ERDAS Announces a Free Webinar—New Year, New Tools…Turn up Your Stereo (Feature Collection)

Monday December 29th 2008
Filed Under ERDAS (Leica) 

Norcross, GA – ERDAS announces New Year, New Tools – Turn up Your Stereo (Feature Collection), a free webinar on January 6, 2009 at 11 a.m. EST.

Stereo visualization improves the interpretation of images and promotes more precise collection, leading to greater accuracy in resulting layers. This webinar includes interactive demos, introducing a new suite of tools for the ArcGIS 9.3 platform. These tools enable users to quickly collect features from stereo images to create maps.
FeatureAssist for ArcGIS includes a suite of templates to collect rooftops of varying complexity in an ESRI Multipatch format. A multipatch shapefile allows a 3D model to be constructed and optionally textured for realistic scene generation. ERDAS Terrain Editor for ArcGIS provides point, breakline and area tools to edit geodatabase terrains. These new tools are add-ons to Stereo Analyst™ for ArcGIS.

Each month, ERDAS is offering at least two different webinar topics. In addition to a live presentation and demonstration, each webinar also includes the opportunity for customers to interact directly with the presenters. Scheduled to last forty-five minutes, each webinar will include approximately thirty minutes of presented material and fifteen minutes for Q&A.

To register for New Year, New Tools – Turn up Your Stereo (Feature Collection), or find out more about other upcoming webinars, please visit: www.erdas.com.

###
About ERDAS
ERDAS – The Earth to Business Company – helps organizations harness the information of the changing earth for greater advantage.

ERDAS creates geospatial business systems that transform our earth’s data into business information, enabling individuals, businesses and public agencies to quickly access, manage, process and share that information from anywhere.

Using secure geospatial information, ERDAS solutions improve employee, customer and partner visibility to information, enabling them to respond faster and collaborate better. It also means better decision-making, increased productivity and new revenue streams.

Welcome to ERDAS: a trusted name, with a new energy, and a new vision. Earth to business starts here.

ERDAS is a part of the Hexagon Group, Sweden. For more information about ERDAS or its products and services, please call +1 770 776 3400, toll free +1 866 534 2286, or visit www.erdas.com.

Media Contact:

Jason Sims
ERDAS Inc.
Marketing Manager
5051 Peachtree Corners Circle, Suite 100
Norcross, GA 30092
Phone: +1 770 776 3400 or +1 866 534 2286
E-mail: Jason.Sims@erdas.com

           

DDTI Expands to New Office, Co-Location

Friday December 26th 2008
Filed Under Digital Data Technologies 

Company to Add Training Services in 2009
COLUMBUS, OHIO – Employees at Digital Data Technologies, Inc., will ring in the New Year in a newly expanded office space.  DDTI, the GIS firm specializing in creating datasets to aid in the location of wireless and wireline calls to 9-1-1, moved to its new facility at 2323 W. Fifth Ave. after outgrowing the space it occupied for nearly eight years.
 
Space was a primary motive for the move, as the staff size had quadrupled since putting down roots in its former office.  During the fourth quarter of 2008, DDTI further expanded its software development team by hiring a new Software Tester and Product Support & Implementation Coordinator.
 
Expansion of a different kind also prompted the relocation.
 
“Our business has grown to the point that our AccuGlobe E9-1-1 software solutions are installed in 12 different states, so ongoing training has become a priority for us,” said DDTI President Ron Cramer.  “We created a segment of our business designated solely to training our clients to feel as comfortable using our software as possible, and in conjunction with our new office, we created a training suite reserved specifically for that kind of educational offering.”
 
DDTI clients shared feedback during a recent survey administered by the company, confirming that turnover in the dispatch environment remains a constant challenge.  With the planned office move, incorporating a space reserved solely for addressing that client need was a win-win, according to Cramer.
 
DDTI’s training facility can seat up to 12 clients at a time, each with his own desktop computer for interactive learning.  The company has rolled out a training program to existing clients encompassing its AccuGlobe E9-1-1 Dispatch, Mobile and Administrator courses.
 
DDTI made one additional service enhancement for clients during the office move.  The DDTI software team initiated a server co-location upgrade, which took place over a series of weeks.  An improvement over the former arrangement, DDTI’s new co-location has virtually eliminated the chance of downtime, increased redundancies and freed up bandwidth which accelerates clients’ connection speeds.

 
Digital Data Technologies, Inc., is a premier full-service vendor specializing in the creation and dissemination of Geographical Information Systems data that aids in the services provided by county government agencies.  For more information about DDTI, please visit www.ddti.net.

           

AtlasCT releases version 3.2 of AtlasWeb™ SDK an advanced package for Internet-based maps and GIS applications development

Thursday December 25th 2008
Filed Under General 

amat-Gan, Israel, December 25 – AtlasCT, a developer and provider of worldwide mapping and location-based solutions both for the web and mobile marketplaces, is announcing the release of AtlasWeb™ SDK 3.2, an advanced package for Internet-based maps and GIS applications development.
AtlasWeb™ SDK (www.atlasct.com/AtlasWeb_SDK.html) is a JavaScript based set of functions which enables mapping capabilities for web applications. It provides high flexibility in developing customized mapping applications over the web. The AtlasWeb™ SDK package is specially designed for web developers. It contains ready for use JavaScript classes for easy and quick application building.
The new 3.2 version implements Object Oriented Programming, with its well known benefits of flexibility and simplicity for application development.
Version 3.2 provides additional features and enhanced functionality, the highlights are:
• Added/improved support for Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox 3, Opera and Apple Safari web browsers.
• Added unique and innovative geo-fencing capabilities.
• New map events.
• New grayscale mode.
Shai Divon, Development Team Leader, at Yellow-pages Israel (d.co.il) said: “Our work and relationship with AtlasCT’s team is excellent. With their professional support and advanced technology of their SDK, we’ve improved our map-based Yellow-pages website functionality and look and feel. Today, our users can search for businesses directly from the map with geo-fencing capabilities, which make it more easy and fun.”
“AtlasWeb SDK is our leading product for web developers” Says Yogev Triki, Chief Technology Officer at AtlasCT, “And with the latest features and additions it now opens us to many more markets than ever before, such as Yellow pages, asset tracking, friend finding, location-based advertising and more… We expect a growing flow of developers seeking for a tool that will empower their web application, shorten their TTM (time to market) and give them peace of mind for browser compatibility issues.”
Find out more about AtlasWeb™ SDK as well as other APIs at the company’s website www.atlasct.com.
About AtlasCT
AtlasCT (www.atlasct.com) is a leading developer and provider of worldwide location-based solutions. Our products are designed to supply API’s for maps and location-based services (LBS) for web and mobile platforms. Our cutting edge vector maps technology allows delivery of high quality maps for mobile devices and is the core technology of Nokia Mobile Search maps worldwide.
The names of the companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

Media Contact:
Ido Peled
International sales, AtlasCT
Phone: +972-(0)3-6124535
Email: idop@atlasct.com

           

Bentley Publishes Digital and Print Versions of ‘The Year in Infrastructure 2008′

Tuesday December 23rd 2008
Filed Under Bentley 

News Release

Press Contact:

Ron Kuhfeld

+1 610 321 6493

ron.kuhfeld@bentley.com
Bentley Publishes Digital and Print Versions of
‘The Year in Infrastructure 2008’
Annual Publication Features More Than 250 of the World’s Most Extraordinary Projects
EXTON, Pa. – Dec. 23, 2008 – Bentley Systems, Incorporated, the leading company dedicated to providing comprehensive software solutions for the infrastructure that sustains our world, today announced that “The Year in Infrastructure 2008” is available in digital and print versions. This 192-page yearbook highlights the extraordinary work of Bentley users improving the world’s infrastructure and the quality of life for us all. It features descriptions and color illustrations of the more than 250 project nominations recognized and 23 winners honored in the professional and academic portions of the 2008 Be Awards of Excellence competition. New this year are two categories – “Sustaining Our Society” and “Sustaining Our Environment” – that emphasize the world’s ever-increasing sustainability challenges.

