maintenance needs across the lifecycle of the project, Trimble helps surveyors reach new levels of productivity for their business.

Availability

The new optical total station solutions are expected to be available in February 2010 from Trimble’s worldwide survey distribution network.

Contact Information: