Here's - Surveying & Spatial Sciences Institute

technology&more 

A Publication for Surveying and Mapping Professionals • Issue 2012-3 

Monitoring a Fjord 

Watching for Rockslides in Norway 

3D for Everyone 

Sensors of the Lost Tomb 

Seeking Genghis Khan's Burial Place 

Scanning 

Ancient 

Treasures



Welcome to the Latest Issue of Technology&more! 


Dear Readers, 

We hope you enjoy this issue 

of Technology&more: the 

many articles showcasing 

our customers’ world-wide 

surveying projects—and our 

new magazine design. We 

strive to keep each issue of 

Technology&more fresh and 

exciting and we hope the 

new format supports these 

Chris Gibson: Vice President 

goals. This issue highlights 

some fascinating stories: you’ll read about scanning in 

the United Arab Emirates (UAE); using high technology 

to search for Genghis Khan’s lost tomb in Mongolia; 

monitoring potential landslides in Norway’s fjords; 

surveying in the Sicilian seas and around a French lake; 

monitoring the Panama Canal’s huge construction 

project; the innovative uses offered by Trimble® 

SketchUp; and many more. 

Technology&more seeks to showcase projects around 

the world that demonstrate the enhanced productivity 

that can be gained through the use of Trimble technology. 

We hope that one or more of the articles will provide 

useful ideas and information that will benefit you and 

your business today—and tomorrow. 

If you’d like to share information with Technology&more 

readers about your own innovative project, we’d like to 

hear about it: just email: Survey_Stories@trimble.com. 

We’ll even write the article for you. 

And now, enjoy this issue of Technology&more. 

Chris Gibson 

www.northstarstudio.com 

• UAE pg. 2 

Scanning Ancient Treasures 

• Norway pg. 6 

Monitoring Rockslides 

• Mongolia pg. 10 

Seeking Khan's Tomb 

• France pg. 20 

French Lake Survey 

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Survey Technical Marketing Team 

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Expanding the Canal 

Rendering of the new channel at Miraflores. The new Borinquen Dam separates the existing channel and locks (right) from the new channel, 

which includes the new locks to handle large ships. 

Long recognized as one of the most important engineering 

feats in history, the Panama Canal plays a vital role 

for global commerce. But the canal is nearly 100 years 

old, and its locks and channels are too small to handle today’s 

large cargo and container ships. To address the problem, the 

Panama Canal Authority (ACP), implemented several projects 

to increase the canal’s capacity. One of the largest is the “Third 

Set of Locks” project, which will create a lane of new locks and 

waterways that can support the larger vessels. 

The project plan requires that normal canal operations continue 

without disruption. During construction, temporary structures 

and cofferdams are used to keep water out of the construction 

areas. The new locks and channels require extensive excavation 

and earthwork, and many areas call for constant monitoring to 

protect workers and equipment from slides or failures on the 

steep, muddy slopes. While contractors handle the excavation 

and construction, the ACP’s Geodesy Section is responsible 

for monitoring the slopes. Led by Geodesy Supervisor Miguel 

Narbona, ACP teams conduct regular monitoring surveys of 

the land slopes and dams. 

ACP installed four Trimble S8 total stations to monitor a channel 

near the Gaillard Cut. On the Atlantic side, a fifth total station 

monitors an excavation near the new Gatun lock structures. 

The instruments are connected to a wireless communication 

network, and they are controlled by Trimble 4D Control 

software running on a network of computers. The total stations 

are installed in steel cages mounted atop steel poles on 

the job sites. Although the Panama climate is hot and rainy, 

the teams are not concerned with weather protection for the 

total stations. They worry more about keeping the equipment 

secure, and have designed the instrument housings to prevent 

unauthorized access. ACP also conducts periodic campaign 

monitoring using a Trimble S8 equipped with a Trimble TSC2® 

controller running Trimble Survey Controller software. 

The automated instruments monitor a total of more than 120 

prisms, taking measurements at 6-hour intervals. Narbona can 

manage the entire monitoring system from his desk. He can 

set up and control the measurements and make daily analysis 

of the operations and results. Narbona uses the deformation 

monitoring functions in Trimble 4D Control to make detailed 

examination of the data, and he can export data to Excel to 

create his own graphs and reports. 

Narbona reports that the monitoring system has performed 

well, and that measurement results routinely exceed project 

requirements for precision. Once construction is complete, 

ACP plans to use Trimble integrated optical and GNSS systems 

to provide permanent monitoring of the new dams and 

structures. 

See feature in Professional Surveyor’s October issue: www.profsurv.com 

-1- Technology&more


A 3D Foundation for 

Resource Management 

Earlier this year, a group of researchers from Australia’s Royal 

Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) travelled to Fujairah, 

UAE, to take 3D scans of some of the emirate’s archaeological 

treasures. This data will help create a baseline for measuring the 

effects of climate change on those resources over time. 

Fujairah, one of the seven emirates that make up the United 

Arab Emirates (UAE), is home to the oldest mosque in the 

UAE: Al Bidyah Mosque, built in 1446 of mud and bricks. 

This and other archaeological treasures make Fujairah a magnet 

for visitors, who generate vital income for the local economy. 

The negative effects of climate change threaten these important 

resources, but the extent of the threat is not understood—at 

least not yet. PhD candidate and Fujairah native Mohamed al 

Technology&more 

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Hassani—under the supervision of Associate Professor Colin 

Arrowsmith, Dr. David Silcock and Mr. Lucas Holden of RMIT— 

aims to change that. His doctoral thesis will investigate the 

impact and develop a framework for managing the effects of 

climate change in Fujairah and other developing regions. 

Journey to Fujairah 

In January 2012 a team including al Hassani, Arrowsmith, 

Silcock and Holden traveled to Fujairah to conduct a proof of 

concept for the thesis. They had two objectives: The first was to 

acquire 3D point cloud data of internationally significant sites 

as the basis for monitoring and future research. The second, 

motivated by earlier research that identified local expertise as 

an important factor in effective resource management, was to 

introduce techniques for terrestrial laser scanning to local staff.

Together with the Fujairah Tourism and Antiquities Authority, 

the team identified five key sites for gathering spatial data: the 

Al Bidyah Mosque, the Al Fujairah and Al Bithna forts, the Al 

Wuraya wadi (a dry river bed) and Al Aqah beach. 

Scanning the Fort 

January weather in Fujairah is mild, with an average daytime 

temperature of 25° C (77° F). But for the non-native researchers 

from RMIT, the expedition was still “like something out of an 

Indiana Jones movie…and a young surveyor’s dream,” as Silcock 

describes it. The mountainous region created an extraordinary 

backdrop as the team learned to operate their advanced instruments—including 

the Institute’s own Trimble CX 3D scanner 

system—often in extreme conditions. “We were glad we took 

our Trimble equipment,” says Silcock. “You just know it’s going 

to work, even coated in dust after a sandstorm.” 

The team faced plenty of challenges, not least of which was 

the absence of survey marks and survey infrastructure, including 

geodetic quality GPS. To compensate for the missing 

UTM (WGS84) coordinates, the team had to use two Trimble 

Juno® GPS receivers on a baseline at each site. Simultaneous 

observations were stored for later processing to bring the local 

coordinate system onto datum for georeferencing. 

Scanning began with the 400-year-old Al Fujairah fort, a large 

building with a perimeter of over 140 m (459 ft) and a wall 

height of up to 15 m (49 ft). Due to the size of the fort, the team 

had to move the Trimble CX frequently to capture every detail 

of the building’s exterior; six external setups were used at an average 

spacing of 38 m (125 ft). The team used the target-target 

registration technique, so each setup required a minimum of 

three overlapping targets in each scan. Some targets were 

temporarily attached to the building, some external targets 

were mounted on tripods, and others were tribrach-mounted 

ground marks. 

Trimble Access field software running on a Trimble Tablet 

Rugged PC was used to control the scanner and gather 

point cloud data. This data (a total of 11,036,000 3D points 

scanned) was then processed in Trimble RealWorks® 

software, which stitched together the consecutive point 

clouds gathered from each setup to form a unified single 

point cloud. The cloud was then tied to a local coordinate 

system set up by the surveying team, using permanent 

ground marks for ongoing monitoring. One internal setup 

captured the interior of the fort; it was registered later using 

cloud-to-cloud registration in Trimble RealWorks. 

-3- Technology&more

Impressed by the scanner’s ability to collect data to 

millimeter precision even at distance, the team’s Authority 

colleagues asked to make this precision the project’s 

minimum standard for cultural buildings. The sites were 

therefore scanned at 1.0 cm resolution, with station setups 

averaging about 1–1.5 hours. These higher resolutions led to 

longer than normal scan times and enormous data sets that 

created some management challenges; even so, Authority 

staff was delighted by the results, which were observable in 

real time on their Trimble Tablet (and even more impressive 

when processed and viewed in Trimble RealWorks). “The local 

team was extremely enthusiastic,” said Silcock. “And they 

weren’t shy about operating the Trimble equipment, which 

was robust and easy to learn.” 

Building Relationships for the Future 

Over the course of the project, the RMIT team noted opportunities 

to help Fujairah acquire additional skills and tools 

for resource management. They also saw the potential to 

map the entire emirate, recording the locations of important 

sites and following up with high-precision scanning and 

surveying. “Originally, our plan was to simply collect 3D 

scans and train local staff in the technology,” says Silcock. “But 

the trip also became an ongoing, in-depth information ex- 


-4- 

change with our Fujairah colleagues about general mapping 

and resource management.” 