Jay McGraw, group publisher, McGraw-Hill Construction, which sponsors the Be Awards of Excellence ceremony, said, “Bentley’s ‘Year in Infrastructure 2008’ is an exceptional, professionally crafted publication that focuses on exciting infrastructure projects in developed and developing economies. It is a must-read for the entire community of infrastructure professionals.”

CEO Greg Bentley added, “With our project yearbook, we proudly celebrate our users’ outstanding achievements in infrastructure design, engineering, construction, and operations. ‘The Year in Infrastructure 2008’ serves both to recognize projects nominated for Be Awards of Excellence and, increasingly, to share with those outside the infrastructure professions the excitement and inspiration we get – along with better-performing projects and infrastructure – from applying information technology innovations in particular.”

Mr. Bentley continued, “An aspiration we have is to help recruit the next generation of infrastructure professionals among students who enjoy working creatively with computers and who want to be able to improve the world through their work. For this purpose, we widely distribute hundreds of thousands of infrastructure yearbooks and work hard to promote their circulation.”
To view “The Year in Infrastructure 2008” in a digital format, visit www.bentley.com/YearInInfrastructure. Searches can be conducted by year and/or through terms, titles, or keywords to find projects of special interest. To request print copies, contact beawards@bentley.com. Please include your name, address, and quantity desired.
About the Be Awards of Excellence
The Be Awards of Excellence, which are judged by independent panels of industry experts and presented at an evening ceremony during the annual Be Conference, honor the extraordinary work of Bentley users improving the world’s infrastructure. These projects set benchmarks and showcase the imagination and technical mastery of the organizations that created them.
For information about how to enter projects for consideration in the 2009 Be Awards of Excellence competition, visit www.bentley.com/BeAwards.
About Bentley Systems, Incorporated
Bentley is the global leader dedicated to providing comprehensive software solutions for sustaining infrastructure. Architects, engineers, constructors, and owner-operators are indispensable in improving our world and our quality of life; the company’s mission is to improve the performance of their projects and of the assets they design, build, and operate. Bentley sustains the infrastructure professions by helping to leverage information technology, learning, best practices, and global collaboration – and by promoting careers devoted to this crucial work.

Founded in 1984, Bentley has more than 2,800 colleagues, offices in more than 50 countries, annual revenues surpassing $500 million, and since 1993, has invested more than $1 billion in research, development, and acquisitions. Nearly 90 percent of the Engineering News-Record Top Design Firms are Bentley subscribers, and a 2008 Daratech study ranked Bentley as the world’s #2 provider of geospatial software solutions.

For additional information about Bentley, visit www.bentley.com. For information about Be Communities, a social networking site that enables members of the infrastructure community to connect, communicate, and learn from each other, visit http://communities.bentley.com.

# # #

Bentley, the “B” Bentley logo, Be, and Be Awards of Excellence are either registered or unregistered trademarks or service marks of Bentley Systems, Incorporated or one of its direct or indirect wholly owned subsidiaries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

           

eSpatial & RSI SOFTECH Announce Strategic Reseller Agreement to Deliver eSpatial’s iSMART® Products & Applications Throughout India

Monday December 22nd 2008
Filed Under eSpatial 

Dec 22nd, 2008 – eSpatial, leading provider of GIS and Location Intelligence capabilities over the web, and RSI SOFTECH INDIA PVT LTD, a leading Indian Geomatics Company, today announced the signing of an exclusive Reseller Agreement. Under the agreement, RSI SOFTECH will act as master distributor for iSMART®, eSpatial’s leading GeoSpatial software suite for development of integrated, enterprise grade spatially enabled applications, throughout the Indian Marketplace.

RSI SOFTECH, with its parent company Remote Sensing Instruments (RSI), has over 23 years in the technology market.  RSI SOFTECH specializes in providing Enterprise Geospatial Solutions to the geospatial community worldwide. RSI SOFTECH has expertise in medium and large scale application development involving the latest web technology in the areas of Web GIS, Utility Mapping (AM/FM), Geospatial Data Mining Applications and providing Spatial Database Infrastructure Portal Applications and Services.    

eSpatial’s iSMART® supports a number of deployment models which include Pure Web and Customized Client within a scalable, role-based and secure environment. The architectural features delivered with iSMART® address standard IT requirements for the deployment of enterprise business applications. iSMART® provides an ideal enterprise grade hosted services delivery platform for geospatial applications. Delivered applications and services can also be provided to conform with the Open GeoSpatial Consortium (OGC) Web Services standards.

 

Philip O’Doherty, CEO, eSpatial commented, “India is demonstrating rapid growth in the adoption of geo-spatial technology, therefore this is a great opportunity for eSpatial and we’re excited at the prospect of extending our reach of the iSMART® product suite”.

Mr. T. Sesha Rao, MD, RSI SOFTECH commented, “We’re delighted to announce eSpatial’s iSMART® as part of our offerings and look forward to delivering solutions that are rapidly developed, cost effective, easy to deploy and can integrate with customers’ existing line of business systems. RSI SOFTECH is committed to providing reliable alternative solutions to our distribution channels and we look forward to offering eSpatial’s products and applications to existing and new customers”.

           

 

 

About RSI SOFTECH

 

RSI SOFTECH is a long standing player of the Geospatial Industry and has strong presence in the Indian Subcontinent. RSI SOFTECH is specialized in providing Enterprise Geospatial Solutions to the geospatial community of the world. RSI SOFTECH has expertise in medium and large scale application development involving the latest web technology in the areas of Web GIS, Utility Mapping (AM/FM), Geospatial Data Mining Applications and providing Spatial Database Infrastructure Portal Applications and Services. Based on the years of effort and geospatial knowledge RSI SOFTECH is fully geared to provide the applications to suite the current geospatial user needs. RSI SOFTECH specializes in providing turnkey geospatial solutions integrating precise hardware and software and customised apps for today’s enterprise geospatial needs.

 

About eSpatial

Since 1997, eSpatial has been helping businesses improve efficiencies and reduce costs through effective use of spatial data. We provide industrial-strength GIS over the web. eSpatial helps organizations to answer questions, solve problems and plan ahead by looking at data in a way that is quickly understood and easily shared as digital maps.  eSpatial combines the latest innovations in software delivery and usability with the traditional performance of in-house GIS to deliver on our vision of “World’s Best Web GIS”.  Our award winning solutions deliver easy-to-use yet powerful GIS functionality over the web providing universal access and faster integration.  US HQ is in Herndon, VA and European HQ is in Dublin Ireland, the company also has sales offices in the UK.

 

For Further Information contact:         

Orla Power, Head of Marketing and PR, eSpatial Solutions Ltd., Swords Business Park, Co. Dublin, Ireland.  t: +353.1.870.8800, f: +353.1.870.8899, e: info@espatial.com  www.espatial.com

 

Disclaimer and Trademarks
iSMART® is a registered trademark of eSpatial Solutions Ltd. and / or its affiliates.

All other product names may be the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
Copyright © 2008 eSpatial.
All Rights Reserved

           

VUEWorks-InfraMetrix Partnership Helps Municipalities Diagnose, Prioritize Infrastructure Maintenance

Monday December 22nd 2008
Filed Under VUEWorks 

Concord, New Hampshire – December 22, 2008 – VUEWorks, developers of GIS-integrated work order and asset management solutions, and InfraMetrix, providers of Infrastructure Diagnostic Services, have formed a technology partnership aimed at helping local governments prioritize infrastructure maintenance and capital investments for improved performance.  VUEWorks has also named InfraMetrix a National Channel Partner, authorized to sell and build solutions around VUEWorks® to customers throughout the United States.

