geospatial world march 2013

8/12/2019 Geospatial World March 2013

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Vision to Reality

Transforming the way Heavy Civil Projects are Done

Trimble Connected Site solutions for heavy civil constructionautomate work processes across the entire planning, design,build and operate lifecycle.

visit www.connectedsite.com to learn more

2013, Trimble Navigation Limited. All rights reserved TC-183

The Construction Technology Standard


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5

Special Feature

24 25 years of IRSouching the skies

Prof. Arup DasguptaArticles

50 ata policy e missing link

56 endering processLearning the ropes Bhanu Rekha

60 arge Format PrintersPresenting the big pictureDeepa i Roy

68 OGC Beate value of certi cation

Luis Bermudez

Cover Story

Caught in a jam Anusuya Datta

India36

07 E itoria08 News

22 ro uct Watc70 ec Know Buzz

72 en ers

Corner Ofce

32 Raymond OConnorPresident, opconPositioning Systems

Construction and farming are the two largest manufacturingindustries but the least automated

Inside...

Te edition contains 76 pages including cover

5Geospatial World | March 2013

Aida Opoku MensahDirector ICT Division,UN Economic Commissionfor Africa

Bar ara Ryanecretariat Director, Groupn Earth Observations

Bryn FosburghSector Vice-President,Executive CommitteeMember,Trimble Navigation

Dorine Burmanjehair-Executive Board,adastre, Land Registry

and Mapping Agency (Ka-daster), The Netherlands

Greg BentleyCEO, Bentley Systems

Prof. Ian DowmanFirst Vice President,ISPRS

Dr. Hiroshi MurakamiDirector-General ofPlanning Department,Geospatial InformationAuthority of Japan

Juergen DoldPresidentHexagon Geosystems

Kamal K SinghChairman and CEO,Rolta Group

Lisa CampbellVice President,Engineering &Infrastructure, Autodesk

Mark ReichardtPresident and CEO,

pen Geospatialonsortium

Matthew OConnellCEO, Adhoc Holdings

Mohd Al RajhiAsst Deputy Minister forLand & Surveying,Ministry of Municipal &Rural Affairs, Saudi Arabia

Ramon PastorVice-President andGeneral Manager, LargeFormat Printing Business,Hewlett-Packard

Stephen LawlerChief Technology Of cer,Bing Maps, Microsoft

Dr Swarna Subba Raourveyor General of India

anessa awrenceDirector General and

hief Executive,Ordnance Survey, UK

A d v i s o r y

B o a r d

DisclaimerGeospatial World does not necessarily subscribe to the views expressed in the publication. All views expressedin this issue are those of the contributors. Geospatial World is not responsible for any loss to anyone due tothe information provided.

Owner, Publisher & Printer Sanjay KumarPrinted at M. P. Printers B - 220, Phase-II,Noida - 201 301, Gautam Budh Nagar (UP) IndiaPublication Address A - 92, Sector - 52,Gautam Budh Nagar, Noida, India

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el + 91-120-4612500 Fax +91-120-4612555 / 666Price: INR 150/US$ 15

ro. ose tro lChair, Department of

eoinformatics,University of Salzburg,Austria


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2013 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Microsoft, UltraCam, UltraMap and UltraCam Eagle are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

Fly high with the Eagle f210.

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8 Geospatial World | March 2013

BUSINESS

Over $2mn GIS imagerygrant to 24 rmsEsri and PCI Geomatics have selected24 organisations to develop and applyinnovative methods for using GIS toanalyse imagery for land use man-agement. Trough the Esri NaturalResources Imagery Grant Program, Esriand PCI Geomatics each will providegrant recipients with software and data valued at $100,000. Participants arerequired to improve efficiency, produc-tivity or accuracy for detecting and ana-lysing land-cover change using MDAssynthetic aper-ture radar SAR)imagery fromRADARSA -2and 5 m multi-spectral imageryfrom RapidEye.

Tey will use Esri and PCI software toprocess and analyse imagery.

EagleView, Pictometrycreate $100-mn companyEagleView echnologies and PictometryInternational have entered into a merg-er agreement, which results in a singlenew company. EagleView and Pictom-ery are now wholly owned subsidiariesof the new entity. Te former sharehold-ers of EagleView and Pictometry will

each hold approximately 50% of theoutstanding capital stock of the com-bined company on a fully-diluted basis.Combined, the two companies gener-ated about $100mn in revenue in 2012.Te merger will create a global leaderproviding unparalleled geo-referenced

aerial imagery and analytical softwaresolutions servicing both governmentand commercial customers.

$14-mn contract forgeospatial solutionsIntermap has completed the nalcontracting requirements relating to the$14.5 million Letter of Award previouslyannounced in January. Under the termsof the contract, Intermap will providede ned geospatial solutions to an inter-national customer, including elevationand imagery related information foridenti ed areas in Southeast Asia. In-termap will use its proprietary airborneradar technology to collect and processthe 3D digital models of the selectedareas. Te project is scheduled to com-mence immediately and is expected tobe complete prior to year-end 2013.

Alion to support US Armysgeospatial enterprise

o help build geospatial battle eldintelligence, Alion Science and ech-nology will provide the US Army withgeospatial enterprise development,integration and evaluation under a $24million award. Alion, under a three-yearcontract will generate policy and stan-dards that will guide the use of geospa-tial data throughout the Army, developgeospatial data, support the testing ofgeospatial based systems and create

geospatial policy documents.

$2.2-mn contract forGPS augmentationI Exelis has won a $2.2 millioncontract from the Air Force Research

Laboratory for research in supportof the current GPS programme. IExelis will research the developmentof a small satellite navigation payload,known as the GPS Navigation Satel-lite (GPS NAVSA ) to augment thissystem. Te GPS NAVSA seeks toprovide affordable capabilities to aidend-users located in difficult-to-accessenvironments. Te GPS NAVSA willoperate in a similar fashion to the cur-rent GPS system, but it will also aid thecurrent systems end-users in signal-constrained environments, be it urbanor mountainous terrain.

APPLICATION

Phones existing sensors forindoor navigation

Communication and navigation tech-nologies have come a long way, but

indoor navigation was a real challengefor mobile devices - at least until Moveacame along. Te technology solutionsprovider has unveiled a new app whichuses a phones existing sensors to cal-culate indoor position. Moveas indoornavigation system takes signals from a

$ 100 kGIS imagery grant to24 rms each

NEWSAmericasNEWSAmericas

Image Courtesy: popularmechanics.com


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app. Apples mapping woes started inJune last year, when it dropped Googleand launched its own maps app - usinglicensed data and its own software.However, the new job postings renewCEO im Cooks promise of improvingits doomed app.

GPS on tiny objects maybecome a reality soonImagine having GPS navigation capabil-ity embedded on something as small asa hummingbird-size unmanned aerial vehicle. Tat day may be coming soon,thanks to ongoing research and success-ful testing completed by Rockwell Collinsand the Defense Advanced ResearchProjects Agency (DARPA). DARPAsDynamics Enabled Frequency Sources(DEFYS) effort has created tiny electron-ic oscillators and Rockwell Collins hasbeen testing the miniature clocks on GPSradios. Te DEFYS effort has produced

microscale oscillators that are nearly 30times smaller than what is currently usedon GPS receivers. Tey also consume 320times less power.

Crowdsourcing tracksin uenza outbreaks A severe u strain has hit the US and isspreading across the nation. Te Centersfor Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) has categorised the illness as"widespread" in 41 states and 7 other

states are seeing regional activity. Intracking the u, physicians and publichealth officials are using a host of newsurveillance tools like crowdsourcingand social media. Such tools let themget a sense of the u's reach in real-timerather than wait weeks for doctor's of-

Geospatial World | March 2013

ces and state health departments to re-port in. In uenza A H3N2 was the mostcommonly detected in uenza subtypenationwide.

JAMAICA

Mapping natural hazardsmade easyTe island nation has launched its

rst Virtual Reference Station Network(VRS), gFIX.net, a tool for mappingnatural hazards. Robert Pickersgill,Minister of Water, Land, Environmentand Climate Change said that as natu-ral hazards become an increasingly

regular feature of life for many peoplearound the globe, gFIX.net will be auseful addition to the tools we haveavailable to map them. It is an inte-grated system of GPS, which uses datafrom a network of xed reference sta-tions to model errors near surveying

locations. Tis data is then relayed toa roving receiver and used to improvethe accuracy of reading in a particulararea. Te gFIX.net comprises 13 highprecision global navigation satellite

systems, which are strategically placedacross the island to facilitate the ac-curate collection of data.

BRAZIL

First monitoring station forGLONASS launchedTe rst overseas GLONASS groundstation for differential correction andmonitoring to improve the navigation

systems accuracy has been launchedin Brazil. Tis station will be the rstpoint of correction in the westernhemisphere and will signi cantlyimprove the accuracy of GLONASSnavigation signals, a spokesman forthe Federal Space Agency said.

