Industry Briefs
BUSINESS
AeroMetric
(www.aerometric.com), Sheboygan, Wis., won a contract to provide the Guam International Airport with an electronic Airport Layout Plan. AeroMetric’s deliverables will be used by AECOM, the project’s prime consultant, to develop a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) geographic information system (GIS) database per the FAA’s Airport SurveyingGIS Program.
Airborne Technologies
(www.airbornetechnologies.at), Neustadt,Austria, partnered withLBI ArchPro, a European archaeological research initiative. The research program combines remote sensing techniques with geophysics, computer science and geomatics for interpreting archaeological sites on the scale of entire landscapes.
Altus Positioning Systems
(www.altus-ps.com), Torrance, Calif., signed Houston-based HTS Laser & Survey as a new distributor for the company’s surveying products. HTS will market and resell Altus products, including the company’s flagship APS-3GNSSRTK receiver, as well as offer product rentals, support and training.
Astrium GEO-Information Services
(www.astrium-geo.com), Chantilly, Va., won a contract from MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) to deliver Pléiades 1 and 2 andSPOT 5, 6 and 7 direct access capabilities to the Canadian Department of Defense (DND) as part of the Joint Space Support Project. The corresponding terminals will be integrated byMDA as part of two deployable satellite surveillance systems, providing DND access to Astrium’s full range of optical imaging satellite capabilities.
Aurora Flight Sciences
(www.aurora.aero), Manassas, Va., won a contract with the Air Force Research Laboratory and the Rapid Reaction Technology Office to provide a specialized Skate Small Unmanned Aerial System (SUAS), designed for autonomous operations in urban environments. The “Urban Beat Cop” program will demonstrate the ability of an SUAS platform to perform missions typical to that of law enforcement officers “walking a beat” along a city street. In addition, Aurora Flight Sciences announced its decision to make a major investment in Automated Fiber Placement technology that will be used to manufacture larger and more complex composite structures for the aerospace industry at an affordable cost. Aurora plans to locate this equipment at its Columbus, Miss., manufacturing facility.
Blue Marble Geographics
(www.bluemarblegeo.com), Gardiner,Maine, acquired Parker, Colo.-based Global Mapper, which develops software that directly accesses multiple online sources of imagery, topographic maps and gridded terrain data. Blue Marble Geographics develops software products and services for geospatial data conversion solutions.
Corbley Communications
(www.corbleycommunications.com), Castle Rock, Colo., launched a new division called X-Mark Media to create Global Positioning System-enabled travel and tourism apps for smartphones. X-Mark Media develops multimedia content that incorporates maps, imagery, audio, streaming videos, photographs and virtual reality to deliver educational, informative and entertaining experiences for tourist destination visitors.
Cybera
(www.cybera.ca), Calgary, Alberta, Canada, finished the pilot phase of a project that improves access to international environmental data drawn from more than 60,000 sensors and 2,800 Web map servers. The Geospatial Cyberinfrastructure for Environmental Sensing project was created in 2009 as a 3-D platform that enables researchers and citizens to gain access to, and share insights on, Earth’s climatic, hydrologic, and biotic systems and processes.
Directions Media
(www.directionsmedia.net), Huntsville, Ala., joined the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC). Directions Media has teamed with OGC for articles and events, and in January 2012 the company will host a webinar on 3-D/OGC CityGML.
Esri
(www.esri.com), Redlands, Calif., and its distributor, Esri (Thailand) Co. Ltd., assisted government agencies and emergency management professionals involved in the recent Thailand flooding disaster response. In addition, Esri signed an enterprise license agreement with King County, Wash., to better support the county’s geographic information system programs and initiatives. Also, with the opening of its latest office in Dubai, Esri continued to expand its international network of offices and distributorships.
exactEarth
(www.exactearth.com), Cambridge,Ontario,Canada, rceived three new orders for exactAIS, the company’s satellite-based vessel tracking and monitoring system. The orders were placed by the governments of Australia and Singapore, both new customers, and by an existing customer, the Canadian government, to support and enhance a wide range of applications, including maritime surveillance and security, traffic monitoring, environmental protection, and search-and-rescue operations
GeoEye
(www.geoeye.com), Herndon, Va., accepted an award from the Virginia State Police’s Criminal Intelligence Division, which runs the Virginia Fusion Center, for the company’s Hurricane Irene preparation, response and recovery efforts. GeoEye and the Fusion Center have been applying geospatial predictive analytics to public safety and homeland security operations as part of a Department of Homeland Security research and development project.