 

InfraMetrix, headquartered in Tampa, Florida, is a leading provider of buried asset inventory and condition assessment data for water, wastewater sewer and stormwater systems. The company uses advanced methods and tools, such as zoom camera technology, GIS, and GPS, to help organizations assess operational, structural and hydraulic conditions. By adding VUEWorks to its portfolio of solutions, InfraMetrix’ clients can now use that data to prioritize maintenance, assign risk and assess consequences of asset failure and ultimately, maximize Capital Improvement Planning.

 

Commented Bill DiTullio, President of InfraMetrix: “Our mission is to deliver data in a usable easily accessible form to help our clients economically prioritize the maintenance and capital investments needed to provide consistent and reliable services. However, the data by itself is only half of the equation – our clients need an asset management solution like VUEWorks that makes the data readily usable by staff and contractors who need it. VUEWorks is a very intuitive, web-based, affordable software package that provides point-and-click access to physical characteristic information, operational/service, and structural condition of assets – all very important to optimize management of the system and maintain service delivery to the customers. As far as I’m concerned, VUEWorks is the best data mapping and data management system under one ‘roof’ available today.”

 

Commented Alex von Svoboda, VUEWorks’ Vice President of Sales and Marketing: “VUEWorks shares a common vision with InfraMetrix – providing accurate and affordable solutions that help

 

extend the useful life of aging infrastructure by maximizing the value obtained from operation and maintenance and capital expenditures. We are very pleased to have InfraMetrix as a National Channel Partner.”

 

InfraMetrix-VUEWorks Success Story: Town of Marblehead, Massachusetts Improves Asset Conditions and Allocation of Resources

Approximately 5 years ago, the Town of Marblehead, Massachusetts Water and Sewer Commission (MWSC), which serves 20,000 residents, was facing rising insurance claims and repair costs related to system failures and sewer backups of its approximately 87 miles of sewer pipe.  By adopting a systematic approach to Infrastructure Asset Management, utilizing both InfraMetrix and VUEWorks, the town has not only eliminated these problems, but has actually improved both the condition of its assets and its allocation of resources and budget.

 

The town hired InfraMetrix to inspect manholes and pipelines for blockage, using InfraMetrix’ unique zoom camera technology, and to make recommendations. The inspection data and observations were loaded into VUEWorks, and the town now has the ability to query the inspections and attach videos to an asset directly from the GIS map. Updates to the sewer system inventory are automatically reflected in the VUEWorks software.

 

According to Chuck McCollum, Assistant Superintendent of MWSC, the combined solution has delivered significant cost savings. “The InfraMetrix inspection revealed that only 5% of the inspected pipelines required more detailed in-line CCTV inspection, providing a significant cost savings had the Commission elected to use a traditional in-line CCTV process.  Instead, the MWSC could focus its resources in problem areas discovered during the screening process.  The MWSC proceeded to clean the manholes and pipelines determined to have immediate potential for blockage issues which could lead to costly environmental clean-up and property damage settlements.”

 

The MWSC is currently using the condition information collected by InfraMetrix in conjunction with VUEWorks to determine the consequence of failure and to calculate risk to prioritize future action.  The consequence of failure to public health, environment, property, costs, and community are also being configured in the VUEWorks. By using these methodologies to prioritize maintenance and capital expenditures, the MWSC is maximizing the resources expended in the near term.  As money is invested into the collection system, the MWSC expects the risks will be reduced, the overall utility condition index will increase, and less money will be spent on reactive maintenance and insurance claims. 

 

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About InfraMetrix

InfraMetrix (www.inframetrix.com) provides innovative and affordable Infrastructure Diagnostic Services to help clients prioritize long-term water, wastewater and storm water maintenance and capital investments for improved performance.

Headquartered in Tampa, FL, InfraMetrix offers a unique suite of infrastructure inspection and diagnostic services which provide critical information on water distribution and sewer systems.

InfraMetrix utilizes traditional as well as innovative inspection technologies and services to assess infiltration and inflow into sewer systems, leakage from water systems and the service (maintenance requirements) and structural condition of aging pipelines.

Our field staff and in-house GIS professionals produce accurate asset inventories, electronic maps and attribute databases customized for our clients’ needs. InfraMetrix is an Aqua Data of Pincourt (Quebec) Licensee. For more information please visit www.inframetrix.com.

About VUEWorks

VUEWorks Inc. (www.vueworks.com) develops, markets, and supports affordable, web-enabled integrated GIS Asset and Work Management solutions that help local governments, utilities, corporations, schools, theme parks, and other organizations track the condition, minimize failure risk, optimize expenditures and service delivery of their physical assets. VUEWorks is a privately-held corporation founded in 2004 and headquartered in Concord, New Hampshire.

 

For more information contact:  

 

VUEWorks Contact:

Alex Von Svoboda, alex.von.svoboda@VUEWorks.com, +1 603 228-8100

 

PR Contact:

Becky Stevens, becky.stevens@virtualmarketing-pr.com, +1 713 444-6860

           

2008 Proves a Strong Year for Cityworks

Monday December 22nd 2008
Filed Under Azteca Systems 

For Immediate Release
December 22, 2008
 
 
2008 Proves a Strong Year for Cityworks

Azteca Systems Continues to Expand Worldwide with Confidence in the Upcoming Year

 

Sandy, UT — Azteca Systems, Inc., the leading provider of GIS-centric management solutions, announced today that the company experienced another year of strong, stable growth through 2008.  Worldwide, forty-five new customers adopted Cityworks to manage assets, infrastructure, and property.  In addition, a significant share of existing customers further deployed Cityworks into new areas of their organization.

 

Cityworks’ powerful, yet easy-to-use management tools provide organizations the ability to manage and maintain assets, track customer issues, and improve workflow.  Built on ESRI’s ArcGIS software, Cityworks is the only software in its industry that fully takes advantage of GIS and spatial data to manage assets, giving agencies the ability to track critical data through maps and provide a complete solution for infrastructure needs.  Customers continue to express their satisfaction with Cityworks whether they are implementing for the first time, expanding to new departments and divisions, or have been using the GIS-centric application for years. 

 

 “From my involvement with Azteca and Cityworks throughout the planning and implementation process, I believe that the only thing better than Azteca’s marketing, project management, and technical coordination is the Cityworks software itself!” commented Bill Hodge, GIS Division Manager for the City of Midland, Texas. “Our first-round implementation within Transportation and Utilities is the beginning of a true enterprise-use of the Cityworks asset management software within the City.  I have already started planning an expansion of my GIS capability to match the anticipated increase in Cityworks usage, as other departments start to see the productivity increase that can be realized through this great product.” 

 

Cityworks version 4.5 was released this year, offering new and improved functionality and deployment options.  With the introduction of Cityworks Server MMS – the world’s first browser-based, GIS-centric asset maintenance management system – users can now deploy Cityworks on their Intranet and throughout their enterprise while leveraging Azteca Systems’ unique Cross-Compatibility approach; using Cityworks Desktop and Anywhere for field, disconnected and/or remote users.  Cityworks Server MMS is implemented at various sites in the United States, with several more deployments underway.  In addition, Cityworks Permitting was introduced at the 2008 Cityworks User Conference, ushering in the first GIS-centric enterprise permitting solution. 

 

In April, Azteca Systems announced the Cityworks Enterprise License Agreement (ELA) program in parallel with ESRI’s Small Government ELA, offering organization-wide GIS-centric asset maintenance management and permitting solutions for smaller agencies of 100,000 or less within a tiered, affordable pricing schedule.   June saw the 2008 Cityworks User Conference – the company’s highest attended and most successful to date – offering attendees technical workshops and user and partner presentations while highlighting the various functions of the software in a unique networking experience. The 2009 Cityworks User Conference will be in beautiful St. George, Utah, October 21-23.