With all five Fujairah sites scanned—23 individual scans in 

total—the project delivered enough data for more than a 

year’s worth of processing and analysis. Unlike a commercial 

provider, the RMIT team shared all data with the Authority at no 

cost to the emirate; the Authority interacted with the data via 

Trimble RealWorks Viewer software. When the team presented 

the final project to His Highness the Fujairah Crown Prince 

Mohamed Bin Hamad Al Sharqi, the prince was impressed by 

both the data itself and the tremendous potential it represents 

for Fujairah. 

RMIT also stands to benefit from its cooperation and datasharing 

with Fujairah as the relationship creates opportunities 

for further research, as well as the development of education 

and training by RMIT in Fujairah. It also extends RMIT’s international 

reach. Most importantly, however, this collaboration 

significantly advances the original goal: to develop a framework 

for measuring the impact of climate change on vulnerable 

archaeological resources in developing regions.



High-Level Opportunity 


Every year, Australia’s coal industry produces more than 320 million tons 

of thermal and hard coking coal. The country ranks fourth in global coal 

production, and its coal industry employs over 31,000 people. Facing 

constant demand for lower costs and increased production, Australia’s 

coal mines continuously seek ways to streamline their operations. As new 

technologies emerge, one of the most important improvements has come 

from an industry insider. 

In 2006, Matthew McCauley was a mining manager in New South Wales. McCauley 

understood the importance of survey data. The mine needed current, accurate information 

for everyday mining operations as well as mine planning. But McCauley’s 

survey resources were often occupied surveying for mine production, making it 

difficult to procure data needed for engineering and planning. As a result, McCauley 

and many other Australian mine managers faced similar predicaments: forward 

planning was suffering, as was long-term productivity. 

McCauley saw an opportunity. He developed a business plan to provide mines 

with aerial survey data, and formed a new company, Atlass (Australia) Pty Ltd. To 

meet the mines’ needs, McCauley needed to provide survey information that was 

up-to-date, detailed and accurate. McCauley procured a Trimble Harrier mapping 

system, which he installed in a Cessna U206G aircraft. The Harrier system 

integrates flight management, aerial camera and laser scanning with GNSS and 

inertial positioning sensors. The system also provides software for processing and 

analysis on the images and scanning data. 

As owner and operator of aircraft, aerial survey equipment and processing 

facilities, Atlass controls the entire workflow of data acquisition, processing 

and delivery. The operation enables McCauley to guarantee his mining 

clients will receive their data within three days—or it’s free. Much of that 

commitment comes from his confidence in the Trimble Harrier system. “It’s 

a very mature system,” McCauley said. “It does everything we need and the 

hardware is extremely robust. Our first unit has done more than 2,000 hours 

now. It’s five years old, and I reckon it will still be going in another five.” 

One of Atlass’ customers is Xstrata Coal. Xstrata conducts comprehensive 

monthly surveys of its mines, and working with Atlass allowed Xstrata to 

produce detailed coal stockpile surveys and mine models. Xstrata mine 

surveyor Andrew Buchan said they get a reliable turnaround on airborne 

surveys. “We’re capturing more data and there’s so much more we can do 

with it. In effect our use of data has expanded ten-fold,” Buchan said. 

Atlass has grown quickly. The company now operates Trimble Harrier 56/G3 

and Harrier 68i systems and three aircraft. With these resources, Atlass can fly 

more than 250 hours each month and run a true 7-day operation. There is a 

growing demand for Atlass services beyond the mining sector. It is finding 

new opportunities in power-line surveys, town planning, engineering design, 

coastal monitoring, erosion monitoring and vegetation assessment. 

See feature in POB's April issue: www.pobonline.com 

-5- Technology&more


More than 50 years ago, a Norwegian farm boy left 

his family home near the shore of a remote fjord to 

climb the 40-percent slope towering above. Nearly 

853 m (2,800 ft) up the rocky face, he discovered a crack 

the size of his small fist. Fast-forward to today: that crack is 

more than 15 m (48 ft) wide—and the entire slope is slowly 

accelerating towards a potential rockslide. 

This boy’s discovery set off a chain of events that resulted 

in an ambitious plan utilizing state-of-the-art research and 

technologies to detect and provide an early warning of the 

potential failure of the steep rocky slope. 

Evidence of rockslides in ancient and modern history is 

readily visible along the fjords. The most notable example 

happened in 1934 near the far end of the same fjord complex; 

a rock slide about the same size as this potential slide 

created a “tsunami” wave resulting in the deaths of 34 local 

residents and property damage representing tens of millions 

in adjusted dollars. 