NEWSAmericas

NEW APPOINTEES

APPOINTMENT

13 MEMBERS APPOINTED TO NGACSecretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has appointed 13 professionals to serve asmembers of the National Geospatial Advisory Committee (NGAC), which provides recommendations on federal geospatial policy and management issues andadvice on development of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI). TeNGACs inclusion of a broad range ofperspectives, governmental, tribal,private sector, and academic, enablesit to provide valuable advice to fed-eral agencies on the most pressinggeospatial issues, and helps us makebetter progress toward our goal ofseamless integration and accessibil-ity of geospatial data, said AnneCastle, Assistant Secretary of theInterior for Water and Science.


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UK Space Agency gets newchief executiveDavid Parker has been appointed asthe new chief executive of the UK Space Agency. Parker has been acting ChiefExecutive of the Agency since December2012 and will take up the role with im-mediate effect. Te Minister for Universi-ties and Science David Willetts said, Imdelighted to welcome David Parker asthe next Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency. He has been part of the agencysince its creation and most recentlyplayed a leading role in securing GBP 1.2billion of UK investment at the EuropeanSpace Agency Ministerial meeting.

Geofencing to enable newmulti-billion markets by 17 With low-cost developers tools becom-ing available, geofencing is nally com-ing out of the shadows, moving beyondtraditional location-based applications,

to form the backbone of a host of newapplications and services. Senior ana-lyst, Patrick Connolly said, Collectivelygeofencing will enable whole new multi-billion dollar markets around theseemerging areas. However, the provisionof geofencing tools will be a market in itsown right, forecast to reach almost $300million in 2017. More developers areincreasingly looking to pivot to enter-prise applications, where companies arehappy to pay for services that provideRoI, geofencing will open the door.

Glasgow to become UKsrst smart city

Te Scottish city of Glasgow has wona 24 million grant from the UKs

echnology Strategy Board ( SB) to

become Britains rst smart city. Temoney will be spent by the council onservices for residents that will makethe quality of living in the city better.Glasgow beat 30 other UK cities forthe prize. Projects on the table includereal-time traffic information, apps tocheck when buses and trains are ar-riving and a pothole reporting service.Facial analysis for the citys CC Vnetwork and energy use monitoring tomake electricity and gas delivery moreefficient are also mooted.

English Channel switcheson GPS backupIn a bid to improve navigationalsafety in the worlds busiest shippingchannel, ships in parts of the EnglishChannel will now be able to accesseLoran radio navigation technology asa backup to satellite navigation systems

like GPS and Galileo. Te ground-based eLoran system provides alterna-tive position and timing signals forimproved navigational safety. Te Do- ver area, the worlds busiest shippinglane, is the rst in the world to achievethis initial operational capability (IOC)for shipping companies operating bothpassenger and cargo services.

FRANCEGalileos CospasSarsatclears rst space testTe rst switch-on of a Galileo searchand rescue package shows it to be working well. Its activation begins amajor expansion of the space-basedCospasSarsat network, which bringshelp to air and sea vessels in distress.Te second pair of Europes Gali-

NEWSEurope

Cospas-Sarsat system overview

I m a g e c o u r t e s y : E S A


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13Geospatial World | March 2013Geospatial World | March 2013

leo navigation satellites launchedtogether on 12 October last year arethe rst of the constellation to host SARsearch and rescue repeaters. Tese canpick up UHF signals from emergencybeacons aboard ships and aircraft orcarried by individuals, then pass themon to local authorities for rescue.

operationsCommercial operations of SPO 4satellite have been terminated. Te joint decision on stopping commercialoperations of the satellite was madeby the SPO 4 owner - CNES (FrenchSpace Agency) and the satellite Opera-tor Astrium GEO-Information Ser- vices. Te satellite has been operatingfor almost 15 years (177 months) sinceits launch in March 1998. Over 6.8million images of the earth have beenacquired since then.

Envisat-Meris imagesavailable for freeTe VI O image processing team incollaboration with ESA and BelgianScience Policy announced a new free

product in the world of low resolu-tion earth observation data, the globalEnvisat-MERIS 10-daily composites at1 km resolution (EM10). Te Envisat-Meris S10 or EM10 are near-global,10-daily composite images which aresynthesised from the best availableobservations registered in the courseof every dekad by the orbiting earthobservation system Envisat-Meris. TeEM10 products are available free ofcharge for non-commercial use.

GERMANY

contract from ESATe European Space Agency (ESA) hasawarded Astrium EUR 108 million worthof prime contractor agreements cover-

ing the development of the Ariane 6 and Ariane 5 ME launchers. Te contractsfollow on from the decisions reached atthe ESA Ministerial Council meeting inNaples on 20-21 November 2012. Underthese contracts, Astrium will launch the

initial de nition and feasibility studiesfor the future Ariane 6 European launch-er. Expected to run for six months, thestudy phase aims to identify the conceptand architecture for Ariane 6 and will setout the new launchers main speci ca-tions prior to its industrial development.

SPAIN

Agreement to promoteexchange of geo-infoTe Department of Municipal Affairsin the Emirate of Abu Dhabi signed anMoU with the Cartography Institute ofCatalonia in Spain, a mapping agencyspecialised in the eld of GIS and thenecessary technological systems tobuild and manage the integrated geo-detic positioning systems and the main-tenance of the topographic data. TisMoU comes in line with the economicgrowth and comprehensive develop-ment in the Emirate and will enhancegeospatial services provided by themunicipal system to the residents.

FINLAND

Nokia mapsNokia has won another bout in its ev-erlasting battle with Google. Only thistime the stage was not the smartphoneplatform but maps. In a major victory,automobile major oyota has adoptedNokias HERE for its next-generationnavigation system over Googles LocalSearch in Europe. Nokias Local Searchfor Automotive will be included aspart of one of multiple in-dash touch-screen navigation options available in

oyotas ouch & Go information sys-tem. Nokia claims that oyota drivers will have easy online access to high-quality industry mapping informationand community-generated content feddirectly into their cars by leveragingNokia Local Search for Automotive.MERIS mosaic of Africa

Te contracts enable:

NEWSEuropeNEWSEurope


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Foreign satellites launched

Image Courtesy: ISRO

NEWSAsia

six other satellitesIndo-French satellite SARAL , along with six foreign mini and micro satel-lites, was launched using ISROs work-horse rocket PSLV from the spaceportof Sriharikota. Te ISRO-built SARAL isa 410-kg satellite with payloads - Argosand Altika - from French space agencyCNES for study of ocean parameterstowards enhancing the understandingof the ocean state conditions which areotherwise not covered by the in-situmeasurements. Speaking to Geospa-tial World, Devi Prasad Karnik, ISROspokesperson said this launch has notonly strengthened the Indo-Frenchspace cooperation but has also boost-ed ISROs capabilities as a commerciallauncher. So far, ISRO has launched 35overseas aircrafts, including six satel-

aunches, however nothing has beennalised yet, Karnik added.

MALAYSIA

completed

he Department of Survey andMapping (JUPEM) in Malaysia hascompleted its biggest project called

lites launched on February 25. ISRO will carry out more such commercial


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eKadaster in support of the nations vision of becoming a developedcountry by 2020, said Ahmad FauziNordin, Deputy Director General ofJUPEM. eKadaster project integrates various systems such as the LandOffices e anah, the Land SurveyorsBoards eLJ and JUPEMs Geoportaland MaCGDI (Malaysia GeospatialData Infrastructure). he projectaims to facilitate the sharing ofgeospatial information and resourcesbetween government agencies re-sponsible for land administration.

BANGLADESH

Election commission todigitise database

o eliminate complexities overgathering relevant statistics aheadof the general elections, the Election

Commission (EC) will strive to digitisedatabase of all polling centres through-out the country. Te EC will enrich itsdatabase by inserting geographicallocations, photos and other relevantinformation of all polling stations intoa map using the GIS process. Directiveshave been issued to immediately start work with Dhaka Metropolitan thathouses almost 2,000 centres as part ofthe primary experimental installations.

UAE

Deal to promote geospatialdata cooperationNational Center of Meteorology andSeismology (NCMS), part of the Min-

istry of Presidential Affairs, has signeda Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with Bayanat for Mapping andSurveying Services. Under the MoU,Bayanat will provide the NCMS witha package of services including digitalaerial survey, data gathering, geodesyand eld surveying, sea-bed pro lingand geospatial data visualisation andcartography.

Satellite data to monitorinfra developmentTe Emirates Institution for AdvancedScience and echnology (EIAS ), aspart of its mandate to conduct researchusing satellite data, has successfullyutilised DubaiSat-1 images to moni-tor the construction of Concourse 3 atDubai International Airport. Te UAEs

rst satellite has been mapping theprogress of the project from its earlystages and will continue to track it until

its expected completion early this year.DubaiSat-1 plays a vital role in theinfrastructure development process inthe UAE. Te analysis of the Concourse3 project highlights EIAS s capabilitiesto monitor key developments and provide useful information towards projectplanning and environment protection,said Salem Al Marri, Head of Marketingand International Affairs at EIAS .

CHINA

compulsory in vehiclesMajor transportation vehicles inparts of China are now required touse homegrown Beidou Naviga-

tion Satellite System (BDS). All tourcoaches, long-distance scheduledbuses and vehicles for transportingdangerous articles, should install theBDS service when they renew mobilenavigation terminals, according to astatement issued by the Ministry of

ransport. Te Ministry aims to have80% of vehicles in these categoriesinstalled with the BDS service by theend of March.

New maps highlightSouth China Sea islandsChina has inked, for the rst time,South China Sea islands on its new of-

cial maps in equal scale to that of theChinese mainland. Te new vertical-format maps of China, published bySinomaps Press, include more than130 islands and islets in the South Chi-na Sea, most of which have not beenfeatured on previous maps of China.

Te maps will be very signi cant inenhancing Chinese peoples aware-ness of national territory, safeguardingChinas marine rights and interestsand manifesting Chinas political dip-lomatic stance, said Xu Gencai, chiefeditor of Sinomaps Press.

NEWSAsia


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RUSSIA

Ailing space industry todouble output by 2020 An ongoing reform of Russias ailingspace industry should double its out-put by 2020, according to a new stateprogramme. Te increase should giveRussia a 16% share in the space tech-nology market by 2020, up from thecurrent 10.7%,said the pro-gramme. Goalsoutlined in theprogramme alsoinclude creationof the new Angara launch vehicle, development of the Vostochnyspace port in the Russian Far East andimprovements to the Glonass satel-lite navigation system. Russias spaceprogramme saw a slew of setbacks in

recent years, most of them blamed onfaulty hardware.

TURKEY

17 satellites by 2020

As per the ambitious road map forthe countrys multiple satellite pro-grammes through 2020, a total of 17

urkish satellites will come into orbit by2020. A space industry expert based in

urkey said the next ve years satellitecontracts would amount to $2 billion. According to the road map, urkey will this year launch the Gktrk II,an electro optical reconnaissance andobservation satellite. Gktrk I as wellas rksat 4A, a communications satel-

lite, will be launched in 2013. rksat4B will be launched in 2014 and rksat4R in 2015 along with the Gktrk III, asynthetic aperture radar (SAR) recon-naissance and observation satellite.

JAPAN

Common grid system fordisaster responseTe Self-Defense Forces, police and theJapan Coast Guards regional office incentral Japan will use a common coor-dinate system to speed up the dispatchof relief units in emergencies. TeSDF, police and Coast Guard in otherregions have yet to adopt a commoncoordinate system, but a GeospatialInformation Authority official said theUniversal ransverse Mercator (U M)grid is likely to become the nationalstandard in disaster response and

prevention activities.

PHILIPPINES

managemen

opographic maps generated by LiDAR will be used in ood modeling fordisaster risk areas in the Davao region inPhilippines. Te LiDAR-generated maps will have high resolution of 1:2,500 scale,

more detailed than the 1:10,000 geohaz-ard maps of the Mines and GeosciencesBureau. Te topographic maps willshow elevations up to barangay level.Te maps will help in estimating thedamage cost of a disaster, including thenumber of houses that will be affected.

SOUTH KOREA

First observation satelliteput into orbitSouth Korea has successfully launcheda satellite into space from its own soilfor the rst time, weeks after archrivalNorth Korea accomplished a similarfeat, to the surprise of the world. Tesatellite launched by Seoul is designedto analyse weather data, measureradiation in space, gauges distanceson earth and test how effectively SouthKorea-made devices installed on thesatellite operate in space. Te launchis a culmination of years of effortsby South Korea, Asias fourth-largesteconomy, to advance its space pro-gramme and cement its standing as atechnology powerhouse.

NEWSAsia

I m a g e C o u r t e s y : E F E / Y ONHA P N

e w s A

g e n c y

16%

space technologymarket by 2020


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NEWSAfrica

ALGERIA

Surveillance satellite tomonitor terrorist activities Alarmed at the emergence of a jihad-ist sanctuary in northern Mali, US in-telligence is considering providing themilitary heavyweight in North Africa, with a surveillance satelli te to monitoral-Qaida operations in the Sahara re-gion. Algeria has for some months re-fused US requests that UAVs deployedin Burkina Faso and in the southerndesert of Morocco be allowed to use Algerian airspace to track the jihad-ists. Providing Algeria with spy satel-lites may turn out to be the short endof the stick for the Americans, who sayal-Qaida is extending its operationsacross Africa.

NIGERIA

Computerised cadastresystem established

o strengthen property rights and se-curity of land titles within the miningsector, the Nigerian Mining CadastreOffice (MCO), with assistance fromGAF AG, has implemented its newmining cadastre system, which takesinto account recent amendments inthe countrys mining regulations. Teefficient and reliable management

of mining titles is considered to bea key element in increasing invest-ment in the mining sector in Nigeria.Te new system allows MCO to grant,manage and cancel mining titles inan effective manner, thus strengthen-ing the property rights and security of

tenures within the mining sector, as well as improving the transparency ofthe mineral licensing process and thegovernments regulatory capacity.

SOUTH SUDAN

Disease mapping to guidetreatmentRapid mapping to quickly determineprecise distribution and prevalenceof major neglected tropical diseases(N Ds) such as schistosomiasis andlymphatic lariasis can help guideevidence-based interventions, astudy reveals. Rapid mapping is very

important to help gather informationfor interventions into N Ds and fornational policymaking, said SimonBrooker, one of the report authors.

Te study provided evidence thatrapid mapping to target preventivedrug treatment is important in publichealth due to the marked spatial variation of the diseases and theresulting need for evidence-basedtargeting of treatments.

SOUTH AFRICA

Satellite-based radar tomonitor seasTe Council for Scienti c and In-dustrial Researchs (CSIR) MerakaInstitute is developing a prototypemaritime domain awareness systembased on imagery from satellite-mounted synthetic aperture radars(SARs). Such a system would allowthe country to monitor shipping inits exclusive economic zone andadjacent oceans, enhancing safetyand making it easier to detect illegalactivities. SAR allows the detectionof ships not using their transpon-ders, said Dr Brian Salmon, seniorresearcher, CSIR Meraka Institute.Add that to the location of the vesseland its activity pattern and that canalert the authorities to possible illegalactivities, such as illegal shing and

smuggling, he added.

Demand for digitalmapping services growsSouth African companies are embrac-ing digital mapping and plan to investmore money in these services, ac-cording to research released by World Wide Worx. Te research revealedthat 76% of companies and 38% ofsmall and medium-sized enterprises(SMEs) spent more than 2% of their

information technology budgets onmapping services and two-thirds ofcompanies planned to increase theirspending. Digital mapping services areprimarily used for asset tracking, eetmanagement and vehicle recovery andnavigation.

Image Courtesy: Plos One


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GHANA

GIS for national producttraceability system

As the country hopes to rake in aboutUSD 3.3 billion from its exports this year,the Ghana Export Promotion Authorityhas rolled out geographical mappingof companies to create a databasefor a national product traceabilitysystem. A data base for exporters infood and agro processing products will be developed which will enableGhana to avoid the risk of having itsexports to the European Union marketsreduced. Te EU Commissions decreeon the General Food Law requires allexports be documented so that theirhistory and location could be veri edto remove dangerous products from themarket. Te GIS project involves uniqueidenti cation of products and rawmaterials from sources in originating

countries and maintenance of accuraterecords on geographic location ofrms, farms, factories, movements and

utilisation of products at all stages of the value chain.

UGANDA

GIS-based addressingsystem unveiledTe National Postcode & AddressingSystem, the Entebbe Pilot Project for thecountry has been announced by mapIin collaboration with SatNav East Africa.Tis project will ensure a unique ad-dress to every property and will enhancethe performance of service providers.Te project involves digitalisation ofEntebbe maps for the implementationof national postcode and addressingsystem. Tis includes the GIS solution with ve layers; the implementationof a National Property Identi er usingSatCodes to provide address codes forturn-by-turn navigation; the place-

ment of address placards on all houses inEntebbe as well as a marketing campaignto demonstrate and educate service

providers on the bene ts. Te system will provide detailed and dynamicaddressing information to support theoperations of a wide range of users suchas Posta Uganda, Entebbe MunicipalCouncil, utility companies and otherrelated service providers.

CONGO

Forest cover map to bedevelopedTe GEOFORAFRI Programme hasawarded a contract to GAF AG to com-plete the 2010 forest cover mapping ofthe Republic of Congo for REDD+. TeGEOFORAFRI programme aims to facil-itate the adoption of earth observationtechniques and ensure the methodolog-ical and technological know-how withinCentral and Western African countries,enabling local institutions to carry out

forest cover monitoring according tothe international guidelines required toparticipate and bene t from the REDD+

NEWSAfrica


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$2.1 bnworth GIS industry inAustralia

ing service on the Geoscience Australia website have increased from around60,000 a day during December 2012 tomore than 2.5 mn. Te Sentinel systemprovides timely and readily accessiblespatial information to emergency service managers and re controllers across Australia to help identify the locations ofhotspots, or re fronts with a potentialrisk to communities and property.

Mapping technology savesmillionsCutting-edge mapping technologysaved more than US$3 million fromthe bottom line of Australias largestever roadworks. Stretching six kilome-tres the AirportlinkM7 tunnel rivalsthose of the great Snowy Mountainsscheme. David Jaunay, GIS managerfor engineering rm Tiess, said thatthe companys GIS-centric approachmade the job easier for staff members.