 

“We experienced another remarkable year in 2008,” states Brian Haslam, President of Azteca Systems.  “We saw tremendous growth in our user base and as a company.  We are more involved in the global market more than ever before, with client’s spanning from Canada to India and South Africa to Sweden.  Our software and our people are the driving force behind our growth and corporate strength, and with the advent of our new Cityworks Server MMS and Cityworks Permitting products, we are confident that 2009 will continue to be yet another solid year for Azteca.”

 

 

About Azteca Systems, Inc.

Founded in 1986, Azteca Systems, Inc. is the leading provider of GIS-centric Enterprise Management Systems. Built exclusively on top of ESRI’s leading GIS technology, Cityworks is powerful, scalable, and affordable, designed for agencies that own and care for critical infrastructure, capital assets, and property.  

 

 

#########

 

 

Azteca, Azteca Systems, Cityworks, Cityworks Wireless, MyCityworks.com, azteca.com, and @azteca.com are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Azteca Systems, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

 

 

Photographs available upon request.

 

 

For more information, contact:

Lindsay Ferguson

Communications and Marketing

Azteca Systems, Inc.

801.523.2751

lferguson@cityworks.com

           

OGC Calls for Participation in ECO9 OGC Pilot

Monday December 22nd 2008
Filed Under OGC 

Wayland, Mass., December 22, 2008 – The Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc.
(OGC) has issued a Request For Quotations and Call for Participation
(RFQ/CFP) to solicit proposals in response to requirements for the Empire Challenge 09 Pilot (EC09 OGC Pilot).

The EC09 OGC Pilot is sponsored by a US agency which will provide cost-sharing funds to offset expenses associated with the initiative.
The sponsor and the OGC intend to involve as many participants in the initiative as possible and thus are soliciting proposals that will enhance and/or make use of the initiative outcomes. This RFQ/CFP is soliciting partners to provide and deploy hardware / software for the pilot network. Responses are due by January 14, 2009 and the Pilot Kickoff Meeting will be held the week of 10-11 February 2009, in the Washington, DC area. Technology deployments will be complete by July 17, 2009, followed by a two-week demonstration phase for the remainder of July.

The EC09 OGC Pilot will examine the suitability and performance of OGC Sensor Web Enablement (SWE) and OGC Web Services (OWS) standards for providing open management of and access to sensors of varied types and Web service access by analysts to the resulting data and products.
Several use cases and supporting workflows are provided to enable understanding of the design of the pilot. The use cases involve both sensor management and exploitation by a targeting analyst.

The EC09 OGC Pilot RFQ/CFP documents can be downloaded from:
http://www.opengeospatial.org/standards/requests/51 .

The OGC® is an international consortium of more than 365 companies, government agencies, research organizations, and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geospatial standards. OpenGIS® Standards support interoperable solutions that “geo-enable” the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT. OGC Standards empower technology developers to make geospatial information and services accessible and useful with any application that needs to be geospatially enabled. Visit the OGC website at http://www.opengeospatial.org/.

           

The first OSM navigation system for the Google Android Platform is powered by OpenRouteService

Sunday December 21st 2008
Filed Under OpenRouteService 

AndNav (andnav.org) is the first OSM navigation system for the Google Android Platform.
This project by Nicolas Gramlich uses maps from OpenStreetMap (OSM) and the range of OGC OpenLS services provided by the OpenRouteService LBS platform (Routing, Directions, POI-Search, Geocoding/Reverse Geocoding, AvoidAreas, and  further such as Accessibility Analysis etc.) from the Department of Geography, Chair of Cartography. University of Bonn.

The growing AndNav feature list http://www.andnav.org/index.php/features mentions also the possibility to contribute GPX-traces back to the OSM-project.
T-Mobile has announced the availability of the first Google Android phone (G1) in Germany in Q1 2009. It is already available in the UK and in the US.

The first public AndNav2-Alpha has been released today for the following countries, currently covered by OpenRouteService:
Germany,  France, Denmark, United Kingdom, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, Austria & Ireland
http://openrouteservice.org
http://andnav.org/
http://www.geographie.uni-bonn.de/karto/

           

Trimble Acquires KOREC Software Assets to Expand its Mapping and GIS Solutions

Friday December 19th 2008
Filed Under Trimble 

Contacts: Willa McManmon Lea Ann McNabb
      Trimble Trimble    
 Investor Relations   Media    
 408-481-7838 408-481-7808
 willa_mcmanmon@trimble.com leaann_mcnabb@trimble.com
Trimble Acquires KOREC Software Assets to Expand its Mapping and GIS Solutions

SUNNYVALE, Calif., Dec. 19, 2008 — Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) announced today it has acquired the FastMap and GeoSite software assets from KOREC, a privately-held Trimble distributor serving the United Kingdom and Ireland. The acquisition, which includes software development, professional services and business development teams, will allow Trimble to expand its Mapping and Geographic Information System (GIS) solutions to provide optimized software and professional services in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Financial terms were not disclosed.

FastMap is an integrated field-based software suite for GIS data collection, maintenance, and use that supports all Ordnance Survey digital data sources as well as data from any GIS system that conforms to OpenGIS® standards. The suite includes modules for mobile data capture and data maintenance, workforce management, asset management, and map production. The GeoSite product provides a complete solution for land surveyors and construction professionals for managing a full range of field to office functions such as processing data, editing CAD files, conducting volume analysis, and plotting production operations, all in a single software package. The acquired professional services group delivers customized solutions for various industries throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland including utilities, government, transportation and environmental management.

“The FastMap and GeoSite software will enable Trimble to provide a complete and compelling solution to our enterprise customers in the United Kingdom and Ireland,” said Peter Large, general manager of Trimble’s Mapping and GIS Division. “In addition, the software and professional services team will enable us to provide custom solutions to key enterprise customers in the utilities, transportation and government sectors in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.”

About KOREC

KOREC is one of Trimble’s largest distributors providing a single source supply for advanced GPS solutions to the construction, surveying and GIS industries in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

For more information, visit:  www.korecgroup.com

About Trimble

Trimble applies technology to make field and mobile workers in businesses and government significantly more productive. Solutions are focused on applications requiring position or location—including surveying, construction, agriculture, fleet and asset management, public safety and mapping. In addition to utilizing positioning technologies, such as GPS, lasers and optics, Trimble solutions may include software content specific to the needs of the user. Wireless technologies are utilized to deliver the solution to the user and to ensure a tight coupling of the field and the back office. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., Trimble has a worldwide presence with more than 3,800 employees in over 18 countries.

For more information, visit Trimble’s Web site at www.trimble.com
more

Certain statements made in this press release are forward looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve risks and uncertainties, and actual events and results may differ materially from those described in this news release. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, whether Trimble will be able to successfully expand its GIS solutions through the acquisition and provide complete and compelling solutions to enterprise customers; whether enterprise customers, especially in new geographic markets, will adopt such solutions; and the impact of worldwide recessionary conditions on enterprise customer purchasing decisions. Additional risks and uncertainties include: the risks inherent in integrating an acquisition; unanticipated expenditures, charges or assumed liabilities that may result from the acquisition; retaining key personnel; and the impact of the current global financial crisis and recessionary conditions. More information about potential factors which could affect Trimble’s business and financial results is set forth in reports filed with the SEC, including Trimble’s quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and its annual report on Form 10-K. All forward looking statements are based on information available to Trimble as of the date hereof, and Trimble assumes no obligation to update such statements.
 
