Tag Archives: business GIS

10 Questions: ChatGPT for New York State GIS

Posted on by
Reply

I thought I was going to get out in front of all the ChatGPT for GIS discussion for the New York State GIS community, but that turned out to be off by a magnitude of sorts.  YouTube is already replete with ChatGPT for GIS tutorials and if we wait until next week there will probably be another ChatGPT alternative.  (I found the Matt Forrest YouTube video a good ChatGPT for GIS intro – actually formed a question after one of his examples).  Even Amazon jumped into the frey recently with their Amazon Bedrock option.  Take your pick, Bing Chat, Chatsonic, YouChat, Google Bard (available via a waiting list) and a whole host of others on the market in 2023. 

No, the robots aren’t taking over and I suspect we won’t see any of the early Terminator Cyberdyne Systems androids applying for your local GIS Analyst position anytime soon – though it might be a solution for those long dreadful digitizing jobs in the cart lab.  One way or another, Chatbot AI technology is definitely here to stay, evolve, and become another piece of the geospatial toolbox.  

Nothing specific or implied in any the questions.  Just random chains of thought though it does take a little getting used to putting the questions together vs. a basic Google search.  And it does seem to help to refresh and ask the same question twice – or even three times – to get more detailed results.  Never was a programmer, so a little short on questions in that space.

A lot here.  Actually 17 questions in all.  Straight copy and paste. Skim through as you want – find a topic/question you might be interested in.  There are tons more which could have been included.

Without any further adieu, my first machine interview: 

eSpatiallyNewYork:  What freshwater fish datasets are best for mapping fish population based on water depth in the Great Lakes?

ChatGPT:  There are several freshwater fish datasets that can be useful for mapping fish populations based on water depth in the Great Lakes. Here are a few options:

  1. Great Lakes Acoustic Telemetry Observation System (GLATOS) – This dataset provide information on the movements and behaviors of tagged fish in the Great Lakes.  It includes data on depth, temperature, and location, which can be used to create maps of fish populations based on water depth.
  2. Great Lakes Fishery Commission (GLFC) – The GLFC maintains a database of fish populations in the Great Lakes.  This dataset includes information on fish specifies, size, and location, which can be used to map fish population based on water depth.
  3. Great Lakes Environmental Database (GLENDA) – GLENDA is a comprehensive database of environmental data for the Great Lake region.  It includes information on water depth,  temperature, and environmental factors that can be used to map fish populations.
  4. USGS Great Lakes Science Center – The USGS Great Lakes Science Center conducts research on fish populations in the Great Lake and maintains a database of fish surveys.  This dataset includes information on fish species, abundance, and location which can be used to map fish populations based on water depth.

Ultimately, the best freshwater fish dataset for mapping fish populations based on water depth in the Great Lakes will depend on the specific research question and the type of analysis being conducted.

eSpatiallyNewYork:  To what degree of accuracy can I map features from New York State orthophotography?

ChatGPT:  The degree of accuracy with which you can map features from New York State orthophotography depends on various factors such as the resolution of the imagery, the accuracy of the ground control points used for georeferencing, and the skill and expertise of the analyst.

New York State orthophotography typically has a resolution ranging from 0.5 to 1 meter, which means that individual features such as buildings, roads, and other infrastructure can be identified and mapped with a reasonable level of accuracy. However, mapping smaller features such as individual trees, shrubs, or small structures may be more challenging, as these features may not be visible at this resolution.

The accuracy of mapping also depends on the quality of the georeferencing. The accuracy of the ground control points used for georeferencing should be of a similar or higher resolution than the orthophotography itself. This ensures that the imagery is correctly aligned with the ground, allowing for accurate measurements and mapping.

The skill and expertise of the analyst are also critical factors in the accuracy of mapping features from orthophotography. A trained analyst with experience in image interpretation and feature extraction techniques can accurately identify and map features with a high degree of accuracy.

Overall, mapping features from New York State orthophotography can provide a reasonable degree of accuracy for larger features such as buildings, roads, and other infrastructure. However, mapping smaller features may require higher resolution imagery or other sources of data. It is always important to validate and verify the accuracy of the mapping results through ground truthing and other quality control measures.

Continue reading →

GeoSpatial Business Spotlight: CAI Technologies

Posted on by
Reply

Location:              Littleton, New Hampshire 

Website:               www.cai-tech.com

Employees:          25

Established:        1985

Background

CAI Technologies has been providing GIS services to local and regional governments since 1989, making it one of the oldest and most experienced companies in the marketplace.  Since it was founded in 1985 as Cartographic Associates, Inc, CAI Technologies has been a recognized leader in local government parcel data development. Instrumental in developing the original parcel fabric, including record research and compilation for more than 270 municipalities, CAI continues to support parcel mapping development and annual maintenance needs for over 650 local governments.

Other strategic CAI corporate business functions focus on geospatial technologies including enterprise geodatabase design, GPS field data collection/mapping, and implementation services for critical utility infrastructure.  Focusing on water, sewer, and drainage infrastructure, CAI Technologies develops user tools which make system mapping, implementation, and ongoing maintenance cost-effective.  Additionally, the company provides a full scope of development services including requirements analysis, functional design, development, installation, training, and support.

CAI has a significant New York State customer base as the company currently supports the business needs of clients through implementing industry leading geospatial solutions.

Illustrative Projects

East Hampton, NY ArcGIS Enterprise Support

Since 2015 CAI has supported the Town of East Hampton by providing staff and expertise for managing and upgrading their ArcGIS Enterprise. With each upgrade, CAI provides the Town with a detailed plan including scope and pricing to support each task. Plans are designed to include processes to minimize downtime, identify fall back procedures, and provide time for end user acceptance testing.