Te simple layering capability and visual nature of GIS technology facili-tates better decision-making, Jaunaysaid. Once Tiesss staff becamefamiliar with its advantages, usage went through the roof, with the central Web-based viewer receiving up to 350 visits each day, he added.

Data to help in mineralexplorationGeoscience Australias Onshore Energy

Security Program has released the nalseismic, gravity and magnetotelluricprocessed data. Overall, Geoscience Australia gathered more than 6500kilometres of deep crustal seismic dataduring the Onshore Energy Secu-rit Pro ram and much has roved

invaluable to the minerals and energyexploration industry already, said

ristan Kemp,Geoscience Australiageophysicist.

Local governments tie upo create interactive maps

Local governments across Australia havecome together to participate in a groundbreaking new research project that will

nally plot out how they collectivelyuse GIS technology to create intelligentand interactive maps based on councilland and property records. Esri Australiaand the spatial sectors peak body,the Surveying and Spatial SciencesInstitute (SSSI) will conductthe research which has beeninitiated becauseof the lack ofreadily acces-

sible knowledge about how councilsimplement GIS technology.

New bathymetry datasetoffers easier access A new multibeam bathymetry data-set has been released that providesimproved understanding about thetopography and nature of the sea oorof offshore Australia, an area whichfor the most part remains poorlymapped. As national co-custodian

of this extensive multibeam dataset, we hope this new accessibility willfacilitate the use of bathymetry data inthe wider mapping community, saidDr Bruce Goleby, Group Leader ofInnovation and Specialists Services atGeoscience Australia.

NEW ZEALAND

in schoolsLand Information New Zealand(LINZ) has partnered with CORE

Education and its LEARNZ projectto develop an interactive learningexperience for school students focus-ing on How Geospatial Information issupporting the Canterbury Recovery .Trough the use of multi-media and web technologies the students get tointeract with inaccessible places andpeople via a Virtual Field rip (VF ).Te VF is an engaging curriculum,rich e-learning opportunity for stu-dents where the real world comes tothe classroom. During the eld trip the

students stay at school but visit placesthey would never otherwise go to andinteract with people they would neverotherwise meet. Te participation ofstudents is enabled using live audio-conferencing, web board and diaries,images and video clips.

I m a g e C o u r t e s y : G e o s c i e n c e A u s t r a l i a

NEWS

50m multibeam dataset of Australia 2012

Australia/Oceania


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ProductWATCH

Energy Mappernow with SDK

Broadcom Corps GNSS chip BCM47521is exclusively designed for the communications industry.

Key features:The chip enables geofencing capa-bility which preserves battery life.It supports GPS, GLONASS, QZSSand SBAS.For indoor navigation, it uses Wi-Fi,

GNSS chipfor communications

Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), NFC andhandset inertial sensor data.It notifies when a user enters orexits a virtual perimeter.

Broadcom Corp, known for semiconductor solutions for wired and wire-less communications, claims the geo-fence technology is a breakthrough invirtual perimeter awareness.

Location platform forbig dataTerraGo Location IntelligencePlatform is the enterprise-levelsoftware, exclusively designed forthe big data market.

Key features:It gathers information fromsocial media.It integrates geospatial intelli

ence and delivers situationalawareness.It works online and also in

bandwidth-restricted environments.

With the new platform, TerraGoaims to harness the power of Big

Data in geographic context tobuild actionable location intelligence. In addition, to reflect thefusion of innovative discovery,integration and collaborationapabilities, TerraGo unveiled newompany branding and logo.

Global Energy Mapper 14.1 alongwith software development kit(SDK), from Blue Marble, is nowavailable.

Key features:The new mapper processeshundreds of millions of LiDARpoint cloud data.It provides preview of data be-ore creating a gridded surfacemodel.It provides access to detailedstatistical breakdown of thepoint cloud.It makes seismic survey coverage easier.It enables users to create a sitepad for a non-level surface.


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n April 26, 2012 PSLV C-19 roared into the skiesfrom SHAR on the eastern shores of India carryingRISA -1, the biggest of the Indian Remote Sens-

ing Satellite Series (IRS) weighing in at nearly 2tonnes and carrying a state-of-the-art Synthetic Aperture Radar. It represented a major milestonein the overall Indian Remote Sensing SatelliteProgramme.Planning for the IRS Programme had begun in thelate 1970s and the rst satellite of the IRS series,IRS 1A, a 1-tonne satellite carrying two CCD cam-eras, was launched from Baikanur, onboard a Rus-sian Vostok launcher on March 17, 1988. As theProgramme completes 25 years, it is worthwhile torecount the IRS Story, the story of one of the mostsuccessful programmes of Indian Space Research

Organisation (ISRO).

Te genesisTe story begins in 1969. Vikram Sarabhai, thefather of Space echnology and Applications inIndia, clearly saw the need for a remote sensingprogramme for an agricultural society like India.Tis is what he said in his presentation of thesummary of the conference and recommenda-tion for initiatives at the First UN Conference onPeaceful Uses of Outer Space at Vienna in 1969:

When we came to Vienna, we thought thatthe areas of most immediate practical applica-

tions would be communications, meteorologyand navigation, in that order. But one of the moststriking things to emerge has been appreciationof the great potentiality of remote sensing devices,capable of providing large-scale practical benets.One of the group discussions considered the costeffectiveness of these techniques, and it was pointed

O

Special Feature | 25 Years of IRS

Touching the skiesaking the daring step of breaking into the elitist league of space programmes 25 years

ago, with a purely development-based agenda, India is rmly at the forefront of earthobservation today. Lets take a look at the remarkable journey

out that there is a high cost benet ratio, which, for example, in cartography, can be as much as18:1. Te time has come to interest meteorologists,

hydrologists, surveyors, agricultural specialists andother groups in such programmes. Te chairmanof the thematic session summarised the consensusthat aircraft could initially be used because of theircomparatively low cost. Tere is need, to beginwith, to understand problems of interpretation.Remote sensing cannot replace man on ground,but can direct mans efforts on ground to be moreefficient.

Sarabhai sowed the seed but did not livelong enough to see the fruits as he passed awayin 1971. His successors in the Indian SpaceResearch Organisation took the idea forward

through a series of steps which were to lead tothe IRS Programme. Tese steps can be sum-marised into three categories. Te rst was astrategy to utilise opportunities that presentedthemselves which could add to capacity build-ing. In remote sensing, these included anopportunity to develop a thermal scanner withCNES, launch opportunities for the Bhaskaraseries of satellites offered by the erstwhile SovietSpace Agency and the offer to become a Prin-cipal Investigator in the Landsat Programme.Te second strategy was to pace technology byapplications. Tus, right from the rst aerial re-

mote sensing surveys and Landsat data analysis,ISRO always had end users as equal collabora-tive partners. Tis led to a third strategy in theform of speci c utilisation programmes for itssatellites rst Bhaskara and then IRS. Tisstrategy gave a focus to technology developersand opportunity to the user community to own

IRS.indd 24 3/9/2013 7:53:39 PM


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the programme by providing a forum where theycould voice their needs.

Following a series of experimental satelliteslike the Bhaskara launch on Vostok and RS-D1and RS-D2 launched as experimental payloads onISROs nascent SLV launcher programme, a com-mittee was formed by the late Satish Dhawan, thethen Chairman ISRO, under the Chairmanshipof the late Dr .A. Hariharan, a senior scientisthandpicked by Dr Sarabhai from the Woods HoleResearch Laboratory, to come up with a blueprintfor an operational Indian Remote Sensing satelliteseries. It included, among others, scientists likeGeorge Joseph, O.P.N. Calla, P.S. Goel and Y.S. Ra- jan who have since then become familiar namesin the Space community.

Tis committee, in its 1976 report FutureIndian Earth Resources Satellites , recommendedthat ISRO should build a remote sensing satellitethat could be launched with an Indian rocket.Tey felt that an optical Multi-spectral Scanner(MSS) similar to that carried by Landsat with aresolution of 100 metres would suffice for manyIndian application needs. Te committee alsosaid an experimental optical sensor using thenewly emerging Charge Coupled Devices (CCD)

technology should also be own as a back up tothe MSS payload. Microwave payloads were alsoconsidered as important in view of the cloud coverproblems during the major crop-growing season.Te committee made a strong recommendationthat those critical technology activities in the areaof sensors, spacecraft subsystems, data processingand data products are undertaken expeditiouslyfor a possible 1982 launch.

Detailed consultations among the scienti cand technical professionals in ISRO and outsideincluding the user community followed. Teexperience from Bhaskara and RS-D satellites and

other ISRO programmes like the Apple Communi-cations Satellite proved valuable in the con gura-tion of what was to become IRS-1. o get the endusers involved in the process, a programme calledthe Joint Experiments Programme was launchedin 1977 to develop a strong user community whocould contribute to the programme by way of ap-

plications development and inputs for the payloadselection and design. Using Landsat imageryand imagery from ISROs airborne multispectralscanner (an indigenous offshoot of the thermalscanner developed with CNES), applications were developed for various areas like agriculture,hydrology, geology, geomorphology, land use, soilmapping and so on.