 
GTRMB
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GTG’s Press Release on Unalaska, Alaska

Friday December 19th 2008
Filed Under Geographic Technologies Group 

GOLDSBORO, N.C. – After a competitive bid process, the City of Unalaska, Alaska, selected Geographic Technologies Group, Inc. (GTG) to develop a GIS Needs Assessment and Strategic Implementation Plan.  The plan will evaluate current GIS operations in the City and make recommendations that will ensure an enterprise-wide GIS for the future.

 

Located off the mainland in the Aleutian Islands, the City of Unalaska is located on Unalaska Island and neighbors Amaknak Island, better known as Dutch Harbor.  The port of Unalaska/Dutch Harbor is the main port for the Bering Sea crab fishery.

 

“The staff at Unalaska are great,” said Curt Hinton, CEO of GTG.  “They are very enthusiastic about GIS and what it can do for the City.  Every City department has identified potential needs that would benefit their staff and the citizens.  Unalaska will no doubt be successful with its GIS efforts.  We are very excited to work with City staff and to be able to share in the unique beauty that only can be found in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands.”

 

The project will include on-site interviews and presentations to all of the stakeholders.  The resultant plan will serve as the step-by-step guide of how GIS is governed, implemented, and distributed throughout the City.

 

About Geographic Technologies Group, Inc. (GTG):

GTG is a full-service local government GIS consulting company offering specialized experience in the planning, design, implementation, and procurement of geo-technologies.  GTG has unmatched technical GIS capabilities, demonstrated successes, international experience, and a reputation for successfully implementing the right solutions. GTG develops GIS products that spatially enable various enterprise solutions and integrates an organization’s IT investment via a common interface. GTG also offers stand alone products for land management, public safety, public access, touch screen technology, and utilities.

 

GTG has over 700 clients located throughout North America and Europe and serves all levels of government as well as the private sector. To support our clients, GTG maintains five offices located across the United States: Headquarters in North Carolina, and Regional Offices in Texas, Illinois, and Florida.

 

Additional information may be obtained by contacting Geographic Technologies Group, Inc. at 888-757-4222 or you can access our website at www.geotg.com.

           

Cadcorp selected to provide web-based, integrated GIS to cross-border consortium of Irish local authorities.

Friday December 19th 2008
Filed Under CadCorp 

Computer Aided Development Corporation Ltd. (Cadcorp)
PRESS INFORMATION

 

Ref. NDM 1029/08.

 

 

Cadcorp selected to provide web-based, integrated GIS to cross-border consortium of Irish local authorities.

New system enables integration of and internal and public access to spatial data from the various GISs currently used by the participating authorities.
Stevenage, Herts. 19 December, 2008. – Digital mapping and geographic information systems (GIS) software developer Cadcorp has been awarded a contract to develop and provide a web-based GIS for use by the local authorities that constitute the East Border Region in Ireland. The East Border Region is a cross-border body comprising the local authority areas of Down, Newry and Mourne, Craigavon, Ards, Banbridge and Armagh in Northern Ireland and Monaghan and Louth in the Republic of Ireland. Although Louth was unable to participate at the time the others were joined by Cavan County Council, bringing to eight the number of local authorities involved in the project.

Cadcorp is providing multiple licences of Cadcorp SIS Map Modeller desktop software together with licences of the company’s dynamic, web-based GIS server, Cadcorp GeognoSIS.

Cadcorp SIS Map Modeller will be used to integrate and manage spatial data at each of the participating local authorities, six of which already had and will continue to use existing GIS software from other vendors. Cadcorp GeognoSIS will be used as a ‘thick’ client to serve spatial data in whichever format it is required, both internally within each local authority and externally to local businesses and the public via the East Border Region web site.

“A strong influencing factor in our selection of Cadcorp software for this ambitious project was its ability to directly read from and to write to a very wide range of GIS, CAD, graphic and database formats on-the-fly, without the need for additional-cost translation software,” explained Canice O’Rouke, director, environmental services, Down District Council, which lead the project implementation. “This has enabled a seamless map base to be built comprising both Ordnance Survey Northern Ireland (OSNI) and Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSI) map data. It has also enabled layers of spatial information relating to each local authority to be developed, irrespective of the specific GIS used to produce it originally”, he added.

All councils now have the option of storing and managing spatial data in a local PostGIS database at each local authority. In addition, a remote, central PostGIS database that can be updated by each local authority and that serves data for the East Border Region web site has been provided.

Wide-spread benefits
The new Cadcorp SIS-based GIS is expected to benefit the eight participating local authorities in a number of ways. Council staff will have ready access on their desktops to up-to-date spatial information, whether council-owned or provided by external agencies, and will be able to create, edit and share information with other departments in order to get their jobs done effectively.

It will also provide local businesses and citizens with greater access, via the East Border Region web site, to information covering a wide range of location-based interests and will enable the public to provide feed-back on various issues that require a location as part of the identification process.

“We are very proud to have been selected for this important project,” said Mike O’Neil, managing director, Cadcorp. “We have already done a lot of work with the East Border Region GIS project team to help develop the system and we look forward to continuing to work with them in enabling the East Border Region to realise its ambitions”.

About the East Border Region GIS Project.
Part-funded by the European Union, through the East Border Region Interreg 111A Partnership, the East Border Region GIS Project is part of a coordinated plan of action to improve the economic and social landscape of the border region between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The eight local authorities involved in the project are Down District Council, Craigavon Borough Council, Ards Borough Council, Banbridge District Council, Armargh City and District Council and Newry and Mourne Council in Northern Ireland and Monaghan County Council and Cavan County Council in the Republic of Ireland.

Down District Council led the project implementation on behalf of the East Border Region GIS Project Board while consulting and business services group Mouchel acted as GIS consultants for the project management and system delivery.

About Cadcorp
Established in 1991, Cadcorp is a leading UK developer and supplier of
digital mapping and geographic information systems (GIS) software,
applications and associated services. With offices in the UK and the
USA, Cadcorp’s distribution and value-added reseller (VAR) network
stretches worldwide. The company also plays a pivotal technical role in
the Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc.® (OGC)®.

The Cadcorp SIS – Spatial Information System product family is fully
integrated digital mapping and GIS software that uses OGC certified
compliant interfaces. Cadcorp technical director Martin Daly is an OGC
Gardels Medal holder for his contribution to the OGC, and was one of the
original members of the OGC Architecture Board. Cadcorp is an
ISO9001:2000 and ISO/IEC 27001:2005 certified company, an Ordnance
Survey GB Licensed Partner and Ordnance Survey Northern Ireland Licensed
Partner. Cadcorp SIS applications exist in local government, central
government, emergency services, insurance, oil & natural gas, mapping
and surveying, commerce, utilities and many other markets. (For more
information please visit: http://www.cadcorp.com

ENDS

Editors:
For further information contact:
Julia Smith, Tel: +44 (0)1438 747996, e-mail: julia.smith@cadcorp.com or
Neil McLeod, Tel: +44 (0)1666 504293, e-mail: neilmcleod@btopenworld.com

           

Brazilian Utilities AES Sul and Eletropaulo Sign Enterprise License Agreement with ESRI

Thursday December 18th 2008
Filed Under ESRI 

Contract Ensures Access to GIS Software, Updates, Maintenance, and Support

 

Redlands, California—December 18, 2008—Two major Brazilian electric distribution companies, AES Sul and AES Eletropaulo, signed an enterprise license agreement (ELA) with ESRI’s Brazilian distributor Imagem Geosistemas E Comércio Ltda. The ELA will provide deployments of current ESRI geographic information system (GIS) software for the desktop and server as well as support, training, and maintenance. Both utilities are taking advantage of this program, which allows them to expand GIS technology across the company while keeping costs low.