Upgrades initially focused on ArcGIS Server and migration of existing SQL back office and SDE database onto one hardware appliance.  Next, CAI implemented Portal for ArcGIS to support Active Directory based logins with a federated ArcGIS Server. Once Portal was configured including the web adaptor, roles and permissions, CAI configured Web App Builder in the new Portal environment and migrated existing web applications.  “CAI has worked on a number of projects for us over the years and we continue to go back to them because of their excellent service,” notes Bob Masin, GIS Manager, Town of East Hampton, “they work collaboratively with us to fit our needs, are responsive, and always go the extra mile to make sure the job is done right and to our satisfaction” 

As new versions of existing software and add-on features become available, CAI coordinates implementation with the Town to ensure they are maximizing their return on investment. Most recently, CAI federated ArcGIS Server and Portal as part of an upgrade to Enterprise 10.9.1

Bedford, New York 

The Town of Bedford for many years maintained tax parcel data in various formats. A Town wide parcel layer existed in shapefile format with a majority of the tax maps generated from AutoCAD.   Some of the most current maps however only existed in PDF format. As a result, not all data sets were updated consistently each year which resulted in an inaccurate parcel dataset.

To meet the needs of the Assessor’s Office it was clear that the tax maps required updating and the resulting parcel data needed to be linked to the RPS assessment database. Using the existing source files, CAI digitized all of the existing lines and annotations into an ESRI geodatabase. Going as far back as 2011, deeds and plans were reviewed and parcels were recompiled in order to update the maps. Using additional information provided by the Assessor’s Office, CAI created GIS layers for condos and easements. Once updates were completed, CAI configured a Data Driven Pages map document file in order to print new tax maps from the GIS data.

CAI assisted the Town of Bedford in converting both existing digital datasets and hardcopy maps, including condos and easements, into a ESRI Geodatabase. This will support future tax map maintenance functions and serve as the foundation of the town’s AxisGIS public facing application. https://www.axisgis.com/BedfordNY

Capitol Region Council of Governments, CT

CAI Technologies Receive Special Achievement in GIS Award

The Capitol Region Council of Governments, CT (CRCOG) and CAI Technologies were selected to receive a Special Achievement in GIS (SAG) Award from ESRI. This award is given to users around the world to recognize outstanding work with GIS technology. The CRCOG/CAI Regional Parcel Viewer and Regional GIS Portal web application stood out from more than 100,000 other applicants.

CROG is the voluntary Council of Governments organization supporting 38 municipalities in the Metropolitan Hartford CT area including the City of Hartford. It is the largest of the nine regional planning organizations in Connecticut. CRCOG provides services to member towns to promote efficient transportation, public safety, responsible land use, preservation of natural resources and economic development as well as supporting shared service initiatives between member communities.

The project is a self-hosted and self-maintained Regional GIS Portal and Parcel Viewer to serve CRCOG member municipalities as well as to provide a flexible infrastructure for internal and external users. Features include automating the collection and linking of parcel and computer-aided mass appraisal (CAMA) data for each community hosted as a 38 community fabric of parcels, providing productivity tools including generation of abutter lists and labels, and providing contextual data from local, State and Federal partners such as infrastructure, environmental conditions, natural resources, census information, and political geographies. Project tasks also included streamlining and automating the update of CAMA data to the site. CRCOG GIS staff are now able to add town-specific data layers without incurring additional costs.

The CRCOG parcel viewer exemplifies the cost-efficiencies of shared services providing parcel data viewing and related mapping functions to 38 municipalities in the metro-Hartford area

The portal provides  the region with an invaluable repository of property information to support local and regional planning and development while also allowing CRCOG to implement an ArcGIS Platform which will be expanded to serve other needs of the COG organization and member communities.  The portal  continues to be a collaborative effort between CRCOG and ESRI Business Partner CAI Technologies and can  serve as a model for other regional planning agencies to follow.

The portal site can be visited at https://crcog.org/regional-gis/

Utility Mapping and Inspection Tracking Using GIS

CAI provides mapping services for their clients Water, Sewer and Stormwater systems.  Working with client staff, CAI performs Global Positioning Systems (GPS) data collection of the system point features and at the same time provides connectivity of the utility pipe network.

Working recently for the Windham Water Works and Windham Water Pollution Control Authority in Windham, CT, CAI performed sub foot data collection and mapping for over 130 miles of Water system and 47 miles of Sewer system. Taking advantage of the already in place AxisGIS service CAI hosts for the Town of Windham, the utility systems are made available to each utility in a secure staff only accessible AxisGIS Editor service. Each utility now maintains their data using AxisGIS Editor and Field Maps for ArcGIS.

CAI also integrated the water utility’s customer database with the GIS, thereby allowing easy field access to the water service connection tie cards. Recently CAI configured ESRI’s Lead Service Line Inventory solution to support inspections required to meet the Environmental Protections Agency’s (EPA) Lead and Copper Rule Revisions.

With many aging sewer systems present in the Northeast, CAI works with clients to record and display their Manhole and Pipe inspections using GIS. Typical pipe inspections include capturing CCTV video. The camera operator records information relative to pipe condition, material, diameter and lateral locations. CAI is able to glean this information from the inspection software database in an automated fashion to update feature attributes, create GIS features representing sewer lateral connections and symbolize lines based on their condition. The CCTV video is linked to the corresponding pipe segment for easy retrieval in the field or office using AxisGIS or ArcGIS Online (AGOL).

The AxisGIS  platform provides an excellent framework to integrate and mash together several different types of infrastructure data types including geometry, reports, and video inspections.

For those communities that are a permitted Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4), CAI provides system mapping and application development to support annual reporting requirements. To support outfall and ditch inspection workflows, CAI has configured a suite of AGOL Applications and Dashboards. Using Field Maps for ArcGIS, clients can record inspections while in the field and progress is shown using Dashboards configured in AGOL. As a result of significant EPA updates to the current MS4 General Permit, CAI has updated Outfall Inspection applications to support capturing test results required of any dry weather inspection where flow is present.

Dashboards are useful for managers responsible for monitoring and maintaining infrastructure systems. Displayed information aids in both communicating and managing field crews. Long term benefits assist in preparing annual and capital budgets.