ITTExelis
(www.exelisinc.com), Rochester, N.Y., and Chronos Technology agreed to jointly pursue and develop product offerings for the Global Navigation Satellite System Interference, Detection and Mitigation (IDM) market. The collaboration will allow both companies to respond to the IDM market by offering a set of complementary products and solutions.
Leica Geosystems
(www.leica-geosystems.com), Norcross, Ga., announced Southern Resources Mapping Corp. (SRMC), Northport, Ala., selected the Leica RCD30 as its first digital aerial imaging camera. SRMC expects the upgrade from film cameras to the Leica medium-format digital system will expand its market share in the region while enabling the firm to offer faster product turnaround to its customers.
Management Association for Private Photogrammetric Surveyors
(www.mapps.org), Herndon, Va., announced AeroMetric’s project providing a cloud computing solution to geospatial data for the BP Deep Water Horizon event was selected as the Grand Award winner in the 5th Annual MAPPS Geospatial Products and Services Excellence Awards. The project was selected for AeroMetric’s ability to provide BP a dynamic process to develop and manage remote sensing, aerial surveillance acquisition programs and geospatial intelligence products and dissemination in response to the Deep Water Horizon accident.
Merrick & Company
(www.merrick.com), Aurora, Colo., announced its geospatial and surveying business unit was retained for a third time since 2006 by the University of California Riverside (UCR) to collect and process high-density light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data and high-resolution digital aerial imagery, as well as topographic mapping and building wireframe updates, for a 5.43-square-mile area encompassing the UCR campus. Merrick used a helicopter-borne suite of sensors to collect LiDAR data and color digital imagery as an update to UCR’s existing geographic information system databases.
Microsoft’s Photogrammetry Division
(www.microsoft.com/UltraCam), Graz, Austria, announced it sold an UltraCamLp photogrammetric digital aerial camera system to Belen, N.M.-based Blue Skies Consulting and Primul Meridian in Romania.
Orbit Logic
(www.orbitlogic.com), Greenbelt, Md., signed a contract with the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) in Thailand to deliver a collection feasibility solution for the THEOS imaging satellite. Orbit Logic will host an off-the-shelf, Web-based Collection Feasibility Tool configured for the THEOS satellite on an Orbit Logic server for exclusive use by GISTDA.
RapidEye
(www.rapideye.de), Brandenburg/Havel, Germany, signed a contract with China’s Ministry of Land and Resources (MLR) to cover almost 5 million square kilometers of China during the next few months using its constellation of imaging satellites. This is the third consecutive year RapidEye was a successful bidder to cover China for theMLR. In addition, RapidEye announced a second full coverage of Lithuania has been delivered and accepted by the Institute of Aerial Geodesy in Kaunas, Lithuania. This fulfills two-thirds of a multiyear, full-coverage contract that was negotiated in 2010.
RMSI
(www.rmsi.com), New Delhi, India, announced it was awarded the Technology Initiative of the Year award at the 15th Asia Insurance Industry Awards held recently in Singapore. RMSI was recognized for its Profiler for Insurance Exposure and Risk (PIER) geographic information system-based risk-assessment tool.
SimActive
(www.simactive.com), Montreal, announced the European Union Satellite Centre (EUSC) purchased its Correlator3D product for deriving accurate digital elevation models (DEMs). To improve its workflow, EUSC stressed the importance of fast, accurate DEM extraction and a significant reduction in DEM editing compared with current processes.
Urban and Regional Information Systems Association
(www.urisa.org), Des Plaines, Ill., announced the results of its latest salary survey for geographic information system professionals. The 2011 publication has been expanded to include more job titles and information pertaining to the increase/decrease of department size, professional certification, technical skills and salary information.
PEOPLE
Esri
(www.esri.com), Redlands, Calif., announced Esri President Jack Dangermond opened a discussion, known as the Spatial Roundtable, about the value of geographic information system technology and GeoDesign in responding to the effects of climate change. The climate change topic discussion will be active throughJan. 31, 2012, and will remain accessible for review in the company’s Spatial Roundtable archive through 2013.
GeoEye
(www.geoeye.com), Herndon, Va., announced University of California San Diego research fellow and GeoEye Foundation grantee Albert Yu-Min Lin was featured on National Geographic Channel’s broadcast “Forbidden Tomb of Genghis Khan.” The documentary followed Lin on his journey to unveil recent archeological discoveries he made using GeoEye high-resolution satellite imagery and other methodologies. In addition, GeoEye appointed General Michael P. C. Carns (retired U.S. Air Force) to serve on its board of directors. He joins nine other board members.
Merrick & Company
(www.merrick.com), Aurora, Colo., named David G. Huelskamp president of the firm. Huelskamp has been with Merrick for more than 15 years and most recently held the role of senior vice president, business development.