AES Sul recently integrated its accounting data from SAP with the physical data in its GIS. ESRI’s ArcGIS platform enables the development of GIS visualization and geoprocessing services that can easily be used by other platforms, such as SAP NetWeaver, to create composite applications specifically for utilities. Using ArcGIS Mobile and ArcGIS Server technologies, AES Sul field crews keep data fresh with real-time updates of work orders and customer information.

“With the integrated platform, AES Sul has the guarantee of automatic updates that were in the past manual and not completely reliable,” said Sandra Heck, GIS coordinator for AES Sul. “Asset management is conducted through a unique channel that involves access to data through the SAP and GIS environments.”

AES Eletropaulo uses GIS to meet and keep its company-wide goal of more rapid response to work orders and outages. The utility recently updated its distribution maps and customer database within an ArcGIS platform.

“Since implementation of enterprise GIS, we have seen marked success in the productivity and quality in our work as well as a significant reduction in operating cost,” said Silvio Baldan, a business analyst with AES Eletropaulo. “We are a company with the highest level of technology related to the electric assets. It is essential for us to be aligned with international best practices, and this includes the use of GIS from ESRI.”

AES Sul and AES Eletropaulo are divisions of major international power company AES. As one of the world’s largest power companies, AES owns and operates a diverse and growing portfolio of generation and distribution businesses with the capacity to serve 100 million people worldwide. AES Eletropaulo serves six million customers in 24 municipal districts of the metropolitan area of São Paulo. AES Sul serves one million consumers in the metropolitan region of Porto Alegre, the Rio Pardo and Taquari Valleys, and the central and western frontier regions.             

“We are pleased to support AES Sul and Eletropaulo with this new agreement,” said Gustavo Dias, a GIS expert with Imagem. “This ELA will save the time and money typically expended on updating GIS technology. Instead, the utilities will be able to focus on asset management, customer service, and expansion of networks.”

The core technology for the ELA is ESRI’s ArcGIS software, a complete system to author, serve, and use geographic information. The technology provides geographic information to those who need it, including analysts, decision makers, and field staff, through its support of mobile, Web, and desktop clients.

###

About ESRI

Since 1969, ESRI has been giving customers around the world the power to think and plan geographically. The market leader in GIS, ESRI software is used in more than 300,000 organizations worldwide including each of the 200 largest cities in the United States, most national governments, more than two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. ESRI applications, running on more than one million desktops and thousands of Web and enterprise servers, provide the backbone for the world’s mapping and spatial analysis. ESRI is the only vendor that provides complete technical solutions for desktop, mobile, server, and Internet platforms. Visit us at www.esri.com.

 

ESRI, the ESRI globe logo, ArcGIS, GIS by ESRI, www.esri.com, and @esri.com are trademarks, registered trademarks, or service marks of ESRI in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products mentioned herein may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective trademark owners.

 

Press Information                                                                          

Contact: Jessica Wyland, ESRI

Tel.: 909-793-2853, extension 1-3345

E-mail: press@esri.com

Image available upon request

           

Timmons Group Selected by Thurston County, Washington to Provide Geospatial Consulting Services

Thursday December 18th 2008
Filed Under Timmons Group 

Richmond, VA – December 18, 2008 – Timmons Group, a leader in geospatial and engineering consulting services, was selected by Thurston County, Washington to provide GIS data migration services and GIS data maintenance software.

 

This contract enables Timmons Group to provide geodatabase modeling and data migration services along with the Parcel LoGIStics software implementation and training to support the continued GIS development. 

 

“Parcel LoGIStics software provides Thurston with easy-to-use and affordable tools for parcel, structure and addressing maintenance.” said Russell Minich, Principal of Geospatial Services for State and Local Government for Timmons Group.  “The combination of data migration services and Parcel LoGIStics software will provide Thurston with an excellent GIS parcel base to support county operations and improve services to citizens and businesses”.

 

About Parcel LoGIStics

Parcel LoGIStics is a comprehensive set of management tools that makes the process of creating and maintaining parcel maps straightforward. Designed specifically for state and local government users, it is an extension to ESRI®’s ArcGIS® 9.2 technology. A key advantage of Parcel LoGIStics is the software’s flexibility. It is completely configurable to match the data model of any jurisdiction. With this toolset, user-specific workflows can be easily created within the ESRI suite of desktop solutions. Parcel LoGIStics is part of Timmons Group’s TG LoGIStics suite of GIS products developed specifically for State and local governments. These tools and GIS-centric applications utilize cutting-edge technology developed by the award-winning and highly respected Timmons Group GIS development team.

 

For more information about TG LoGIStics, visit http://tglogistics.timmons.com.

 

About Timmons Group

Timmons Group is a leading provider of geospatial, information architecture and engineering services focusing on ArcGIS Server, ArcGIS Mobile and Enterprise solutions.  Timmons Group is a privately held ENR 500 company and maintains a strong business partner relationship with ESRI.  Timmons Group has been a recipient of both the ESRI Business Partner of the Year award and the ESRI Foundation Partner of the Year award.  Timmons Group was recently selected, as part of the Virginia Department of Forestry IFRIS project, to participate in the ESRI User conference plenary session.  An opportunity provided to only two ESRI solutions in the world this year.

 

For more information about Timmons Group’s technology services, contact Russell Minich at russell.minich@timmons.com  or visit http://www.timmons.com/markets-and-services/technology.asp.

 

 

For more information contact:                                                             

Tim Asimos, Marketing Manager

Timmons Group

804.200.6375

tim.asimos@timmons.com

           

Abrupt Climate Change: Climate Change Science Program Findings for the United States

Thursday December 18th 2008
Filed Under USGS 

News Release

U.S. Department of the Interior
U.S. Geological Survey

For release:  December 16, 2008

Contact:
John McGeehin, 703-648-5349, mcgeehin@usgs.gov
Jessica Robertson, c 202-821-2698, w 703-648-6624, jrobertson@usgs.gov
Abrupt Climate Change: Will It Happen this Century?  

The United States faces the potential for abrupt climate change in the 21st century that could pose clear risks to society in terms of our ability to adapt.

“Abrupt” changes can occur over decades or less, persist for decades more, and cause substantial disruptions to human and natural systems.

A new report, based on an assessment of published science literature, makes the following conclusions about the potential for abrupt climate changes from global warming during this century.
Climate model simulations and observations suggest that rapid and sustained September arctic sea ice loss is likely in the 21st century.  
The southwestern United States may be beginning an abrupt period of increased drought.
It is very likely that the northward flow of warm water in the upper layers of the Atlantic Ocean, which has an important impact on the global climate system, will decrease by approximately 25–30 percent. However, it is very unlikely that this circulation will collapse or that the weakening will occur abruptly during the 21st century and beyond.
An abrupt change in sea level is possible, but predictions are highly uncertain due to shortcomings in existing climate models.
There is unlikely to be an abrupt release of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere from deposits in the earth. However, it is very likely that the pace of methane emissions will increase.

The U.S. Geological Survey led the new assessment, which was authored by a team of climate scientists from the federal government and academia. The report was commissioned by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program with contributions from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Science Foundation.

“This report was truly a collaborative effort between world renowned scientists who provided objective, unbiased information that is necessary to develop effective adaptation and mitigation strategies that protect our livelihood,” said USGS Director Mark Myers. “It summarizes the scientific community’s growing understanding regarding the potential for abrupt climate changes and identifies areas for additional research to further improve climate models.”

Further research is needed to improve our understanding of the potential for abrupt changes in climate. For example, the report’s scientists found that processes such as interaction of warm ocean waters with the periphery of ice sheets and ice shelves have a greater impact than previously known on the destabilization of ice sheets that might accelerate sea-level rise.

To view the full report, titled Synthesis and Assessment Product 3.4: Abrupt Climate Change, and a summary brochure on abrupt climate change, visit http://www.climatescience.gov/default.php.