Contact:

Aaron Weston
Business Development Manager
CAI Technologies
www.cai-tech.com
800.322.4540 x28
direct 603.761.6241
aweston@cai-tech.com

Geospatial Business Spotlight: Maine Technical Source

Posted on by
Reply

NY Locations:     787 Old Sergeant Palmateer Way, Wappingers Falls NY
                              2634 James Street, Syracuse NY

Website:               www.mainetechnical.com 

Employees:          18

Established:         1973

 

 

 

 

The Company:

Maine Technical Source (MTS) sells, services, and supports high-end instrumentation for the geospatial industry as well as the surveying, engineering, and construction sectors throughout New England.  New York State offices are located at 787 Old Sergeant Palmateer Way in Wappingers Falls, & 2634 James Street in Syracuse. 

Gus MacDonald started the company over 45 years ago and more than half of the MTS employees have been with the company for more than fifteen years.  In June 2017, Stuart MacDonald purchased the company with a commitment to continuing the legacy of meeting customer needs.   Maine Technical Source employees are singularly focused on providing exemplary customer service.

MTS is a member of the New York State Association of Professional Land Surveyors (NYSAPLS).  

Products and Technology:

MTS provides a wide range of traditional industry products as well as state-of-the-art components now available in emerging and laser scanning technologies.  A complete listing of products can be found as part of the MTS online catalog.  

Illustrative products common to the geospatial, BIM and AEC applications include:

Field Mapping

Leica Zeno Mobile is a complete tool for high accuracy field data capture with the simplicity of an Android app.  Managing assets has never been easier via it’s intuitive user interface and functionality.  Users can export collected data to the PC as shape files, ASCII or KMZ, either in classic way via cable, USB or using the cloud with Dropbox. The app also comes pre-loaded with aerial imagery.  Learn more about Leica Zeno GIS technology via online training videos here.

UAV Solutions

MTS offers complete UAV solutions for the surveying, mapping and construction industries enabling fast and flexible data collection.  Systems capture, process and analyze millions of data points depicting highly accurate spatial information of the natural and built environment.   One of MTS’s more popular drone solutions is the DJI Phantom 4 RTK which is one the most compact and accurate low altitude mapping UAV devices. 

The Leica Aibot SX focuses on UAV data capture in the surveying geomapping, and asset  disciplines enabling users to create orthophotos, point clouds, and 3D models for cadastral survey and data collection. Leica Aibot CX focuses on UAV data capture in the construction industry providing up-to-date views over construction projects and earthmovings.  It also opens opportunities for daily progress documentation, stockpile monitoring and resource tracking to increase efficiency.

WingtraOne Gen II is a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) sUAS for mapping of small and large areas.  It utilizes a high resolution Sony DSLR camera platform and post-processing kinematic(PPK) to provide precise geotagging of the images.  As a VTOL drone it can take off and land like a quad-copter and then transition into level flight as a fixed wing.  With the high-resolution camera it can fly missions higher and faster than a quadcopter with outstanding ground sampling distance (GSD) results.

MTS is a Pix4Dmapper reseller which is the the leading photogrammetry software for professional drone mapping.  Users can capture RGB, thermal, or multispectral images with any camera.  Pix4Dmapper’s photogrammetry algorithms transform  ground or aerial images in digital maps and 3D models. 

 

Field Tablets

Leica CS30 Data Collector is the best of both worlds – light weight (1.67 lbs) and compact yet with a screen size (7”) big enough for use all day long.  Equipped with an LCD IPS screen to provide an optimal color clarity, as well as a much improved and increased viewing angle. The unit also has an ambient light sensor for improved visibility in all lighting conditions.  Portable to fit into a field bag or typical pickup truck glove box.  Other similar devices MTS offers include the Carlson RT4 and the Sokkia SHC6000. 

Laser Scanners

MTS focuses on providing and supporting Leica Systems laser scanning technology including the new highly portable RTC360.  Intuitive and designed for maximum productivity, this unit efficiently combines the RTC360 high-performance 3D laser scanner, a Leica Cyclone FIELD 360 mobile-device app or automatically registering scans in real time, and the Leica Cyclone REGISTER 360 office software.  Depending on the specific application area of use, MTS also offers HDS software for integration into the AutoCAD, Revit, and MicroStation platforms among others.  Here is a RTC360 video. 

For a complete listing of all MTS products, visit their website.  

Contact:

Stuart MacDonald, President smacdonald@mainetechnical.com
Bill Treadwell, GIS Sales btreadwell@mainetechnical.com
Brad Beeler, Wappingers Falls brad.beeler@mainetechnical.com
David Filipski, Syracuse dfilipski@mainetechnical.com

Geospatial Business Spotlight: VHB

Posted on by
Reply

Location:                      Albany, New York (30+ locations along the East Coast)

Website:                       www.vhb.com  &  www.vhb.com/albany

Employees:                 180 New York State / 1,600 Nationwide

Established:                1979

The Company

VHB’s 1,600 professionals include engineers, scientists, planners, and designers partner with public and private clients in the transportation, real estate, institutional, and energy markets, as well as federal, state, and local governments. With locations along the East Coast, including five regionally in  Albany, Hauppauge, New York City, White Plains, and Newark, VHB is dedicated to improving mobility, enhancing communities, and balancing development and infrastructure needs with environmental stewardship.

VHB’s integrated services approach leverages a robust line of applied technologies the firm has developed through experience and cooperation with clients and partners. Whether it’s utilizing geospatial technology to pinpoint demographics to enhance decision making or keeping critical projects moving forward by utilizing Big Data, VHB’s team is dedicated to uncovering innovative solutions that benefit the communities they serve.

The following sections cover a few of these technologies, but for more information, please visit VHB’s Applied Technology website.

Geospatial Products and Services:

VHB celebrates a long history with the GIS community, integrating lessons learned and best practices to each new opportunity. As an Esri Business Partner for more than 20 years, and part of Esri’s Business Partner Advantage Program (BPAP) which provides access to Esri’s developers and technical staff, VHB is positioned to understand Esri technology at the highest levels and receive treatment for technical issues and targeted assistance. Additionally, VHB is certified as one of Esri’s ArcGIS Online Specialty partners, which symbolizes the company’s extensive experience in creatively implementing ArcGIS Online/Portal technology within any organization.