Te launchTe IRS Programme was launched in late 1981and its rst project IRS was rmed up as a threeaxis stabilised, sun synchronous satellite carryingtwo CCD cameras with resolutions of 70 m and35 m in four spectral bands covering the visible


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Tematic Mapper of Landsat (30m) and XS-HRV of SPO (20m). It lacked the second shortwave IR band and thermal IR bands of the Mbut scored over the three bands of XS-HRV. TeLISS-3 is a versatile sensor and the workhorsefor most applications. PAN was, till the launchof IKONOS in 1999, the highest resolution civil-ian camera.

Going globalTe failure of Landsat 6 and the upheaval in theinternational remote sensing scene caused bypremature commercialisation of remote sens-ing data acquisition resulted in a situation wherethe global user community was left with veryfew options. Tey could depend on an ageing

Landsat 5 satellite or an expensive French SPOsatellite. Te commercial wing of the Depart-ment of Space, Antrix Corporation, addressed this vacuum and oated enquiries for global partnersto receive and redistribute IRS data worldwide. An agreement with EOSA was signed in 1994and consultations began between EOSA andISRO engineers on the nitty gritty of data recep-tion. Te rst international IRS reception system was inaugurated in 1995 at Norman, Oklahomain the US. Reception began with IRS-1B dataand preparations were started for the simultane-ous commissioning of IRS-1C data reception at

NRSA Hyderabad station and the EOSA stationat Norman. On December 28, 1995 IRS-1C tookto the skies from Baikanur onboard the Molniyalauncher. IRS-1D was launched on September27, 1997 on board the rst commercial ight ofPSLV, PSLV-C1. From now on PSLV would be the workhorse launcher for IRS.

PSLV-D3 launched IRS-P3 which carried a WideField Sensor, WIFS. A two-band version of this wasalready launched on IRS-1C. Te version on P3had an additional shortwave IR band. WIFS was alow-resolution sensor with a very wide coverageresulting in repeat coverage every ve days. Tistrade-off between and resolution and coverage was dictated by the need for enhanced repeatcoverage to monitor situations like drought and

ood and to be able to monitor crops over theirgrowth stages. P3 also carried an experimentalsensor called Modular Opto-electronic Scanner,MOS from DLR for remote sensing of the oceans.Tus while D2 established con dence in the PSLVlauncher D3 was useful to try out experimentalsensors. A word on the ISRO satellite naming

convention: the P designation was applied toprototypes. Successful prototypes were renamedand started a new series like Oceansat, Cartosatand Resourcesat.

Meanwhile, the operational series contin-ued with the design of IRS-1C and 1D. LISS-1 was replaced with a two-band WIFS whileLISS-2 was replaced by LISS-3 having a resolu-tion of 23m. LISS-3 also added a shortwave IRsensor at 70m. A new sensor called PAN was asteerable panchromatic high resolution sensorproviding a resolution of 6m. An onboard re-corder was added to provide global data. Tese

changes were the result of feedback from theIndian user community as well as the need tobe competitive in the global market. Althoughnot explicitly stated, IRS 1C was designed tobe a global player. Its WIF camera was uniqueand later copied by SPO in its SPO 4 and 5satellites. Te LISS 3 was slotted between the

IRS 1 C and 1D was a saga where India really dominated remote sensingas an instrument of resource information across the world. We wanted toinstitutionalise this effort...Tere was considerable amount of skill, creativityand innovation that we have put in and there was a time when we are nolonger worried whether we were the worlds best or not.

Dr K. KasturiranganFormer Chairman, ISRO

Indian spaceprogramme isunique because

it addressesthe national

developmentalprogrammes.

he way wehave namedthe satellites Oceansat,

Cartosat,Resourcesat etc only tells howwe have takenconsiderationof each social

segment

Dr P.G. Diwakar,Director, Earth

Observation System,ISRO


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Ocean sensing Te IRS series, operational and experimental,concentrated more on land-based applications.Tis is to be expected as the major driving force forremote sensing applications were land applica-tions such as crop forecasting, forest manage-ment, land management and mineral exploration. A Department of Ocean Development was createdin 1981 and soon attention turned to ocean sens-ing, perhaps catalysed by Dr A.E. Muthunayagam,Director of ISROs Liquid Propulsion SystemsCentre, who took over as the Secretary of the De-partment of Ocean Development in 1994.

Te IRS programme responded with IRS-P4 which carried a new sensor called the OceanColour Monitor, OCM and a microwave sensorcalled the Multi-frequency Scanning MicrowaveRadiometer, MSMR. Te OCM was used forstudying the ocean colour to track ocean featureslike temperature, chlorophyll and pollution. Temicrowave sensors made a comeback at long lastafter the Satellite Microwave Radiometers, SAMIRon board Bhaskara 1 and 2; a hiatus of nearly 15 years. Also it is important to note that though theHariharan Committee mentioned these sen-sors, it took time before an operational sensor

emerged. IRS-P4 was launched on May 26, 1999.It was renamed Oceansat-1 and was followed byOceansat-2 in September 23, 2009.

racing the terrainTe next area to be addressed by the IRS Pro-gramme was the third dimension in geography the terrain. IRS-1C and D carried steerable PAN

cameras which could be used to image an areafrom different directions to create a stereo pair, which could then be used by a photogrammetric workstation to create a Digital Elevation Model ofthe terrain. However, these were not dedicated forthis purpose. o meet this requirement, IRS-P5,renamed Cartosat-1, carried two 2.5m resolutionPAN cameras pointed fore and aft along the ighttrack. Tis ensured a complete stereo coverage ofthe country enabling users to create 3D models ofany part of India or even the world.

Another area covered by IRS is that of agileimaging at very high resolution. Tese are require-ments of the security establishment as well asagencies like infrastructure and urban planningdepartments. Tis technology was rst tried outon a echnology Evaluation Satellite ( ES), whichhad 1m resolution and could be commandedto image a speci c area. ES was launched onOctober 22, 1999. ES was followed by Cartosat-2in January 10, 2007, Cartosat 2A on April 28, 2008and Cartosat 2B on July 12, 2010.

Te successorsMeanwhile, IRS-1D was aging and required a

replacement. Tis came in the form of Resourc-

esat. Resourcesat-1 was launched on October 17,2003 and was a vast improvement beyond IRS-1Cand D. In keeping with the ISRO naming policy,the rst satellite was designated in the P categoryas IRS-P6. It carried an Advanced WIFS (AWIFS), which had a 740-km swath, 70m resolution andthree bands, effectively bringing back LISS-1resolution of IRS-1A and B with a very wide swathand therefore higher revisit. Te workhorse sensorcontinued to be the LISS-3. Another new sensor was LISS-4, a multispectral upgrade of the PAN.Resourcesat-2 followed on April 20, 2011.

Te latest in the series of IRS satellites is RI-

SA -1, which in a sense completes the programmeenvisaged by the Hariharan Committee in 1976 byadding a Synthetic Aperture Radar to the constel-lation of sensors in space on board IRS satellites.Providing all-weather, day and night capability,RISA -1 represents the acme of technologicalachievement. No other country in the world has


Providing all-weather, day and night capability,RISA -1 represents the acme of technological

achievement. No other country in the world hassuch a huge constellation of operational satellitescarrying a wide variety of sensors from the visible

to microwaves and from 1m to 70m resolution

Postage stampscommemoratingthe achievementsof the Indian spaceprogramme


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such a huge constellation of operational satellitescarrying a wide variety of sensors from the visibleto microwaves and from 1m to 70m resolution.

Secret to successHow did ISRO manage this feat in 25 years?

Te three-pronged strategy has already beendescribed earlier. Te other key factors were or-ganisation and management. ISRO centres are selfcontained and represent a centre of excellence intheir areas. In the case of IRS, ISRO Satellite Centre was responsible for the satellite bus and overallmanagement; Space Applications Centre provided the sensors, data processing software andapplications; LPSC provided the control thrusters; VSSC provided the avionics; IS RAC providedthe satellite control and NRSC provided the dataservices. Inter-centre management teams coor-dinated the activities and a strong management

office ensured budgets and schedules. Above all,it is the spirit of can-do, extension and enthusiasmof a young set of engineers and scientists who didnot fear to venture into unexplored territories.

However, in brief four phases can be observed:Te early pioneering phase, in which every-thing seems to revolve around late Dr Vikram

Sarabhai. Te time frame is approximatelyfrom 1970 to 1974.Te capability build-up phase under lateProf Satish Dhawan (1975-1982) in whichlarge-scale projects are undertaken andcompetence established in the entire valuechain of remote sensing technology. Te ini-tiation of the IRS project and its associatedprogramme elements marks the end of thisphase. Tis was also the period characterisedby innovations in technology as well as novelorganisation structures and processes.Te operational phase largely under thestewardship of U.R. Rao (1983-1992). Tis isthe phase in which the rst IRS satellites getlaunched and provide operational services.Te decision to use the well-established CCDtechnology enables ISRO to become a worldleader in remote sensing technology.Te globalisation phase under Dr Kasturiran-gan (1993-2003), and carried forward by DrMadhavan Nair (2003-2009) and now Dr Rad-hakrishnan in which ISRO is trying to leverageon its innovation and capabilities to become aplayer in the global scene.