Evaluating Potential Rock Slides 

Scientific studies of past slides and other active slide areas 

have provided detailed models of the behavior of such 

slopes leading up to such failures. According to the studies, 


Monitoring Rockslides on 

Norway's Fjords 

-6- 

a slope like this one would accelerate from the current few 

centimeters per year to several centimeters per day beginning 

about two weeks prior to the failure. 

This is a predictable rock slide, nearly 600 m (1,969 ft) wide, 

more than 1 km (3,280 ft) long and with some parts close 

to 200 m (656 ft) deep. It is estimated that this large of a 

rockslide plunging into the fjord could generate run-up 

waves as high as 90 m (295 ft) and endanger villages in the 

narrow waterways. 

The sheer size of the potential slide and its proximity to local 

towns and villages gave rise to calls within the Norwegian 

government and local communities to find ways to provide 

as much warning time as possible. With legacy methods, 

movements would be noticeable by visual and audible 

cues alone only in the final days before a slide. What was 

needed was a comprehensive, high-precision monitoring 

system capable of detecting the more subtle movements to 

provide “earlier” warning. 

A Bold Plan 

The Norwegian government and the local Åkneset (Åknes)/ 

Tafjord Early-Warning Center enlisted the geo-monitoring 

company Cautus Geo AS to provide on-site instrumentation,

data management and the early warning system. Their plan 

was to employ multiple monitoring components to interface 

with a new early-warning system being constructed for 

the region. Cautus Geo key project engineer Lars Krangnes 

considered the inherent challenges of constructing these 

multiple systems in such a remote and steep environment 

and harsh climatic conditions. “Every person and each piece 

of equipment had to be transported by helicopter,” noted 

Krangnes. “Instruments, fuel, and supplies—even the bags 

of concrete needed to construct a control building had to 

be flown in.” The instrumentation ranged from simple extensometers 

(dubbed “crackmeters”) to measure the expansion 

of the upper crack to the sophisticated Trimble S8 robotic 

total station monitoring dozens of targets over the entire 

slope to the sophisticated Trimble NetR9 GNSS network 

tracking the movement of the slope. 

Sophisticated Monitoring Tools 

“Our S8 total station stands behind a bay window in the 

observation building above the slope” says Krangnes. “The 

building is climatically controlled and also houses generators, 

key data processing and communications equipment.” 

Together with the Trimble S8 total stations, Trimble 4D Control 

software is used to control the total station and analyze its 

data. “The robotic total station continuously cycles through 

observations of 30 prism targets over the entire slope, doing 

in minutes what would have taken days for a survey crew,” 

Krangnes adds. “It can detect subtle movements ranging 

from the current several centimeters-per-year rates to the 

expected centimeters-per-day movement that would happen 

prior to a collapse.” 

The next major system for tracking the movement of the 

slope is a network of GNSS units. There are 10 Trimble NetR9 

GNSS units onsite that have their positions compared every 

15 minutes, 4 hours and 12 hours to two GNSS units placed 

on stable ground offsite. This GNSS-monitoring system can 

resolve positions every second to high accuracies by utilizing 

geodetic-grade GNSS antennas and receivers as well as 

Trimble 4D Control software, a suite of “motion engines” that 

apply multiple advanced mathematical algorithms in realtime 

to the GNSS observations. 

The GNSS network is currently one of the most important 

and trusted monitoring systems at Åknes and provides 

high-accuracy 3D data. “The frequency and accuracy of the 

3D results, along with the robustness and stability of the 

network makes the system very well suited for a challenging 

site like Åkneset,” says Krangnes. 

Other lower-precision surface monitoring systems are employed, 

but to monitor the subsurface conditions Krangnes 

-7- Technology&more

employed “geophones that listen to the moans and groans 

of the subsurface rock that is under the tremendous pressures 

of the downhill slide.” He adds, “We also drilled deep 

boreholes for strain gauges and tilt meters extending below 

the rock layer to stable bedrock below.” Krangnes summarizes 

the surface and subsurface instrumentation as being 

“like the monitors in a hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU); 

each reports individual readings that collectively give a total 

picture of the health of the slope.” 

Managing the Warning System 

Robust communications links interface with the Åknes/ 

Tafjord Early Warning Center. “Based on experience from 

other rockslides and measured yearly movement for this 

site, a theoretical acceleration diagram has been defined,” 

Krangnes says. “From these figures, alarm levels have been 

defined to evaluate emergency plans for the region.” Under 

certain scenarios, and as early as two weeks prior to a 

predicted failure, decisions might be made to suspend shipping 

in the fjord and issue warnings to local residents. In 

the final days before a predicted collapse, evacuation orders 

may be issued for some communities. Even in the worstcase 

scenario, as little as five minutes warning would enable 

residents to seek high ground or shelter. 

New Tools for Monitoring Hazards Worldwide 

There are similar sites in other parts of the world where these 

types of technologies are being applied to similar hazards. 