Services that are offered by VHB’s GIS consultants include:

Planning Services

  • GIS Strategic Planning
  • GIS Needs
  • Assessments GIS
  • Business Planning
  • ROI Studies
  • GIS Audits

Application Development

  • GIS Web Development
  • Mobile Application Development
  • Spatial Enablement
  • System Integration: BI, CRM, document management, permitting, asset management, etc

Support

  • On-Call Support
  • Technical Training
  • Maintenance of Data of Systems Created
  • Hosting of Web and Mobile Applications

System Design

  • Requirements Analysis
  • GIS System Architecture

Correlating GIS Mapping With Data for Healthy Communities

VHB’s innovative Healthy Mobility Model utilizes GIS mapping powered by ESRI to establish a baseline health risk assessment within a designated area by correlating census and published health data with land use, urban design, and mobility data. This assessment, or community health profile, eliminates intensive and time-consuming surveying while identifying and prioritizing improvements.

With the Healthy Mobility Model, municipalities can easily distinguish alternative scenarios and identify factors with the strongest relationships to building better health outcomes while tracking improvements over time. These quantitative results within a given profile help decision-makers think more holistically and support sustainable solutions that consider social, environmental, and economic impacts.

This VHB application combines six census track level disease risk variables to calculate an overall “Healthy Mobility” score. Based on the 2018 data in the application, this Long Island census tract had an overall “Average” risk.

Decoding Parcel Data to Understand Sites

VHB has been creating web-based parcel viewers for county and local government agencies within New York State for more than 15 years.  As internet technology and Esri’s solutions changed over the years, their experienced applied technologists have constantly evolved applications to remain state-of-the-art. The core components of all systems include a suite of GIS functionality and a robust user interface that gives users extensive tools for accessing and manipulating parcel data, including searching for parcel buffers, generating assessor’s lists, and accessing assessment information. Many sites also include custom functionality such as the creation of a parcel flyer, the calculation of wetland acreage, and the displaying of documents from other systems.

VHB has implemented numerous web-based parcel viewer applications for local and county governments within New York State, including:

VHB property/parcel viewers integrate a variety of spatial datasets from local, county and state data sources. The applications provide a range of functionality at the parcel level.

Leveraging Big Data and Traffic Analysis to Keep Projects Moving

Collecting traffic data is a critical piece of advancing transportation projects. Intersect, VHB’s latest technology-driven innovation, revolutionizes the way traffic volumes at urban, suburban, or rural intersections are quantified during typical and atypical circumstances. As a transportation planning tool, Intersect combines big data analytics and traditional traffic analysis to identify traffic data at intersections more efficiently than ever before, without the need for traditional manual or electronic counts.

By leveraging big data and traffic analysis through an innovative four-step process, Intersect keeps critical projects, and Departments of Transportation initiatives, moving forward.

Turning Data into Action

Since no municipality is exactly alike, collecting data on buildings can be an incredible challenge, especially when these results are needed quickly and efficiently.

VHB’s Cultural Information Resource System (CRIS) was developed for the New York State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) as a web-based resource information system to catalogue and manage the agency’s huge range of programs and assets. CRIS records and manages data concerning the cultural resources within the State and gives both SHPO and their partner agencies a platform to submit, review and process wide varieties of historic preservation projects—effectively eliminating bottlenecks during a review process. CRIS also eliminates nearly all physical paperwork to help streamline record-keeping.

In the wake of Superstorm Sandy in 2015, VHB launched CRIS Trekker as a mobile-friendly enhancement to CRIS to help SHPO assess the condition of historic buildings and resources within the areas affected by the storm. CRIS Trekker captures real-time data in the field utilizing an easy-to-use interface that allows users to simply fill out a form, take a photo with their device, and submit digitally. The enhanced flexibility makes submitting, storing, analyzing, and managing incoming building surveys faster and more efficient.

In early 2020, VHB launched CRIS Trekker 2.0, a complete re-engineering of CRIS Trekker based on the latest Esri GIS platform. In the field, CRIS Trekker 2.0 has been critical in keeping technicians safe and allowing building surveys to continue.

The combination of CRIS and CRIS Trekker 2.0 has provided SHPO with an integrated digital platform to enable the continued review and processing of incoming projects without interruption during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Improving Mobility & Safety in Communities

VHB designed the enterprise-level Highway Crash Geocoding & Safety Management Systems to help state transportation agency clients improve mobility and communication within the communities they serve. This future-focused technology manages the safety of community streets and roadways, streamlines workflows and processes, and helps agencies (like those listed below) deploy responses with enhanced speed and accuracy.

For NYSDOT, VHB is developing a new, customized suite of applications collectively called the Crash Location and Engineering Analysis Repository (CLEAR) system. CLEAR provides a series of modules for geocoding, editing, and managing crash data while providing tools for conducting the six-step safety management process to improve roadway safety and reduce the number of crashes, injuries, and fatalities within the state.

The CLEAR internal facing password-protected application provides NYSDOT staff a suite of tools to analyze statewide passenger and truck vehicle accident location data. Similar to all of VHB browser-based geospatial tools, the application is built on top of ESRI ArcGIS Online technology.

Managing Assets for Streamlined Capital Planning

 VHB’s Smart Asset Management and Inventory System (SAM IS) helps clients keep track of their inventory of physical assets, inspections, and maintenance so that capital planning can proceed without a hitch. The system is built on Esri’s ArcGIS Online platform and designed it to be intuitive and scalable so that whatever the need, clients can track and manage assets without over-spending valuable capital. Since it is cloud-based, SAM IS offers broad accessibility to anyone within an organization with basic Internet access. SAM IS dashboards also readily provide the information needed to help make more informed decisions and deliver projects faster, safer, and more efficiently. Available nationwide, both the City of Albany, NY, and the County of Westchester, NY, currently subscribe to SAM IS.

The VHB SAMIS application provides a wide range of functionality to clients including access to mapped infrastructure features, statistics, dashboards, and an interface connection to mobile data collection efforts.

