GIS

ISG transforms 3D model delivery

Global construction services company ISG is using the latest 3D modelling technology to boost its BIM capabilities. By introducing Pointfuse laser scanning software, ISG has speeded workflows with rapid scan-to-BIM modelling whilst maintaining high levels of accuracy. Traditionally this laser data processing could take up to three days to 3D model a single floor, however, using Pointfuse ISG has reduced this to a matter of hours. http://pointfuse.com

US Army Geospatial Center select Envitia

Envitia has announced that it was selected by the US Army Geospatial Center (AGC) to develop an innovative capability that will improve interoperability across the Army Geospatial Enterprise and between Coalition partners. Envitia, which specializes in geospatial and data software and services, will rapidly develop and deploy a prototype Portrayal Registry for the AGC that will manage and share standardized mapping elements as a centralized service. www.envita.com

Bentley Systems announces OpenSite Designer

Bentley Systems has announced the availability of OpenSite Designer, its integrated application for civil site and land development workflows across conceptual, preliminary, and detailed design phases. It advances BIM through comprehensive 3D site design, spanning reality modeling of site conditions from drone imagery and scans, geotechnical analysis, terrain modeling, site layout and grading optimization, stormwater drainage modeling and analysis, underground utilities modeling, detailed drawing production, and enlivened visualizations. www.bentley.com

Cadcorp SIS 9 service release extends support for OS

The first service release to Cadcorp SIS 9 consolidates all updates made since the version’s release on 19th November 2018. SIS 9 supported OS Open Zoomstack data in its pre-release format from the outset. In this latest service release, support for OS data released January 2019 onwards has been brought up-to-date. Cadcorp SIS users can open data in OGC GeoPackage and select cartography from the four standard OS styles – ‘Light’, ‘Outdoor’, ‘Road’ and ‘Night’, and the Cadcorp defined ‘Grayscale’. OS Open Zoomstack opened from Mapbox MBTiles is also automatically styled. www.cadcorp.com

Topcon announces Advanced Bentley integration

Topcon Positioning Group has announced new cloud-based photogrammetry processing powered by Bentley ContextCapture to its MAGNET Collage Web web-based service for publication, sharing, and analysis of reality capture data. The integration allows MAGNET Collage Web users who share and collaborate with scanning and mesh datasets to now process and add UAV photos directly to the MAGNET Collage 3D environment. CorpComm@topcon.com

Qatar Centre for GIS Partners with Esri

Esri has announced that it has contracted with The Centre for Geographic Information Systems (CGIS) – Ministry of Municipality & Environment, Qatar, to update its national data capture and mapping technologies in order to match the region’s growth. CGIS turned to Esri to draw on its mapping, surveying, and imagery experience. By partnering with Esri and the aerial survey consulting firm photogrammetry4u, CGIS expects to adopt new technologies and geospatial workflows that will capture location data and turn it into valuable digital 3D products.

New Early Warning Radar System

Hexagon AB has announced IDS GeoRadar RockSpot, a radar system that fills a critical gap in the monitoring of natural and engineered slopes. The system detects, tracks, and analyses the slightest movements from rockfalls, avalanches, and other fast-moving landslide debris flow. RockSpot creates real-time alerts that can be connected to on-site alarms (e.g., sirens, automatic road closures or other alert devices). Georeferenced, recorded event data provides advanced statistics and analytics for risk assessment and vulnerability zone mapping. RockSpot can identify rockfalls up to 2 kilometres from the slope, as well as avalanches and other fast-moving events, like mudflow and debris flow, up to 4 kilometres from the slope. hexagon.com

Kochin, India prepares for GIS mapping

Kochin Corporation and Cochin Smart City Mission Ltd (CSML) will conduct GIS based mapping in the Indian port city of Kochin, Kerala that will help the civic bodies to increase the collection of taxes. The municipal administration have to face a lot of problems in accessing the particulars of properties, location, hindrance and the details of property tax. Since, tax collection is the main source for the local administration, the GIS based map will assisting in increasing tax collection. The whole project would be carried out in four-phases with an estimated cost of INR 52 million.

UNOOSA and ESA sign MoU

The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to cooperate on helping all countries identify how space can sustain their efforts to reach the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a view to facilitate access to space solutions and with particular attention to developing countries.

Through the MoU, the two organisations will work together on developing a UN Space Solution Compendium (“SSC”) containing an overview of how selected space projects, and space technology in general, can help all countries achieve the SDGs. The SSC will document and identify how space applications offered today or being developed by agencies, research institutions and companies are relevant for the SDGs. The SSC will be hosted by UNOOSA.