Tis article is based on the personal experi-ence of the author and on two reports. One isTe Indian Remote Sensing Programme ACase Study on the Management of High echnol-ogy authored by Kiran Karnik and the author,and presented at the National Convention onR&D Management, Bangalore, 1994. Te otheris a study for the UPIASI research project onTe Context of Innovation in India: the Case ofthe Information echnology Industry entitledIndigenous Innovation and I -enabled Ex-ports: A Case Study of the Development of DataProcessing Software for Indian Remote Sensing

Satellites , by S. Chandrashekar and the author,September 30, 2000

(Images courtesy ISRO)

Prof. Arup DasguptaManaging Editor [email protected]


RISA -1 undergoingprelaunch tests

Indian spaceprogramme has ledto data democracy

downloadabledata, down-loadable tools. All this has led todevelopment evenat the lowest levelslike villages andpanchayats

Dr Y.V.N. KrishnaMurthy,Director, IndianInstitute of RemoteSensing


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Te geospatial industry as a whole is still in a stage of infancy, believes RaymondOConnor, President , opcon Positioning Systems. Te number and scale of infrastructureprojects going on all over the world only indicate the huge potential to be tapped. Further,

he sees the whole sector moving towards being a solutions-oriented industry.

What are the advantages offered by machine control and what is the kind of acceptance among new customers?

ene t of machine control is productivity gain. Be A majorit e-grading in construction or sowinging in agriculture, cost savings accrued w available today can enable 30-40% increaa conservative estimate. In some cases, cdoubling of productivity. Machine contr

ed in the US and European markets. Witfuel, labour and everything else going upon productivity improvements to make

In new or emerging markets, projectskind of standardised cost structure as it hmature markets. When we introduce main emerging markets, it is more difficult t vantages over the entire project. Tis is v neering efforts in mature markets a few dthe cost bene ts are only in a quarter orproject initially. ranslating that to the ov a little more complicated. In many cases,do not have the required tools to save m

aspects of the project. And speeding up t just one area doesnt always give the samin the US or Europe.

Even in the mature markets we facedresistance initially from people handlingmachinery because they were concernethe productivity tool will take over their j

Corner Office Raymond OConnor

Construction and farmingare the two largest manufacturingin ustries ut the least automate


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Tough it is not always the case, but this kind ofresistance slows down introduction and accep-tance of a new technology.

Which are the promising vertical industries interms of machine control?Te verticals bene tting from machine control areall very different from each other. We have been very successful in the mining industry but it has alimited size with a limited number of machines.Te biggest and the fastest growing industry at themoment is agriculture. In 2000, the farm industrysuse of precision measurement equipment wasless than $100 million; last year, it was more thana billion dollars. Te agriculture sector is adopt-ing advanced precise positioning technologymuch faster than any other business; it has beenadopted by equipment manufactures even faster.Te trend started with John Deere in the 1990s,and it was based on the premise of precision farm-ing throughout the farming cycle. Agriculture is

e fastest growing segment of opcons business the moment.

However, the adoption of advanced technol- y in construction machinery is also movingry fast. Construction and agriculture are the two

gest manufacturing industries in the world rep-senting between $8 to 10 trillion a year but aree least automated. So, these two are the areas took out for.

Is opcon aiming to create and nurture new verticals?

e are doing it, but I wouldnt want to comment it due to competitive reasons. Te core of oursiness is the areas I have just mentioned. ech-logy is being adopted and it is growing in both

ature and emerging markets. When I joined opcon in 1993, the survey-

ing industry was doing a business of about$800 million a year globally; today it is a$5-billion business. So the opportunitieshave grown exponentially and in some areasthe growth has been tremendous in con-

struction, civil engineering, mining, agricul-ture and mapping.

Te industry as a whole is still in a stage ofinfancy. Look at the kind of projects going on allover the world highways, infrastructure, build-ings, pipelines, mining the cost of constructingall these is a fraction of the cost of maintainingthe entire infrastructure for a lifetime. And untilrecently, we didnt have a good way of capturingall this data, but now capturing, handling andmanaging this data throughout the life of the proj-ect has exploded into the marketplace.

What are the future business directions ofopcon?ill mid-1990s, opcon was an optical surveying

instrument company. Ten we got into laser andmachine control; then came GPS, and nallythe software side of the business. Obviously, thecore of our business remains surveying, civilengineering, construction and agriculture wherepositioning technologies are being adopted. Ouroal is to be the top supplier in those industries

and we have two major competitors there. Tekey advantages lie in the area of technologicaladvances.

Customers are asking for solutions and not just

products. What is opcons strategy in such asolution-centric market?Our whole industry is focused on moving from aproduct-and-technology industry to a solutions-oriented one, where a company not only suppliesa product or a piece of hardware but also the sup-ply integrated solutions and the software. We havebeen working in that direction with acquisi-tions as well as strong partnerships.

Te solutions business is an absolute necessityin order to grow. But whether we will be buying orpartnering with another company depends on ourown strategic direction and how we want to evolve

the business. Everybody is trying to develop solu-tions, but how opcon gets there will be differentfrom others.

Without providing the total solution, it is verytough to get into the emerging markets. Our goal isto provide total precise positioning and machinecontrol solutions to the global marketplace.


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Corner Office | Raymond OConnor

opcon has been acquiring companies since2008. How are you capitalising on the acquisi-tions?Te acquisitions were done for different reasons.Sokkia was done with the focus on being thetop supplier of optical surveying equipment inthe world. Te deal made us the largest globalsupplier of about 35-40% of optical instrumentsacross the board. Te Voxis acquisition was purelya technology purchase. In some geographicalareas, our acquisitions have been done purely fortactical reasons. opcon is not focused on beingin the distribution business in certain areas of the world. Our acquisitions are for investment rea-sons, for gaining a foothold in a speci c marketor market niche and maintaining and enhancingthat position.

Surveying is evolving as an integrated technol-ogy discipline but is surveying as a businessfacing a dead end? A lot of people are concerned about what machinecontrol would mean to the surveying business. Ican con rm that we sell a lot more total stationstoday than we have ever had. When GPS cameinto the market, a lot of people were concerned

about the optical survey business. But again, theGPS and optical survey business evolved togetherand grew together.

Tere is a perception that surveyors do nothave much surveying options because of all thesensors and machines available. However, wehave found that in the mature machine controlmarkets, surveyors sometimes are paid morethan the actual dataset costs to mark the sites andproduce the 3D data in order to get the machines work on the projects. In some cases, laborious

jobs like driving stakes into the ground and moni-toring areas has gone up. So there is a transition inresponsibility but work hasnt become less for thesurveyor.

Obviously, everyone in the industry has to hearabout why we have to do it the old way. But it is just a matter of time before everyone understandsthat these changes save time and thus contributeto the bottomline.

GIS was becoming more important than sur-

veying about 10 years ago. But today, survey-ing, machine control and laser scanning havetaken a leadership role and GIS is adding valueto these in the overall work ow management.How do you look at the GIS industry?GIS is exactly like the work ow and managementof data we had earlier the limited sets of data. A popular technology today is mobile mapping.Last years InterGeo trade show witnessed thenew trends in mobile mapping helicopters,airplanes, UAVs being deployed. Our ability tomanage the huge amount of data, and to processit quickly, didnt exist even ve years ago. All that

was developed when the Googles and Maptechsdecided to map the world. Tis has led to a tre-mendous amount of development and growth inthat area.

We now have the ability to go out and collecthuge amounts of very accurate data. Te wholeGIS industry is moving to in-house work ow

By cooperating in certain areas, we could doso much to educate the industry to usethe technology; that grows the business

for everybody.


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and so we are going to feed all that data in theGIS model. It is natural to assume they will growtogether.

Apart from the cost structure and work owmanagement, what are the other challenges inoperating in emerging markets?Teres more money in educating those whomake up the core markets because there aretremendous savings and environmental bene ts

involved. If a company can complete its work inhalf the time, it also means it is using only half theamount of fuel. But technology and the savingsrealised are not yet a priority in many areas, espe-cially in the emerging markets.

rying to increase market share from a pio-neering standpoint is a very difficult undertaking. And manufacturers have to spend a lot of moneyto break into emerging markets. Companies haveto work together to develop those markets. It isbene cial to the countries, bene cial to govern-ments from a cost perspective, bene cial for theenvironment and for all our businesses. We need

to collaborate more to open up new markets.

Do you have any speci c strategy for the emerg-ing surveying and positioning markets like theBRICS, Africa and Eastern Europe?In the BRICS, particularly in Russia, we have astrong distributor liaison and we have a very high

market share. Its the same in Brazil. In China, wehave invested in our own manufacturing and dis-tribution organisation and have grown the busi-ness exponentially over the last 10 years. Working with an in-country distribution partner typically works very well but where we cant, we open upour own company. In India, we set up our owndistribution company last year.