USGS provides science for a changing world. For more information, visit www.usgs.gov.

Subscribe to USGS News Releases via our electronic mailing list at http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/list_server.asp or our RSS feed at http://feeds.feedburner.com/UsgsNewsroom.
**** www.usgs.gov ****

           

Topcon’s GMS-2 Pro takes mapping to new level with integrated laser measurement technology

Thursday December 18th 2008
Filed Under Topcon 

NEWS RELEASE
TOPCON POSITIONING SYSTEMS, INC.                              
7400 National Drive, Livermore, CA 94551                           
925-245-8300 Fax 925-245-8599                                           
www.topconpositioning.com                                                 

 

CONTACT: 

George Smith
Director of Communications Services
925-245-8603, 501-259-8545 (cell)   
news@topcon.com
Topcon’s GMS-2 Pro takes mapping
to new level with integrated laser measurement technology

 

LIVERMORE, Calif.– December 18, 2008 – Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS) announces the GMS-2 Pro, the new handheld GIS mapping solution with integrated auto-focus digital camera and laser distance meter.

The GMS-2 Pro provides technological advancements to the GMS-2 that “raise the bar” on what a hand-held GPS device can do for GIS professionals. 

When Topcon introduced the GMS-2 hand-held mobile GPS GNSS receiver, the rugged, compact unit was the industry’s first GIS-GPS product with 50-channel dual-constellation tracking, and an integrated digital camera and electronic compass.

“Even more features have been added and now the GMS-2 Pro takes this GIS mapping solution to the next level of functionality to simplify a wider variety of applications,” said Barbara McInerney, GIS product marketing manager.  “With the GMS-2 Pro, the best just got better.”

The GMS-2 Pro offers an integrated laser distance meter that can be used in conjunction with the internal compass for offset measurements. Just shoot the obstructed feature with the laser from a wide open, convenient location and your offset position is calculated. Even use the laser to obtain height and width measurements of a feature. Use the stylus to tap two points on the associated image, and the distance, width and height will be instantly calculated and stored as an attribute to the feature. Select the option to geotag your image with date/time and position information for further detail. The internal camera can also be used as a barcode reader. Take a picture of the barcode and the barcode information can be read directly into the attribute field for that feature.

The powerful combination of distance measurement and innovative image capture technology eliminates manual measurements and the use of extra field equipment and configuration.

McInerney said, “Topcon is excited to bring this small ‘all-in-one’ solution to GIS users around the world. For years, users have wanted a quick and easy solution to map features that are inaccessible or that have poor satellite coverage.

“Not only does the GMS-2 Pro solve these challenges, but it speeds up the process while maintaining the accuracy of the data. The ability to measure heights and widths of objects or read barcodes and automatically store those values as GIS attributes is an extra bonus.”

The integrated compass offers +/-4 degree accuracy and the laser distance meter offers an accuracy of +/-5 mm m.s.e at a range of 50 meters.  The digital camera offers 2 megapixels for sharp images and there is 256MB of Flash memory, and an SD card slot for additional memory options. Digital photos are automatically linked to features simplifying the field to office workflow.

The GMS-2 Pro also has a BR-1 Coast Guard beacon receiver available for sub-meter real-time differential correction for data collection and navigation.  With 4 channels, the BR-1 receiver is able to scan for various available beacon signals and automatically select the best correction available to send to the GMS-2 Pro.  The Coast Guard Beacon is a land-based radio signal that is not easily interrupted by obstructions such as buildings, trees and other natural terrain obstacles.   

GMS-2 Pro applications include:
– High Accuracy Mapping;
– Asset management;
– City development mapping;   
– Environmental research;
– Utility management;
– Agriculture field data collection;
– Oil drilling investigation;
– Forestry;
– Disaster management investigation;
– Crime scene investigation;
– Public property management; and
– Archeological research.

 

Information on GMS-2 Pro is available at:
www.topconpositioning.com/products/mapping-and-gis/handheld-solutions/field-controllers/gms-2-pro.html
About Topcon Positioning Systems:  Topcon Positioning Systems, Inc., (TPS) designs and manufactures precise positioning products and solutions for the global surveying, construction, agriculture, civil engineering, mapping and GIS, asset management and mobile control markets. The company has worldwide employee operations and dealer networks. Topcon Corporation was founded in 1932. It is the parent company of TPS and is traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (7732).

           

Topcon’s Field Tools for ArcPad maximizes GMS-2 Pro advantages

Thursday December 18th 2008
Filed Under Topcon 

NEWS RELEASE
TOPCON POSITIONING SYSTEMS, INC.                              
7400 National Drive, Livermore, CA 94551                           
925-245-8300 Fax 925-245-8599                                           
www.topconpositioning.com                                                 

 

CONTACT: 

George Smith
Director of Communications Services
925-245-8603, 501-259-8545 (cell)   
news@topcon.com
Topcon’s Field Tools for ArcPad®
maximizes GMS-2 Pro advantages

 

LIVERMORE, Calif. – December 18, 2008 –Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS) has released a new version of Field Tools for ArcPad®. The new version will support the new GMS-2 Pro receiver and the latest version of ArcPad v7.1.1.

Field Tools for ArcPad allows customers with ESRI’s ArcPad software and ArcPad customizations to take full advantage of their Topcon GPS receiver. With this extension, customers can use the GMS-2 and GMS-2 Pro internal camera, internal compass and internal laser distance meter (GMS-2 Pro only) and have all the convenient GPS configurations in addition to their existing ArcPad functions.

Barbara McInerney, GIS product marketing manager, said, “The release of this software comes in conjunction with the announcement of our new GMS-2 Pro ‘all-in-one’ data collection solution. Field Tools for ArcPad v7.1.1 allows users to take full advantage of the integrated camera, compass, and new laser distance meter and barcode reader capabilities. With these tools all integrated in one small device, our users have enhanced power literally at their fingertips.”

New functionality features include:
– Support for ArcPad V7.1.1;
– Offset measurement using GMS-2 Pro internal laser distance meter;
– Feature height/width measurement;
– Barcode reading through image using the GMS-2 Pro in macro mode;
– Optional geotagging on the image with date/time and positional information;
– Communication to Topcon Beacon Receiver (BR-1) via Bluetooth or serial connection;
– Internal GPS receiver support;
– Connection to external Topcon receivers for higher accuracy;
– Connection to Bluetooth cell phone for network DGPS correction;
– Storage of compass and tilt values; and
– Improved user interface for SBAS (Satellite-Based Augmentation System) support including MSAS (Multi-Functional Satellite Augmentation Systems) – WAAS/EGNOS/MSAS.

Information on Field Tools is available at:
http://www.topconpositioning.com/products/software/mapping-and-gis/data-collection/field-tools-for-arcpad.html

About Topcon Positioning Systems:  Topcon Positioning Systems, Inc., (TPS) designs and manufactures precise positioning products and solutions for the global surveying, construction, agriculture, civil engineering, mapping and GIS, asset management and mobile control markets. The company has worldwide employee operations and dealer networks. Topcon Corporation was founded in 1932. It is the parent company of TPS and is traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (7732).

           

Enhance Technical and Teaching Skills at ESRI’s Summer Institute for GIS Educators

Wednesday December 17th 2008
Filed Under ESRI 

Applications Are Due January 15, 2009

 

Redlands, California—December 17, 2008—ESRI is hosting the 2009 ESRI T3G Institute (Teachers Teaching Teachers GIS), June 14–19, 2009, at its company headquarters in Redlands, California. Teachers of grades 5–12, university instructors, and youth and community group leaders will work with ArcGIS software and data to improve their geographic information system (GIS) knowledge and technical skills. Ultimately, attendees will apply what they learn in their own classrooms or programs and show others in their field how to teach using GIS concepts.