Examples include plate tectonics (earthquake) monitoring 

in Sichuan China and in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S.; 


-8- 

volcanoes in Alaska and Papua; a tsunami detection system 

on India’s offshore islands; mudslides in New Zealand and 

Italy; dams and bridges in Washington State; and open pit 

mines in South Africa. These new tools contrast with legacy 

systems by detecting actual movement with much higher 

precision, with less reliance on derived or modeled results. 

With the availability of high-precision, real-time monitoring 

systems like Trimble VRS and Trimble VRS3Net App networks 

and Trimble Integrity Manager, comprehensive trending and 

true warning systems for localized geophysical events may be 

achieved. 

The Norwegian Fjords project represents a great step forward 

in the evolution of monitoring and warning systems for 

catastrophic slope failures and may be applied to other 

geophysical phenomenon. 

“This project is not a pilot or an experiment,” says Krangnes. 

Instead, he adds, “This project is designed as an active 

monitoring and early warning system using multiple and 

redundant instrumentation to assure success.” 

In summary of this groundbreaking initiative, Norway’s Minister 

of Local Government and Regional Development Magnhild 

Meltveit Kleppa stated, “Through the comprehensive monitoring 

and safety systems in the Åknes-Tafjord project, the 

threat to people’s life and health is substantially reduced.” 

See feature article in American Surveyor's April issue: 

www.amerisurv.com


Round Numbers 

3D Scanning provides precise information on a hydrocarbon 

storage tank in France. 

Facilities in the petroleum industry are subject to strict 

controls and measures to ensure safety and proper operation. 

This is certainly the case with the large hydrocarbon 

storage tanks belonging to the group TOTAL, one of the world’s 

largest petroleum and gas companies. 

As part of the inspection process, TOTAL’s TEC/GEO (Technology/ 

Survey), department conducts measurements to determine 

deformation of the tanks, which can be as much as 100 m (328 ft) 

in diameter with heights ranging between 15 and 25 m (50 and 

82 ft). Because of the size of the tanks and the need for precise 

measurements, TEC/GEO initiated a test project to develop techniques 

for measuring and analyzing the shape of the tanks using 

the Trimble FX 3D scanner. The primary goal was to evaluate 

the precision of the measurements obtained by the 3D scanner 

and compare them with traditional measurements made using 

a total station. 

The test project was carried out on storage tank T7 at TOTAL’s 

plant in Lacq, France in April 2011. “Besides the verticality of its 

walls, it was important to know the roundness of the tank,” said 

Arnaud Vidal, engineer-topographer at TEC/GEO. “The tank has 

a floating roof, which rises and falls according to the amount 

of hydrocarbon in the tank. So we must ensure that it cannot 

be blocked at any point—that is, the tank must be truly round 

and not oval.” 

It took only a half-day to collect the data. Vidal’s team set up 

the Trimble FX at ground level only a few meters away from 

the tank, making a total of eight full-height scans to capture 

the entire structure. The scanning was conducted to obtain a 

resolution of approximately one point every 2 cm (0.8 in) on 

the walls of the tank. 

In the office, Vidal's team used Trimble RealWorks software to 

register the scans into a single point cloud. He also compared 

the scanning results with data collected using a Trimble VX 

spatial station, which the team used to collect points and vertical 

profiles around the tank. 

The scanner and resulting point cloud allowed TOTAL 

surveyors to measure cross sections and vertical profiles at 

any location on the tank. By contrast, measurements using 

a conventional total station can collect vertical profiles at 

only a few locations around the tank. “Deformations may 

exist between the vertical profiles measured using the total 

station, and we would not detect them,” Vidal explained. 

“We are very interested in using the Trimble FX because of 

the great density of the points it provides. This enables us 

to measure elements between the vertical profiles that are 

not covered by the total station.” Based on the test results, 

Vidal has recommended the use of scanning on existing 

and newly-constructed storage tanks. 

See feature in Professional Surveyor's June issue: www.profsurv.com 

-9- Technology&more



Dr. Albert Yu-Min Lin shows the expedition's high-resolution imagery to colleagues. 

Sensors of the Lost Tomb 

Dr. Albert Yu-Min Lin’s approach to archeology is groundbreaking 

because he isn’t actually breaking ground. 

Indeed, he and his exploration team are on a quest 

to locate the lost tomb of Genghis Khan without exhuming a 

single blade of grass. 

“Unlike traditional archeological missions, our goal is not to 

dig,” explains Lin, a research scientist and National Geographic 

Emerging Explorer at the University of California San Diego’s 

(UCSD) Center of Interdisciplinary Science for Art, Architecture 

and Archaeology. “Instead, we are using technology to do our 

digging through an exhaustive, non-invasive survey of Genghis 

Khan’s homeland.” 