Contact:

Steve Anderson, GISP
Director, VHB Applied Technologies
sanderson@vhb.com

Editor acknowledges the contribution of Elizabeth Arabadjis in preparation of this article

10 Questions: Larry Spraker

Posted on by
Reply

My guess the name Larry Spraker doesn’t need much of an introduction across the New York State and New England GIS landscape.   His work and contributions since the late 1980s to the geospatial community are many and have included efforts from academia, government, and for many years the private sector.  As well as a ton of volunteer work with GIS user groups and the like. It has been an privilege crossing paths with him in so many ways over the years.  

So depending on the time of day, I recommend grabbing your favorite beverage, pull up a chair and continue reading.  There’s a lot here.  And after you are done, close your eyes and envision Mr. Spraker in another time or comos. Or, as the immortal Rod Sterling would say on the Twilight Zone “Another Dimension”.  Under the bright lights, behind the desk, and waving his hands fevorishly.  Yup, that’s him in his new gig – performing his best Chris Berman “Swami Sez” imitation as he hosts the 6PM ESPN SportsCenter broadcast.

Enjoy.

eSpatiallyNewYork:  Let’s start from the beginning.   The Albany-area boy goes to SUNY Albany for undergraduate and then on to Indiana State for graduate work.  How and when did geography become your educational and professional focus? 

Spraker:  I originally went to UAlbany as a Communications major with aspirations to be a sportswriter. After realizing that was a tough gig that didn’t pay particularly well (at least back in the early 80’s), someone recommended Computer Science. After a few courses, I really liked programming, but hated the high-end math courses such as Calculus and Differential Equations. A minor in Computer Science didn’t require the math courses, so I went to my advisor and asked “What would be a good major with a Computer Science minor?”. He listed a number of majors that included Physics, Math, and the last one he mentioned was Geography. I had already taken 6 credits in Geography as electives, so I asked for more details and somehow this guy had a fair bit of knowledge in this area and explained just enough of cartography, GIS and remote sensing to pique my interest. I registered for Intro to Cartography and Intro to Remote Sensing the next semester and fell in love with the both courses, and quickly found my new major. I focused primarily in Remote Sensing as an undergrad, and my professor, Floyd Henderson, really encouraged me to go graduate school. At the time Indiana State University was a leading remote sensing program, having the first remote terminals into the mainframe computers at Purdue which was the state of the art for image processing software. Floyd knew the professors at ISU, wrote me a recommendation and helped me get a Research Assistantship, so I packed up my car with everything I owned and drove to Terre Haute, Indiana for 2 years and finished my Masters. Although I focused a lot on Remote Sensing, I got exposed to a lot of GIS as well, and by the end of grad school had really got the GIS bug.

As an aside, after I graduated from ISU and came back to the Capital District, Floyd called me and asked me if I would teach his Intro to Remote Sensing and Aerial Photo Interpretation classes while he was away on sabbatical that year. So I returned to SUNY Albany as an adjunct professor and taught his classes that year. When Floyd returned, I stayed on as an adjunct faculty member and transitioned to developing and teaching several GIS courses. I really enjoyed working with the students and ended up teaching at SUNY Albany for 17 years.

Continue reading →

Spatial Data Science Conference 2019

Posted on by
Reply

I had the opportunity to attend the 2019 Spatial Data Science Conference (SDSC) at Columbia University on October 16th.  Hosted by NYC-based Carto, the event was attended by over 500 people from government, nonprofits, industry and business, and academia.  The day-long conference was highlighted by a variety of presentations and lightning talks from data scientists and program managers representing organizations from around the world including Uber, Airbnb, Datarobot, Waze, Instacart, MIT, Sidewalk Labs, Two Sigma, and Facebook among others.  All of the presenters use Carto’s Software as a Service (SaaS) platform which provides GIS functionality, web mapping, and spatial data science tools.

Data Science

Founded in 2017, SDSC  brings together organizations who are pushing the boundaries of spatial data modelling – ranging from large enterprise, to cities and government, as well as thought leaders from academic institutions.  Shown through the use of geospatial applications and organizational project initiatives, there was no doubt the common denominator and focus of those attending:  Data. It was definitely worth the trip.  SDSC is similar, but a very different kind of a “geospatial conference” for those of us who have spent a career running in traditional government geospatial circles.  Attendees and presenters are largely a completely different make-up from those normally attending the annual New York State GIS conferences.  (Of the 500+ preconference registrants, nearly 55% were from the private sector).   The day’s event included high quality presentations on the latest in modelling techniques, data science and analytics, visualization practices, and new data streams.  This later issue an increasingly important and interesting one across the statewide geospatial community as the day’s conversation clearly illustrated both the growing number of online geospatial data sources  (for example, numerous references were made to U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey) and related data access tools.  Speakers noted both the importance and benefits of open data portals though not without the caveat that it was not uncommon to have to clean and often normalize the data prior to using in applications.  Numerous references to popular sites such as GitHub, Leaflet, OpenStreetMap, and Elastic (which presented at the event) were made with regard to supporting the open source ecosystem.

Mudit Srivastav from Australia-based Origin Energy, presented on the use of spatial data to support the increase sales of residential roof top solar panels. Note the many types of data the company is using to better define growth areas.

Data for the Social Good

Another common theme throughout the day was the use of geospatial data for the social good.  Interesting to hear the point being made not only from nonprofits and academia, but from the private sector as well.  Way far away from the normal Albany GIS crowd, Stuart Lynn made a presentation focusing on how Two Sigma, an investment management firm located in New York City, provides spatial analysis support through the company’s Data Clinic program to nonprofits, academic institutions, and government organizations.  Their focus:  Enabling and promoting social impact through data driven predictive models while funding breakthrough research, education and a wide range of charities and foundations.    The image below identifies some of their recent projects.  Great stuff and I’m already planning on a more in-depth article with Stuart in the future.

Enabling Social Impact Organizations with Spatial Analysis Techniques

Stuart’s talk, as well as others during the day, made reference to the  The Data for Good movement which was a social media movement first started by DataKind to highlight how data science could be used to help address a range of humanitarian issues. DataKind is a collaborative network of organizations that work together with data scientists to leverage the science of data for social impact.  DataKind’s afternoon presentation “Spatial Data Science for Social Good:  Improving Access to Dignified Sanitation in Haiti” was excellent.  The video for this session and all of the day’s presentations are now available online at the Spatial Data Science Conference website.