The 2009 institute will include hands-on exercises; best practices discussions; and presentations about the latest geospatial trends in GIS, Web mapping, and GPS. The institute activities will be led by nationally known geospatial technology educators, and a limit of 30 participants will allow for individual assistance.

“There are not many opportunities like this,” says Kathryn Keranen, who was an instructor at the first ESRI teachers’ institute in 1999 and is teaching again at the 2009 event. “The institute gives teachers free training and software and an environment where they can collaborate with like-minded colleagues.”

Keranen went on to train her fellow teachers in Fairfax County, Virginia, and she recently coauthored the ESRI Press book Making Spatial Decisions Using GIS, which won the Geography Excellence in Media award from the National Council of Geographic Education (NCGE). “Many of us who are writing curriculum and training other teachers had our start at the 1999 ESRI teachers’ institute,” explains Keranen.

Participants will leave the institute with a more proficient understanding of how to incorporate GIS into their teaching, find and use GIS-based lessons and public domain datasets, and train other educators on how to teach GIS. Following the institute, participants are expected to apply what they have learned by creating a GIS lesson to share on the Web; leading a hands-on GIS training event; and presenting at a conference the outcomes of their work such as GIS lessons, results of a class or group project, or a pedagogical approach to teaching youth or adults.

Geospatial technology helps create more effective solutions to spatial problems, which is fundamental to a wide variety of disciplines including geography, history, earth science, environmental studies, language arts, mathematics, and youth group educational environments. Educators from all disciplines who have experience teaching with GIS are encouraged to attend.

Additional information and an application for the institute are available at http://edcommunity.esri.com/t3g-institute. Applications are due by January 15, 2009, and acceptance will be announced in February 2009.

 

 

###

About ESRI

Since 1969, ESRI has been giving customers around the world the power to think and plan geographically. The market leader in GIS, ESRI software is used in more than 300,000 organizations worldwide including each of the 200 largest cities in the United States, most national governments, more than two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. ESRI applications, running on more than one million desktops and thousands of Web and enterprise servers, provide the backbone for the world’s mapping and spatial analysis. ESRI is the only vendor that provides complete technical solutions for desktop, mobile, server, and Internet platforms. Visit us at www.esri.com.

 

ESRI, the ESRI globe logo, GIS by ESRI, ArcGIS, www.esri.com, and @esri.com are trademarks, registered trademarks, or service marks of ESRI in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products mentioned herein may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective trademark owners.

 

Press Information                                                                 

Contact: Jennifer Caito, ESRI

Tel.: 909-793-2853, extension 1-5404

E-mail: press@esri.com

Image Available upon Request

           

Podcast on Empowering Business Users with Composite Application Platforms

Wednesday December 17th 2008
Filed Under IDV Solutions 

Lansing, MI. – December 17, 2008 – IDV Solutions®, a visual composite applications software company, today announces the release of their podcast, “Empowering Business Users with Self-Service Composite Application Platforms using Visual Fusion Suite®,” hosted by ZapThink and featuring Scott Caulk, Product Manager at IDV Solutions. Visual Fusion is a platform that integrates siloed enterprise information with Web services into a portal, leveraging Microsoft® Office SharePoint Server, to provide immediate insight and understanding of an organization’s information.

In the podcast, ZapThink analysts Ron Schmelzer and Jason Bloomberg discuss the business empowerment benefit of SOA-based enterprise mashups.  “Composite application platforms in the enterprise are an important tool for business users,” says Scott Caulk. “By using composite apps, business users can gain a competitive advantage and save their company resources and money.”

By listening to this podcast you will: gain an understanding of why geospatial and location is an important visualization metaphor for situational applications, and learn how Visual Fusion can empower business users to assemble their own applications on demand, without the need for the IT department.

To listen to or download this free podcast, please visit ZapThink. Or to learn more about IDV Solutions’ visual composite application software, Visual Fusion Suite®, visit www.idvsolutions.com.

About IDV Solutions

IDV Solutions, a Microsoft Gold Certified partner, is a visual composite applications company. IDV’s suite of products, Visual Fusion Suite®, helps organizations engage their enterprise data in an interactive, easy to use, web-based environment. IDV Solutions is committed to helping Global 2000 and government organizations make their information more accessible, understandable and contextual. Through the visual integration of enterprise data, third-party data and web services, IDV delivers intuitive and compelling composite applications. For further information, visit our website at www.idvsolutions.com.

           

Navman Wireless Debuts Canned Messages

Wednesday December 17th 2008
Filed Under Navman Wireless 

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
December 17, 2008 Gregg Steliga
Director of Sales & Marketing
Navman Wireless North America
847-832-2399
gsteliga@navmanwireless.com

Andrew Golden
Rushton Gregory Communications
617-413-6521
agolden@rushtongregory.com

NAVMAN WIRELESS DEBUTS CANNED MESSAGING WITH ITS EXISTING MOBILE DATA TERMINAL PLATFORM

Fleet Management Leader’s Easy-To-Use Messaging Tool Delivers Increased Efficiency

Glenview, Ill., – Navman Wireless North America, a wholly owned subsidiary of Navman Wireless Holdings, and a leading global provider of vehicle tracking and fleet management solutions, announced today the addition of canned message functionality to its next generation vehicle tracking and logistics software, OnlineAVL2. Allowing fleet managers to create a library of comprehensive standard messages that make sense for their businesses, canned messages eliminate the need for full keyboard typing, and provide team members a quick and easy means to deliver efficient and clear messages with only a few key selections. The new feature is an added enhancement to Navman Wireless’ powerful real-time vehicle position, integrated maintenance modules and advanced software that provides state mileage reporting, automated email reporting, monitoring alerts and high-resolution satellite imagery capabilities. Alleviating time-consuming message preparation that can be difficult for personnel to manage while on the road or during service, the canned messaging functionality demonstrates Navman Wireless’ continued focus on providing resourceful fleet management solutions to address customers’ needs, improve safety and increase efficiency resulting in saved resources.
Navman Wireless’ fleet manager-selected canned messages provide a seamless response template for accurate disclosure. The OnlineAVL2 canned message component allows managers to create a collection of up to 100 custom messages that are relevant to their fleet or business. Messages are wirelessly programmed onto the M-Nav integrated messaging and navigation device, and Mobile Data Terminal (MDT) for drivers to use. Offering the ability to communicate important details in a timely manner to respond more proactively to situations, canned messages provide time-stamped documentation that manager’s can later access in reports by driver or fleet.
 “Navman Wireless’ new canned messaging feature is a testament to our continued investment in making the OnlineAVL2 platform the most complete and customizable solution on the market,” said Renaat Ver Eecke, vice president – Navman Wireless North America. “Navman Wireless is exciting to deliver increased functionality to fleet managers and proud to offer added features to current OnlineAVL2 customers at no additional cost.”
The Navman Wireless’ complete fleet management solution, including OnlineAVL2, is priced from a dollar per day. The new OnlineAVL2 canned messaging functionality is currently available in new product purchases and accessible immediately to current Navman Wireless customers at no charge as a free upgrade request or during the next scheduled automatic software update. For more information on OnlineAVL2 features, pricing, Navman Wireless, and its entire product line, please visit www.navmanwireless.com or call 866-527-9896.

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About Navman Wireless Holdings
Based in Glenview, Ill. and privately held, Navman Wireless Holdings is a global leader in providing GPS technology based fleet tracking management solutions and value-added OEM products for diverse end-market applications. The company has the broadest, best-in-class portfolio of tracking products in the industry for small to medium sized fleets. Its lead investor is Prairie Capital Partners of Chicago, which acquired the company from Brunswick Corp. in 2007. Navman Wireless maintains facilities in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.navmanwireless.com.

 

OnlineAVL2: Canned Messages

 

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