Lin first went to Mongolia in 2005 with only one handheld GPS, 

one change of clothes and a backpack of questions about his 

Chinese lineage—his grandfather said his family had “influence” 

from the North. It was then, while living with a family 

of horsemen, that Lin’s intrigue, and eventual obsession with 

Genghis Khan—a man who has been greatly misunderstood, 

says Lin—began. 

In 2008 he launched the three-year Valley of the Khans project 

with the goal to use non-invasive technology to excavate sites 

of interest, without disturbing the ground nor local traditions, 

to help resolve the enigma of both the man and his final resting 

place—a 785-year-old mystery. The first full-scale expedition to 

the region was in July 2009, followed by two more exhaustive 

surveys in 2010 and 2011. 

Each expedition has taken them to the Forbidden Zone in the 

Kentii mountain range, 100 miles northeast of Ulaanbaatar, 


-10- 

where dirt roads can wash away overnight, mosquitoes are 

monstrous, home is a traditional yurt—a circular, wood-frame 

structure covered by wool felt—and the temperature can 

change 30 degrees in less than 30 minutes. 

With each visit, technological tools have helped them narrow 

their searches in this vast area, particularly in 2010, when they 

could download in real time the GPS coordinates of potential 

man-made anomalies tagged on satellite imagery by “citizen 

scientists.” This non-invasive approach, in fact, guided them to 

one of their most promising study sites. Where they observed 

artifacts, they applied 3D electro-resistivity tomography (ERT), 

magnetometry and ground-penetrating radar (GPR) to reveal 

any subsurface features. 

They soon realized that it would be critical to also have an 

accurate 3D topographical map so that they could spatially 

and historically connect all of their findings and sites of interest. 

So in advance of the 2011 expedition, Lin secured a Trimble 

VX spatial station, a precision measurement sensor that integrates 

video capture, 3D scanning and survey-grade total 

station functionality, to help lay out a main study site and 

collect location points for every artifact found in between. 

Spatial Context 

Each morning, Jeremiah Rushton, a PhD candidate at UCSD 

and designated “Trimble Man,” hoisted the survey equipment 

onto his back and hiked up the mountainside to the 100-m by 

30-m (300 x 100 feet) site. After setting control, Rushton and 

another team member methodically moved through the site 

in a grid pattern, collecting a point every square foot to ensure 

there were no data gaps, and also taking measurements of

Clockwise from top left: Dr. Lin's group traveled throughout Mongolia seeking the lost tomb; Andrew Hunyh (left) and Jeremiah Rushton (right) taking 

data points of identified artifacts; UCSD's StarCAVE virtual reality system allows team members to immerse themselves in the high-resolution imagery. 

objects discovered at the site. Operating the unit remotely 

using Trimble Access field software on a Trimble TSC2 controller, 

all data was uploaded to a laptop for nightly processing, 

producing near-real-time mapping information to help them 

better plan the next day’s strategy. The team logged about 

1,000 data points a day for 10 consecutive days—that is, when 

they weren’t outrunning thunder and lightning storms. 

“One day a storm developed out of nowhere and it got so 

cold and wet so fast that I almost threw up,” recalls Rushton. 

“Lightning strikes were fast approaching so we had to quickly 

pack up and sprint down the trail, which had already turned 

into a river. We just made it back to our yurt in time.” 

Indeed, the frequent rain required much ingenuity from the 

team to protect their high-tech instruments. For the survey 

equipment, they affixed a rice bowl over the instrument’s 

prism as a protective “hat” from moisture and used a solar 

panel as a canopy to protect the Trimble VX unit. Despite the 

challenging environment, the team successfully mapped the 

entire site, including 200 individual trees. 

Lin also used the survey technology in another innovative 

way—tracking the GPR instrument in real time. Having 

difficulty mapping the GPR data to the surface, Lin proposed 

applying the automatic-turning ability of the spatial station 

to georeference a GPR survey in real time. 

It worked. Attaching the prism to the radar antennas, the Trimble VX 

recorded a point every half second as the GPR was pushed along 

the ground. That georeferenced GPR data could then be overlaid 

on the topographical map to add further spatial and historical 

depth to their findings and better focus their exploration. 

A View Anew 

After returning from the field, Lin and his team integrated their 

myriad data layers with the survey-based topographical map, 

and built a 3D seamless visualization of the entire site, enabling 

Lin and his team to see the area with new eyes. 

“The topographical map allowed us to clearly see the 

anomalies that we had been studying, both on the surface 

and below, and their relationships,” says Lin. “Equally important 

is that it confirmed our study footprint as well as gave us 

new areas of focus. It’s insight we could not have gleaned 

without the accurate map.” 

So does all of this verification mean Lin’s team has found 

the lost tomb of Genghis Khan? For now, Lin is keeping that 

answer buried as deep as the tomb itself. There is still much 

information to process and much data to share with his Mongolian 

colleagues. What is clear, however, is that whatever the 

outcome, Lin will not be seen with a shovel in hand digging up 

the presumed location. 