Arguably, the demand for “data scientists” will increasingly intersect and expand in government geospatial programs in areas such as the health and human services, climate change, public safety, sustainability and resiliency,  and social and environmental justice to name only a few.   As the universe of geospatial data continues to expand and be integrated with both new artificial intelligence (AI) and machine reading technologies, as well as combined with the availability of more powerful GIS software, it is easy to see where the demand for data scientists focusing on locational and predictive analytics is headed.

I asked Javier de la Torre, Carto founder and SDSC organizer, what his impressions were of the day’s presentations and content.  He replied:

“First, moving the data discussion from WHERE to Why. Time to move to analyzing data using maps opposed to just seeing data in maps.  Second, the rise of the Spatial Data Scientist and/or where advance GIS is emerging as a new platform. And third, identifying the need for better data marketplaces which provides interactive solutions resulting in increased performance to users”

Links to the 2017 and 2018 presentations are also available on the SDSC website.

URBAN-X: Supporting New York Geospatial Startups

Posted on by
Reply

Curious to know about technology accelerators in New York State which are supporting  geospatial startups?  Look no further than Brooklyn-based URBAN-X built by MINI and Urban Us and operating since 2016 offering customer development, product development, and fundraising support to get selected startups off the ground into production and operation.   Geospatial is not the only type of startup  URBAN–X supports  (its actually much more)  with an existing resume of 37 firms in its portfolio covering technology solutions in the areas of real estate, transportation, energy, infrastructure, public health, and government among others.  The URBAN-X startup focuses on the urban tech environment developing hardware and software solutions which address key needs of city systems, as well as businesses and individuals.   The accelerator’s current cohort consists of seven  startups which each received $100,000 and five months of immersive mentorship.  This cohort was selected from over 500  applications this past November.

Every six months Urban-X selects up to 10 startups and invest $100,000 per company. The 20-week accelerator program also includes six on-site “experts-in-residence”.

Illustrative of the geospatial startups which have come through the accelerator is Citiesense.

Citiesense creates data-driven maps and dashboards that layers information about new permits, recent sales and property changes in urban areas, guiding real estate investors and other local stakeholders to support more informed business decisions.  Using interactive mapping and data visualization techniques, the company continues to focus on helping business districts better understand market demand and dynamics.   Citiesense uses Carto software to support their mapping applications and leverages data available in the NYC Open Data Portal.  Examples of their mapping apps are at the Downtown Brooklyn website and the Long Island City Partnership.  Citiesense is also referenced in a 816 New York article “3 map-based tech tools perfect for neighborhoods and housing authorities”.

I quickly developed an account on the Citiesense website and immediately started mapping various features around 347 East 105th Street. Out-of-the-box the application provides access to dozens of variables and features. This image shows recent 311 Reports, the NYC Street Tree Inventory, and the Commercial Overlay Districts layer.

Starting a tech company is never easy” notes Citiesense CEO Starling Childs. “I think this is particularly true of ‘Urban Tech’ startups. Joining URBAN-X was like adding the perfect final cofounder to our team right when we needed to begin testing our idea in the market. The people behind URBAN-X know the challenges urban tech companies face when thinking about solutions that consider some level of government and private sector collaboration. They understand the value of things like open data; how it supports public private sector collaboration and accelerates innovation in cities.”

Other URBAN-X supported startups in the location and navigation space include Revmax, Rentlogic, WearWorks and Swiftera.

Revmax:  Revmax develops fleet management and routing software for ride-hail vehicles. Its technology maximizes vehicle utilization by proactively forecasting rider demand based on historical data and future events. Revmax ensures that vehicles are in the optimal location to find rides quickly — increasing fleet revenue while reducing pollution and congestion.  According to  CEO Jonathan Weekley and chief operating officer Briggs Fraser,  cabs and Uber cars are empty some 50 percent of the time — highly inefficient for drivers trying to make the most of their time on the road. But the real target market for Revmax, Weekley says, is auto manufacturers such as GM and Ford, who are looking to get into ride-hailing. “They see declining car ownership, and they need to figure out a way to keep building cars and use that fleet more efficiently,” he said. Those manufacturers will have extra incentive to optimize routes, since they, not the drivers, will own the cars that are out on the road.

Rentlogic:  Rentlogic is a standards organization that measures and letter-grade rates the quality of multi-family residential buildings. Rentlogic ratings recognize building owners that invest time and energy in to operating great buildings, and helps connect them with residents trying to navigate a difficult marketplace.  Data underneath the application is harvested from the city’s 311 system.    Every week, roughly 4,000 complaints are initiated by renters about their landlords via calls to the #311 system. These complaints can include mold, heat and hot water issues, infestations, structural problems and more – all of which are used in the application.  It is Rentlogic’s aim to bring transparency and standardization to the residential real estate market.

WearWorks:  WearWorks is a New York-based haptics design company using sensory feedback systems to communicate information entirely via touch. Using vibration-based language, their product augments the senses of blind and visually impaired users through a non-visual interface, helping them to easily and effectively navigate to any destination.  Btw – WearWorks technology was worn/used by Simon Wheatcroft, a blind runner, in the 2017 New York City Marathon.

Swiftera: Swiftera’s business plan is to support citizens, businesses and municipalities in mobility, leisure and urban planning decisions. By providing access to fresh and actionable geospatial data at a competitive cost, the company leverages its novel urban-imagery technology to help customers analyze the past, explore the present and be the first to see the future.  While still in development, Swiftera anticipates delivering unprecedented urban imagery: available all-the-time, in real time.  For more information visit their website or contact them at info@swiftera.co. 

Summary:

URBAN-X provides an excellent opportunity for startups – including those in the geospatial space – to get started in a way which would otherwise be financially and logistically very difficult.    URBAN-X is itemized in a 2017 Dreamit article as one of the leading voices in the New York City “nascent urban tech movement”.  In the broader statewide context, the Empire State Development corporation supports several regional certified business incubators.  The New York State geospatial community is fortunate to have both the access and ability to work with companies such as URBAN-X.