Your distributor in Latin America is the sameas that of your competitor rimble. How does itmanage a balance?Tats a very unique situation and I think thedistributor is doing a very good job being mar-ried to two wives! Te reality is that the company was a very strong distributor for both opconand rimble before we treaded into each othersproduct territories. rimble was a GPS companyand opcon was into optical instruments. Now,

rimble sells on its own the products that the jointdistributor doesnt sell and we do the same.

Positioning contributes to a little over 35% ofthe opcon groups revenues. What kind ofgrowth are you visualising here?Our goal is to double the growth in the next ve

years. It is a very exciting time to be in this indus-try. Te competition is fantastic and I am a bigpromoter of competition. But I would like to seeour competitors also trying to help the market bydoing more to educate it because there are a lotof things we can do to build the markets, expandthem more rapidly in more areas, expand ournetworks, standardise data formats and educatethe emerging markets. By cooperating in certainareas, we could do so much to educate the indus-try to use the technology; that grows the businessfor everybody.

Sometimes I think our competitors lose sight

of the bigger picture and get focused on theday-to-day business rather than the long-termpicture of the industry. But I prefer our approachof having a long-term view of the overall industrybecause not only it is a good and pro table busi-ness, but we also are doing something to reallyhelp the world.


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36 arch 2013GeospatialWorld

he India governments annual Economic Surveyfor 2012-13 has called for careful mapping,assigning of conclusive titles to facilitate land leas-ing, and creating a fair but speedy process of landacquisition for public purposes .

Way back in 2001, a report by McKinsey Global

Institute had stated that land market distortionsaccounted for close to 1.3% of lost GDP a year inIndia. While many subsequent estimates put this

gure at 2-3% of the GDP, even at 1.3% this is astraight loss of Rs 1.38 trillion or $25.29 billion a year for the country at current values.

Geospatial technology is fundamental to land

Te Indian growth story has suddenly hit the brakes. But geospatial technologycould get it out of this mess. What is required is an integrated policy and enablingenvironment for the sector to give a push to Indias stagnant growth engine

Caught in a jam

ecords management. In other words, effectiveuse of geospatial and information technologies inIndias land records management could unlock$25.29 billion in the economy. Te Indian GDP isestimated at Rs 106 trillion (around $1.94 trillion)at present.

Tis is but just one example and just a plau-sible scenario.

welve years and two Five Year Plans down,ot much has changed on the ground. As the

Economic Survey highlights, the biggest hurdlein the Indian growth story in the last couple of years has been land. With a land acquisition Bill

Cover Story | India


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38 GeospatialWorld| March 2013

ning, consumer indexing, load dispatch, checkingpilferage or even infrastructure, points out ArvindTakur, CEO, NII echnologies.

Further, while there is a tremendous amountof cost savings and efficiency in a fully integrat-ed GIS, how can this return on investment becalculated when it is used for empowering and in-cluding people? A case in point is the investmentby the National Informatics Centre in geospatialtechnology as part of the complete systems andsupport infrastructure established for e-gover-nance in the country.

Cadastre and land administrationTe basic economic problem that India is cur-rently facing is the allocation of the available butlimited land among a growing number of users. While this requires a huge political will, on theexecution front what is required is proper andeffective technology-enabled policy that leads toproper land records and titling.

Although some form of cadastre exists in India,the information is often outdated with incompleteand poorly organised paper records making up fora large percentage of the database, says CharanjitSingh, Director, NLRMP. Lack of digitisation

means information cannot be veri ed or shared,thus its real value is locked up. Land records man-agement is fragmented, with bits of informationheld by too many departments.

Te department, which had launched theNLRMP in 2008 to develop a modern, compre-hensive and transparent land records manage-ment system with the ultimate aim to implementthe conclusive land-titling system with title guar-antee, is targeting full digitisation, including GISmaps, and interconnectivity between land recordsand registration by the end of the XII Plan or 2018.Some states like Haryana, Gujarat, Maharashtra,

Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh have made con-siderable progress. Singh is particularly in praisefor the integrated system of Bhoomi (land records)and Kaveri (registration) in Karnataka, which hascut out fraudulent deals. Te Haryana govern-ments use of high resolution satellite imageryfor speedier modernisation its records and the

sunrise sectors, geospatial is still recognised as asmall cog in the bigger I wheel.

Given the way geospatial technology hasbeen enabling national development, it should berecognised as a sunrise sector and get adequatetax breaks and incentives, says Rajan Aiyer, MD,

rimble India. But for that various industrybodies like AGI, Ficci and others have to work inunison to present the demands of the sector to theauthorities. Industry insiders believe the lack of a well-de ned geospatial strategy and understand-ing of this niche technology among policymakersand a highly restrictive environment owing tosecurity paranoia is holding back the sector fromits realising its full potential.

We are working with industry chambers likeNasscom, CII and Ficci to build a comprehensive,encompassing strategy for growth of the geospa-tial sector in India, says Bharti Sinha, ExecutiveDirector, Association of Geospatial Industries(AGI). Geospatial is not non-I but it is new I ,and that is why it needs special focus the rightenabling environment, tax, sops and subsidies.

Geo services have the ability to transform allaspects of life from business to government, saysPrashant Agrawal, one of the BCG consultants

who worked on report commissioned by Google.Te study identi es easier access to data andclearer data sharing policies as some of areas thatcan boost this sector.

Currently, geo services represent 0.2% ofIndias GDP. However, there is tremendous roomto grow this industry and create a competitiveadvantage for India, emphasises Agrawal. Teimpact of geo services is expected to grow at anannual rate of 10-15% for the next ve years. Whatis interesting is geospatial has a multiplier effect, which is expected to go up from 15 to as high as20 or 30. Te gures may sound astounding, but a

close look at some of the projects that it has beenpart of only establishes the point.

ake for instance, the R-APDRP. Te invest-ment in geospatial part of it is just 10-15%, butfrom planning to implementation, or operation, itis core to the projects functioning. APDRPs codeis GIS the geospatial element is central to plan-

Cover Story | India

Given the way geospatial tech-nology has beenenabling nationaldevelopment, itshould be recog-nised as a sunrisesector and get ad-equate tax breaksand incentives

Rajan Aiyer,MD, rimble India

Geospatialtechnologies playa crucial rolein improving

governance throughbetter planning,decision making,effective and timelyimplementationand real-timeanalysis of thesituation on the ground

Kaushik Chakraborty,Vice President,Hexagon India


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Gujarat governments pure grounded method arealso commendable, he says.

However, since land is a state subject, theCentre can only give guidelines. Also, there is alsoreat reluctance among the populace regarding

land surveys, especially in a country like India where 70% of the population live in rural areas.Further, the line departments are not keen eitheron the high-end technology. We have to convincepeople that proper land records management isfor their bene t as it rst establishes their right onthe land and then increases the value, reduces dis-putes and encourages business, says Bipin BihariSrivastava, Secretary, DoLR.

Srivastava also thinks that the entire landrecords and management system in the countryneeds to be revisited, including some laws thathave become archaic. Te DoLR knows much isriding on this project and that is why it has kept astrict deadline end of the XII Plan for comple-tion. But it is also being realistic. I think this willspill over to the next Plan, admits Singh. Tis is ahuge and challenging programme. Land record isquite a sensitive issue and we should not hurry.

Infrastructure

Land that is well connected to markets is espe-cially scarce, and lack of supporting infrastruc-ture causes greater cash burn and distraction ofmanagement from core business operations, saysthe Economic Survey. Te XII Plan has proposed$1-trillion investment for the infrastructure sec-tor, lining up a time-bound, ambitious plan fornew roads, railway tracks, ports and airports andupgrade of existing infrastructure.

G-tech is going to play a very valuable role inutilising these dollars to maximise the bene ts forthe citizens of the country and thus re ect in theeconomic growth of the country, says Rajan Aiyer.

However, construction of any big infrastructureproject involves automated machines and thesemachines talk to each other on wireless. At pres-ent, the import duties are as high as 25-30% withrestrictions on import, operation and support ofthese systems with clearances required at everystage. All this takes about six months, by that time

the project phase is complete, says Aiyer. Further,all these licenses are not one-time and a companyhas to apply for them again for a different project.

Roads & highwaysIndia has the second largest road network in the world with 3.3 million km but about two-thirds ofit is unpaved or poor quality. Indias road networklogistics and transportation bottlenecks hinder itsGDP growth by 1- 2%, nds a KPMG report.

Recognising this, the Budget has given a boostto dedicated industrial corridors connecting met-ros while contracts for 3,000 km of road projects will be awarded in the rst six months of 2013-14.

Te geospatial industry sees this as a big welcomepush for a new wave of industrialisation andurbanisation. From planning to construction andalignment of roads and tracks, to operation andmaintenance,geospatial technology can play a bigrole. Signi cantly,the XII Plan puts a special thruston progressive use of technologies for enablingreal-time monitoring of projects,putting them inthe right direction,and fast decision making.