See feature article in POB’s September issue: www.pobonline. com 

-11- Technology&more





Gathering a 

Flood of Data 

Floodwaters inundate a Bundaberg neighborhood. Advance warnings and evacuation plans prevented injury and loss of life. 

The rain in December 2010 was not unexpected. Every 

year, northeastern Australia experiences six months of 

dry weather followed by a long rainy period known as 

the “Big Wet.” But this season’s Big Wet would be wetter than 

normal. The state of Queensland endured the soggiest December 

on record, with new record rainfall totals at more than 100 

locations. The rains overwhelmed rivers and drainage systems, 

producing weeks of widespread flooding. Sitting astride the 

Burnett River on Australia’s east coast, the city of Bundaberg 

was hit by two major floods in three weeks. 

Bundaberg residents were first alerted to the potential for flooding 

after weeks of heavy rain fell across the Burnett watershed. 

Additional rain in late December caused the river to rise rapidly, 

and on December 30 it peaked at 7.92 m (26.0 ft) above the 

Australian Height Datum (AHD)—a level not seen since 1942. 

As the flood approached, emergency crews activated disaster 

plans and evacuated hundreds of residents. 

The city’s surveyors looked beyond the looming devastation. 

They viewed the floods as an opportunity to capture data that 

could assist with flood modeling and prediction, emergency 

management and town planning. To do so, they needed to 

measure locations of the peak flood levels, as well as the date 

and time of the peaks. 

The Regional Council Responds 

The Bundaberg Regional Council manages surveying, mapping 

-12- 

and engineering for the region’s roads, drains and infrastructure. 

In 2008, the Council decided to establish a permanent geodetic 

framework to support the region’s positioning needs. Partnering 

with Geosciences Australia (the government body that manages 

Australia’s spatial data infrastructure), the Council installed 

a Trimble NetR5 reference station at the Bundaberg airport. 

Working with a repeater installed on a hill overlooking the city, 

the reference station could deliver RTK corrections over a wide area. 

In planning their work during the flood, the surveyors set 

a goal to capture as much data as possible along the road 

networks and rivers. The surveyors needed high data density 

in Bundaberg’s urban areas, and uniform coverage along the 

length of the Burnett towards Paradise Dam. 

Resources, however, were limited; many staff members were 

away on Christmas/New Year holidays, and the flood surveys 

needed to cover more than 50 km 2 (19 mi 2 ). The solution: Get 

the community involved. Through local media and websites, the 

region’s citizens were asked to mark the flood’s highest extents 

on their properties. Residents set markers indicating high water 

locations, often writing the time data on lath or stakes in the 

ground. In the days after the flood’s peak, Council surveyors measured 

flood high water marks on each property and indicators 

such as flood debris in trees and fences. Most of this work was 

done with two Trimble R8 GNSS receivers using RTK corrections 

from the airport base station. The data was collected in Trimble 

TSC2 controllers running Trimble Survey Controller software.

Five days after the first flood had dropped below the “minor flood 

level” of 3.5 m (11.5 ft) AHD, an additional 300 mm (12 in) of rain 

fell onto the waterlogged Burnett watershed. Still reeling from the 

initial surge, Bundaberg received a new set of flood warnings. 

While gathering data on the first flood was valuable, Bundaberg 

Regional Council’s Manager of Design Dwayne Honor knew that 

a time stamp for water levels would be crucial to create accurate 

flood models. So survey crews switched their focus to concentrate 

on the second flood. Using data collected from the first 

flood, teams visited key locations at regular intervals to gather 

3D data of flood water levels. 

Once again, assistance came from the broader community. 

The Council asked residents between Bundaberg 

and Paradise Dam, 100 km (63 miles) upstream, to record 

changes in water levels over time. The Council also engaged 

an aerial surveying firm to capture data upstream of the 

city as the flood approached. The second flood peaked in 

Bundaberg at 5.76 m (18.9 ft) AHD on January 13, 2011. 

After the flood subsided, Council surveyors conducted bathymetric 

work to augment the land and aerial surveys. A boat 

was equipped with a SonarMite Echo Sounder connected 

via Bluetooth to a TSC2 Controller and Trimble R8 GNSS rover. 

A second Trimble R8 GNSS receiver served as a mobile base 

station, broadcasting RTK corrections from the riverbank. The 

teams surveyed approximately 113 km (70 mi) of the river, 

collecting cross sections at an average interval of 200 m (650 

ft). The results of the bathymetric surveys allowed the Council 

to assess the post-flood shape of the Burnett riverbed. The 

information was also passed into Tuflow software for use in 

developing 1D/2D flood models. Three months later, the fieldwork 

was complete. The dataset has been vital in consultants’ 

work in calibrating the new flood study. 