Contact:

Micah Kotch
Managing Director
URBAN-X
Micah.Kotch@urban-x.com
Mobile: +1.646.645.0459
www.urban-x.com

Geospatial Business Spotlight: Ecology and Environment, Inc.

Posted on by
Reply

Company Name:                  Ecology and Environment, Inc.

Location:                               Lancaster, New York

Website:                                www.ene.com

Established:                         1970

Ecology and Environment, Inc., (E & E) is a global network of innovators and problem solvers, dedicated professionals, and industry leaders in scientific, engineering, and planning disciplines working together with our clients to develop technically sound, science-based solutions to the leading environmental challenges of our time. Founded in 1970 in Lancaster, NY, E & E also has offices in New York City and Albany, as well as locations across the national and internationally. E & E is a fully integrated environmental and engineering company delivering expertise across energy, site assessment and remediation, and restoration and resilience practice areas.

Geospatial Products and Services:

In October 2018, E & E’s IT/GIS group was rebranded as the Data Intelligence Group (DIG) to better reflect the capabilities and services of the department, and how that translates into identifying and integrating opportunities for innovation and streamlined data management into client projects. DIG includes experienced professional application developers and geospatial analysts who collaborate to add value for clients by providing tailored tools to collect and manage data efficiently, collate information quickly to meet aggressive schedules, accurately visualize project data, and support community engagement and project collaboration. E & E has worked on thousands of IT and GIS projects, and has built an extensive library of code that can be efficiently leveraged to complete successful new applications for clients quickly.

Specific E & E geospatial services include:

  • Custom Application development (public and private websites)
  • Needs Assessment, System Design, Development, Implementation and Maintenance
  • Database Development and Data Management
  • Data Visualizations (e.g., Tableau, ArcGIS Insights)
  • Field Data Collection and Management (GPS, Mobile Mapping)
  • GPS/GNSS Support
  • Mobile map viewers and custom mobile application development
  • 3D Visualization and Modeling
  • Photo Simulations
  • Software and system integration
  • Website design, hosting, and maintenance
  • Document Management
  • Satellite Image Processing
  • Database design, interpretation, and migration
  • Training and Technology transfer
  • Web-integrated Monitoring of Telemetered Data Feeds
  • Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Site Survey
  • Augmented and Virtual Reality
  • GIS Process and Workflow Analysis
  • GIS Training
  • Desktop Geospatial Services (e.g., Cartography/Report quality mapping, Geospatial Analysis, Spatial interpolation and Modeling)
  • Process Automation

Mapping Offshore Wind for NYSERDA

To support New York State’s commitment under the Clean Energy Standard, which requires that 50 percent of the State’s electricity come from renewable energy sources, E & E worked closely with the New York State Energy and Research Development Authority (NYSERDA) to contribute to the first-of-its-kind New York State Offshore Wind Master Plan. The plan lays out a path for development of 2.4 gigawatts of offshore wind – enough to power 1.2 million homes. Geospatial tasks associated with this project included:

  • Development of an interactive web mapping portal for team and public engagement
  • Offshore and near-shore data acquisition
  • Geostatistics of potential offshore wind development areas
  • Development of detailed map figures for published reports

Areas for consideration and indicative wind energy areas were one result of the GIS analysis performed with NYSERDA.   NYSERDA’s findings were presented to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to assist in designating official wind energy lease areas.

E & E also developed GIS modeling that ranked sensitivity of various offshore species receptor groups to the stressors of building and operating a wind farm over different times of the year. Geospatial data and analysis results were used to facilitate identification of areas for consideration for offshore wind development and will inform future developers, potentially reducing the uncertainty and costs of their proposals.  Download a copy of the actual Offshore Wind Master Plan.

Geospatial Services for Erie County Water Authority

E & E is proud to have worked with the Erie County Water Authority (ECWA) since 2003, helping them integrate and leverage increasingly robust geospatial technologies to benefit their customers and their bottom line. E & E’s GIS support has been critical to their day-to-day operations. E & E GIS support has provided:

  • Field crew mobile access to utility information though maps and data,
  • Analysis of water main leaks to target most-effective replacements, facilitating smart capital improvement project planning, and
  • Transportation logistical support by optimizing service calls to save on transportation and labor costs.

GIS has played a significant role in the location and management of assets at ECWA for the past 25 years. Pictured here is a web mapping application for use in the office, with field laptops, and mobile devices, that assists with locating and identifying assets and related information.

Geospatial Flows for Energy Infrastructure Developers

For the Williams Transco 197-mile Atlantic Sunrise project, E & E set up field data workflows for a large environmental survey. In communication with E & E biologists, developers, and the client, E & E developed a customized workflow to meet diverse needs. Solutions included development of a customized ArcPad (Trimble) and ESRI Collector Application, web integration, and desktop automation tools.

ESRI Collector and the ArcGIS Online platform played an important role in the Atlantic Sunrise field data collection process. Data was integrated in near real-time and was made immediately available to project managers, engineers, and decision makers.

 

Working Smarter with E-Datasheets

E & E has ditched paper datasheets and is going green! We developed custom “smart forms” that utilize drop-down menus, radio buttons, and behind-the-scenes calculations to speed up the data collection process. These electronic datasheets save time and improve data quality.  Data is stored in an enterprise database and can be queried and exported to PDF format for report submittal.  E-Datasheets have been used with a wide variety of clients.

E & E has developed electronic datasheets to save time, improve data quality, and reduce waste.

Contact:

Greg Coniglio, PMP, GISP
Ecology and Environment
368 Pleasant View Drive
Lancaster, New York 14086
gconiglio@ene.com

Geospatial Business Spotlight: CycloMedia Technology, Inc.

Posted on by
Reply

Company Name:       CycloMedia Technology Inc.