Te governments target of building 20 km ofnational highways per day under the XII Plan willrequire the use of state-of-the-art construction au-tomation technologies, admits Atul Kumar, Chief

General Manager, NHAI. Te creation of massivehighway assets with four /six laning of over 20,000km of national highways in the last few years hasled to the challenging requirement of timely andeffective monitoring of their construction, qualitymaintenance and efficiency, he says. IC along with satellite imaging, surveying and latest gadgets

Integration and computerisation of land records not only protects them, but makesindexing possible for access by various departments. This can help to detect owner-ship con icts and track usage agreements attached to parcels. Within a GIS, aparcels title chain can be traced, thus eliminating a risk for nancial investors andmaking it easier to establish the propertys capital value. This cadastral data canthen be linked to other land attributes as well such as spatial information on topog-raphy, environmental conditions, land use and natural resources to give graphicaldepictions of real property. Some states like Gujarat have not only established acomplete cadastre, but the land information system has as many as 20 layers.

UNLOCKING THE REAL VALUE

L& uses g-techin constructionprojects like

roads, airports,large townshipsand shipyards.

It saves ourtime and

effort, makingthe whole

process verysmooth. his

has been veryinstrumentalin significant

upgrade ofmanufacturing

technologies

Director & Presi ent,Larsen & ou ro


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provide the much-needed nancial breatherfor the cash-strapped Railways in the long run.Railways, the largest owner of land in the country,has not been able to monetise this resource dueto de ciencies in its land administration andmaintenance of land records. Te expert group onmodernisation of railways headed by Sam Pitrodahad estimated that monetisation of surplus landand airspace could mobilise Rs 500 billion. Callingfor GIS mapping of land resources, digitisation ofrecords and perfection of titling at the earliest, thepanel had said for long-term lease and licensingby Railways, land rights must belong to them.

Further, the Railways is yet to fully exploit thebene ts of g-tech in operations and safety. wo years back, the Railway Budget had announced tocover all its eight zones with anti-collision devices.Te project, which uses GPS and sensors to de-termine train location, speed, course of travel andtime, has been implemented only on around 2,700km of track of the 65,000 km route.

Te success of Delhi Metro has led to moremetro projects for Indian cities. Tis can happen with the Indian Railways too, feels Aiyer. Indiassize, population and the rising middle class isideal for use of high-speed trains as mass trans-

port. A number of countries, including China,have done it so effectively, he saysTe XII Plan lists out a number of construc-

tion projects dedicated fright corridors, highcapacity rolling stock, last-mile rail linkages andport connectivity, and development of logisticsparks areas where geospatial could play a keyrole. Tere are also opportunities for surveyingand construction automation in the process oftrack building and improving quality. Enhancingproject execution capabilities would be critical forthe railways in improving returns on investments.

AviationTe civil aviation sector in the country has ex-panded rapidly with the opening up of domesticskies and airports to private players. At present,the Airports Authority of India (AAI) is upgrad-ing and modernising 35 non-metro airports at anestimated cost of around Rs 45 billion while 15

The GIS-based data system will provide information about the life-cycle of a coach,

wagon, locomotive, building, signalling system and other assets while making decisionmaking faster in crisis-like situations. Once integrated, the disaster management systemwill give location and accessibility of accident sites, availability of resources for rescueoperation, location of medical relief facilities etc. The railways had started a real-timetrain tracking project SIMRAN as a pilot project along with IIT-Kanpur. The pilot wasscrapped in November 2012, which was followed with a similar RailRadar. However,this is not a real-time GPS tracking. The trains are yet to be tagged with GPS.

like GPS-enabled cameras and video logging,sensor-based monitoring is giving results, he feels.

Currently the highway department follows thekilometre-based referencing system on road, but we had taken up a pilot on GIS-based NationalHighways Information System. We hope to takeup GIS-based referencing system soon, says C.Kandasamy, Director General, Ministry of Road

ransport & Highways. NHAIs GIS-based roadinformation system is being populated withdata, and there are plans to integrate it with atraffic management system for dissemination ofinformation such as eet management, incidentresponse, toll, vehicle regulation etc. Tis can alsobe used for giving information to travellers.

RailwaysTe Indian Railways is running late in the geo-spatial track and has just about woken up to itsbene ts. While so far it had talked about only GPStracking of trains for passenger bene ts and strayprojects like night-tracking and fog safety services,the Railways has nally embarked on an ambi-tious project of creating a GIS-based database ofits network and assets, including, track, stationand signals to make the operation system efficient.

Under the Rs 300-million plan, an inventoryof the entire railway network including land willbe created through GIS, says S.S. Mathur, GeneralManager, Centre for Railway Information Systems.In January, the Railways placed a six- gure order with GeoEye for stereo imagery to use in planningand designing of freight corridors and even twohigh-speed transportation corridors.

Signi cantly, GIS mapping is expected to

Cover Story | India

FINALLY ON TRACK

Geospatialtechnology isessential for allareas of roaddevelopment from surveyand planning toconstruction andmaintenance. Apilot on GIS-basedroad referencingsystem will also bein place soon

C. Kandasamy,Director General(Road Development),Ministry of Road

ransport & Highways


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Gagan, the Indian satellite-based augmentation system, is a projectaken by AAI and ISRO. Gagan is designed to provide additional aability, and integrity necessary to enable users to rely on GPS for all phases oform en route through approach. A possible certi cation by 2014 will propel Indiaas the only fourth country to have this facility in the world. According to US defencegiant Raytheon, which has provided the ground segment technology for the project,Gagan-equipped aircraft is estimated to save as much as 20% on fuel.

reen eld airports have got in-principle nod.Te airports sector is estimated to require an

investment of about Rs 675 billion during 2013-18.Te plan to propel India among the top ve civilaviation markets could be provided with access tosafe, secure and affordable air services through anappropriate regulatory framework and by devel-oping world-class infrastructure facilities.

World-class infrastructure comes with geospa-tial solutions such as 3D indoor mapping and GPSfor eet, vehicle and asset monitoring. We areseeing companies invest in efficiency-related toolsthat GIS can provide eet management solu-tions, vehicle tracking and software, says Rohan Verma, Director, MapmyIndia.

PowerIndias energy sector is increasingly under pres-sure to deliver a secure supply of energy amidrowing demand and fuel imports, notes a report

by the International Energy Agency (IEA). Indiacurrently has a power generation capacity of211,766 MW of electricity, which meets only 90%of the demand. Te XII Plan recognises unreli-able and inadequate power supply to be a seriousimpediment in India. What makes matters worse

is the high aggregate technical and commerciallosses suffered by power utilities, estimated to beequivalent to 1.5% of GDP. Te IEA report says thenationwide A &C losses were 31% in FY 2010-11,compared to developing economies such as Brazil(17%), China (5%) and Indonesia (10%) in 2009.

A major initiative of the XI Plan was R- APDRP which aimed at actual, demonstrable

erformance in terms of A &C loss reduction.Launched in 2008 with an allocation of Rs 515.77billion, the programme covers state utilities inurban areas. Te project, which mandated GIS-based consumer indexing and extensive network

mapping, has seen signi cant progress in therst part in almost all eligible towns. Te secondhase has also been launched in some states, with

Gujarat, Karnataka, Rajasthan, West Bengal andMadhya Pradesh leading the pack. Te bene ts will be realised only when they go through energyaudit, says Rajesh Mathur. Last 3-4 years have

been the project phase and we should see thebene ts in the coming year.

However, data updation is a very worryingaspect about R-APDRP since there is no provisionin it for that. Whatever data was generated wasdone two years back, so updation and recollectionis a major problem, says Pankaj Gupta, Head, GISData Collection, rimble. Te industry claims this was brought to the governments attention butthe Power Finance Corporation, the nodal agencyfor the project, says it is the responsibility of theelectricity boards. Te power boards in turn saythey do not have the funds.

Some of the key recommendations of XII Planto bring distribution system on track include R&Din advanced metering, distribution automation,

utility automation covering SCADA, mapping andGIS, outage management system areas whereg-tech can play a crucial role. Te core of build-ing a smart grid, which is the ultimate goal for thepower sector, is again geospatial technology.

Power capacity addition target for the XII Planhas been xed at 88,537 MW. Te share of nuclearpower is expected to rise from 3% in 2012 to 5% in2017, another area which is likely to give a llip tothis industry. From identifying uranium/thoriumdeposits to site selection for plants and disposalof nuclear waste, remote sensing plays a vitalrole in nuclear power generation, explains A.K.

Chaturvedi of the Department of Atomic Energy, who believes nuclear power is Indias answer toclean energy.

Mining Much of the power sectors woes has been causeddue to shortage of coal owing to a drop in produc-

FLYING HIGH WITH GAGAN

GIS ties together

all the pieces of theelectric distribution

system forimproved customer

service, bettermanagement of

assets and outages,and increased

accuracy of data

Hars S arma,Vice Presi ent, BSES

amuna ower


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tion and transportation However, production islikely to rise by 2016-17, thanks to mining giantCoal India Ltd, which aims at taking up around 70expansion/new projects during the XII Plan.

o achieve these targets, Coal India, whichsupplies 81% of the

geospatial world march 2013

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