Océ
(www.oce.com), Trumbull, Conn., appointed Patrick Chapuis president andCEO of Océ North America. Chapuis also will retain his current responsibilities as president of Océ North America’s Wide Format Printing Systems division.
Pixxures
(www.pixxures.com), Arvada, Colo., hired Mark W. O’Neal as operations manager. O’Neal joins Pixxures to supervise remote sensing, photogrammetric and land survey operations, as well as to provide technical leadership for ongoing research and development efforts. In addition, Pixxures added Kermit Lewis to its business development team. Lewis will provide business development and account management from the company’s New Orleans office.
PRODUCTS
Avenza Systems
(www.avenza.com), Toronto, released MAPublisher 8.6 for Adobe Illustrator. In addition to a large number of new features and enhancements to existing ones, the release is the first version of MAPublisher to offer support for Safe Software’s FME Desktop data processing product.
CoreLogic
(www.corelogic.com), Santa Ana, Calif. introduced Xiance Desktop a risk-assessment tool designed to help property and casualty insurers make more informed, accurate and timely underwriting decisions. Xiance Desktop for insurers provides property-level data and analytics, allowing users to access precise hazard risk and premium tax data.
Esri
(www.esri.com), Redlands, Calif., announced CityEngine 2011, the latest version of the company’s software for creating high-quality 3-D content; Ordnance Survey’s small- and mid-scale OS OpenData products have been included in Esri’s World Topographic Map; Google Android users now can access data and mapping capabilities on their smartphones with the ArcGIS for Android application; and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) implementedNCS II, a new nautical charting system based on Esri geographic information system technology that allows NOAA to centralize the management of hydrographic data for U.S. coastal waters.
Federal Geographic Data Committee
(www.fgdc.gov), Washington, D.C., and its geospatial partners unveiled www.geoplatform.gov, a prototype geospatial platform Web site. The site combines map-based data and tools with the latest Internet technologies to ease geospatial information delivery.
Gatewing
(www.gatewing.com), Ghent,Belgium, introduced Gatewing Stretchout, an image processing solution that automatically converts the company’s X100 unmanned aerial system image data to accurate orthophotos and digital surface models. Stretchout begins the process by geotagging images and then processes them using automatic aerial triangulation followed by a bundle block adjustment that calculates camera interior orientation as well as position and attitude of each camera station.
GeoSpatial Experts
(www.geospatialexperts.com), Thornton, Colo., bundled itsGPS-Photo Link photo mapping software with Nikon’s new COOLPIX AW100 camera. The new Global Positioning System camera with built-in compass is the first Nikon COOLPIX built with a ruggedized body for use outdoors in almost any conditions.
Optech
(www.optech.ca), Toronto, announced Optec LMS Lidar Mapping Suite for its Lynx Mobile Mapper clients. OptechLMS offers Lynx clients a new workflow designed for high-volume production processing that incorporates a fully automated batch-mode capability, enabling simultaneous processing of multimission data collects. Optech also announced it was awarded the MAPPS 2011 Geospatial Excellence Award for Technology Innovation. The award was given to theALTM Aquarius, a compact solution for mapping coastal and inland waterways.
PCI Geomatics
(www.pcigeomatics.com), Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada, completed beta development of its software tools to analyze Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery using integrated workflows inside Esri’s ArcGIS software. The new SAR tools for ArcGIS include Coherent Change Detection, classification of multipolarized imagery, and advanced utilities to filter and analyze imagery. In addition, PCI Geomatics released Geomatica 10.3.2 Service Pack 2. The release contains performance improvements, maintenance fixes and all updates delivered since Geomatica 10.3.2 Service Pack 1.
Remote GeoSystems
(www.remotegeo.com), Fort Collins, Colo., released LineVision for PLS-CADD software, a geospatial video/photo extension for the company’s design and maintenance software for power transmission and distribution companies. LineVision for PLS-CADD allows users to click on a specific point along a right of way asset corridor in PLS-CADD and then review video and digital oblique photos geographically associated with that point.
Spatial Information Solutions
(www.spatialis.com), Starkville,Miss., announced it will offer complimentary ground control from CompassData to purchasers of its Accuracy Analyst or Topo Analyst products. The software is designed to ensure data accuracy and quality in digital maps.
Telespazio
(www.telespazio.com), Rome, announced the 2012 edition of the “Love Planet Earth” calendar, dedicated to forests. Featuring 12 high-resolution radar and optical satellite images produced by e-GEOS, the sixth edition of the calendar illustrates the transformations currently taking place on Earth.