Location:                   Berkeley, CA

Website:                    www.cyclomedia.com

Employees:               120 Globally

Established:              1981

A privately held company, founded in the Netherlands over thirty years ago, CycloMedia Technology, Inc. is a rapidly expanding international company with staff in Syracuse, New York.  Annually, CycloMedia captures and processes approximately 160,000 linear miles of 360° panoramic street level images, representing over 48 million recordings per year. The company holds five key image capture technology patents and specializes in the local government market. Currently the company has projects with the cities of New York, Philadelphia, Washington DC, as well as  Franklin County, OH (Columbus), Dakota County, MN (Minneapolis) and Jefferson County, KY (Louisville) to name a few.

Specific benefits of Cyclomedia technology include:

  • GeoCyclorama images and basemaps are geographically linked
  • Provides ability to conduct searches with address, postal code or coordinates
  • Integrate with interprise applications and work processes using the GlobeSpotter API
  • Determine the location and dimensions of objects in GeoCyclorama imagery
  • Ability to create precise point, line and area measurements
  • Overlay enterprise spatial data on the GeoCyclorama images
  • Supports Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) standards
  • Integrate data in formats such as WFS, WMS, Shapefile and GML
  • Create reports and bookmark locations of interest
  • Users can save and utilize GeoCyclorama images for reporting and analysis functions.

Geospatial Products and Services:

A.  GlobeSpotter

GlobeSpotter (web) is an interactive web-based application that provides cloud access to GeoCyclorama imagery and tools for measuring, collecting data, and reporting.  The software and data are directly available from CycloMedia’s software as a service (SaaS) model.

GlobeSpotter (web) screenshot with area measurement and reporting window 

GlobeSpotter for ArcGIS Desktop  provides visualization, measurement and overlay tools within the ArcMap or ArcGIS Pro allowing a user to fully leverage the power of GeoCycloramas within the ArcGIS client environment.  Specific capabilities include:

    • Open GeoCyclorama imagery from a recording point layer added to the map
    • View one or multiple GeoCyclorama images
    • Measure on GeoCyclorama images
    • Use the native editing capabilities of ArcGIS to collect features in 2D or 3D
    • Ability to save and utilize GeoCyclorama images for reporting and analysis functions.

Continue reading →

Geospatial Business Spotlight: SkyOp, LLC

Posted on by
Reply

Company Name:           SkyOp, LLC

Location:                       5297 Parkside Dr. Suite 435, Canandaigua, New York 14424

Website:                        www.skyop.com

Employees:                  4 + 6 contractors

Established:                January 4, 2013

History

After reading an article in the June 2012 issue of WIRED, SkyOp owner and founder Brian Pitre caught the drone bug.  A self-proclaimed computer-geek, and after nearly 40 years in the computer business, Pitre’s hunch – which very quickly proved to be correct – was that this technology was different.  Very different.  A game changer.  And he immediately immersed himself in learning as much as he could about the technology.

Over the next several months he self-taught himself to fly one and in the meantime designed a drone that would later be manufactured in Canada.  By November 2012 and using $15K of his own money, Pitre was in the drone business. As it turns out, and often the case in the tech business, barely three months later in January 2013 DJI released the Phantom drone for $600.   Today, DJI is the market leader in the drone industry.

 Over the next 18 months, Pitre continued his research into the emerging drone market identifying 68 vertical markets that could use drones. Along the way beginning to build and offering training programs out of is Canandaigua office as well as collaborating with regional colleges.  In November 2014 SkyOp formalized its first college training course with Monroe Community College.

In January 2017, the company was one of six selected from a pool of 250 around the country to compete for $2.75 million in prizes at GENIUS NY, a business accelerator program at CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity Tech Garden in Syracuse.  Receiving $250,000 from the Genius NY incubator, SkyOp graduated from the program in December 2017 which helped giving credibility to the company and its training programs.  SkyOp has also received financial support through the New York State Hotspot program as part of the Venture Creations Rochester Institute of Technology Business Incubator.

Today, SkyOp is a premier Empire State UAS training and courseware licensing company having 23 academic partners in nine states.  In New York State alone, SkyOp has established training programs with SUNY Ulster, SUNY Jefferson Community College, Hudson Valley Community College, Corning Community College, and of course Monroe Community College among others.

Training

Class Content

SkyOp offers their coursework in Canandaigua office as well as at educational institutions, sUAS manufacturers, public safety organizations, and businesses.  Regardless of location or educational setting, SkyOp’s core course offerings focus on introductions to the technology/learning to fly, applying the technology to public safety disciplines, and hands-on-training for specific drone units.

SkyOp recently established a strategic partnership with Little Arms Studios, a leading developer of professional-grade simulation solutions.  This business relationships enables SkyOp to deploy Little Arms Studios’ Zephyr Drone Simulator throughout the SkyOp commercial and consumer drone training network which serves much of the Northeastern United States. Zephyr’s unique Learning Management System makes it a preferred solution for SkyOp instructors looking to oversee each student’s development both inside and outside the classroom.  Several other interesting Zephyr drone simulation video examples are available for viewing on YouTube.

FAA Testing

SkyOp is now an authorized FAA Knowledge Testing Center and can administer the remote pilot knowledge test. Individuals can schedule an appointment, call CATS Testing at 800-947-4228, Option 3 and sign up to take the test at our location in Canandaigua, NY. SkyOp is open for testing Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10:00am until 4:00pm each week except holidays.

As of August 2016, individuals operating a drone for any commercial or business purpose must obtain an FAA remote pilot certification. The remote pilot knowledge test Unmanned Aircraft – General costs $150, includes 60 questions, and requires a passing score of 70%. With successful completion of the test, you can apply for a remote pilot certificate for FAA Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 107.

Summary

Drones have found a niche in a wide range of industries including construction and engineering, real estate, film and cinematography, public health and agriculture.  Firefighters and police officers have tapped into the technology as well.  Illustrative of their presence within the statewide GIS community, SkyOp assisted in the training of NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) staff which are utilizing drones in the support of spill response, coastline erosion, wildlife surveys, forest fires, and  search-and-rescue missions.

There is no question opportunities for professional growth in the emerging drone industry is tremendous.  Fundamentally changing the approach to many existing geospatial data collection programs and applications.

Contact:

Brian Pitre
SkyOp, LLC
585-598-4737
brian@skyop.com