“The floods gave us an extremely hectic couple of weeks,” 

Honor said. “When you’re under pressure like that you can’t 

afford to have issues with the technology or bugs to sort out 

with the gear. The Trimble equipment allowed us to plan our 

work efficiently and gave us certainty that we could capture 

what we needed within the time frames available.” 

The assistance from local residents proved invaluable. Several 

homeowners suffered great losses, yet they found time to 

meet and talk to Council staff. While it might not have been 

considered at the time, the residents’ aid in marking flood 

levels leaves a legacy of high-quality data. Because the 

surveyors were able to collect so much data, the Council and 

community can have high confidence in the results of the 

flood modeling. It will work to everyone’s benefit by helping 

to mitigate flooding from the next “Big Wet.” 

See feature article in American Surveyor's September issue: 

www.amerisurv.com 

A Bundaberg surveyor measures the high water mark on a roadway. 

Teams made periodic visits to key locations to monitor the flood’s progress. 

Council surveyors conduct post-flood bathymetric surveys on the Burnett 

River. Sonar and GNSS positions provide cross-section data for riverbed 

analysis and flood modeling. 

Teams inspect a road washout. Floodwaters reached the highest levels 

since 1942. 




Trimble SketchUp — 

3D for Everyone 

An Easy, Consistent Workspace for 3D Design, 

Visualization and Information Exchange 

Designers and engineers are most creative when they 

can focus on a problem, not on the tools they use to 

solve it. That’s the premise behind Trimble SketchUp, a 

drawing and modeling tool created to deliver the benefits of 3D 

design and modeling to the broadest possible audience. SketchUp 

accomplishes this by combining an exceptionally easy user 

interface with rigorous computations and a vast library of 

user-built 3D models and components. Since its inception, 

SketchUp has focused on being an easy, approachable tool. 

Because SketchUp is so user-friendly, a higher percentage of 

people will use it, which can translate directly to an increase in 

an organization’s productivity. 

When a new user sits down with SketchUp, the first impression 

reinforces the software’s reputation for ease of use. But this 

is no lightweight drawing program. SketchUp operates on a 

powerful 3D modeling engine that combines engineeringlevel 

precision with sophisticated tools to create and manage 

the objects, groups and attributes that make up a 3D design. 

The system uses its close ties to Google Earth to provide basic 

functionality for georeferencing. And, through the Trimble 

3D Warehouse, users have no-cost access to thousands of 3D 

models of buildings, construction equipment and just about 

anything you can imagine. 

In a traditional CAD approach, designs begin in 2D and then 

are built up into 3D. By contrast, everything in SketchUp starts 

as a true 3D model. Because the designer operates in 3D from 

the outset, the transition from 2D to 3D is removed, taking 

with it the setbacks that commonly occur at that stage of the 

process. Issues related to 3D fit and feasibility can be solved 

early in the design process. Once the 3D design is settled, then 

SketchUp can produce 2D plan and layouts as needed. 

Because SketchUp provides an easy way to see and manipulate 

a design in 3D, the design-feedback-revision cycle is quicker. 

-14- 

A SketchUp model for planning and development. The buildings can 

be modeled with engineering precision 

A plan shows existing parcels adjacent to a planned structure. Surveygrade 

data can add information on the surrounding properties and 

improvements.

Combining SketchUp models with images from Google Earth, 

designers can create street level and aerial views of their project and 

surrounding features. 

A 3D model of a building construction site includes plans for vehicle 

access and laydown areas. The model can be set to depict the site at 

various stages of construction. 

For example, a surveyor and architect can collaborate to optimize 

a building’s location on a particular site. The architect 

can incorporate changes and push the model back to the 

surveyor, who provides related layout information. This sharing 

can go through multiple iterations until all design concerns are 

settled—before the project begins. 

SketchUp in the Geo-Referenced World 

SketchUp’s capabilities for modeling and visualization fit well 

with the geospatial community, and the software is being rapidly 

adopted by positioning professionals. Let’s look at examples 

in cadastral, building construction and site management. 

Over the years, cadastral information has transitioned from 

paper media to digital vector media, and again to objectbased 

media. Cadastral surveyors can use SketchUp’s dynamic 

components to create parcels and entities to manage data for 

cadastral and land information systems. Instead of delivering a 

piece of paper or CAD file, cadastral surveyors create intelligent 

data objects that can feed directly into land information systems. 

By developing a collection of individual, georeferenced 

3D models, land information systems can depict and manage 

large regions with exceptional detail and precision. 

In building design and construction, SketchUp serves as an 

important front-end tool. Brian Unger, an associate architect at 

Roth Sheppard Architects in Denver, Colorado, uses SketchUp 

to work through options during the concept and pre-design 

phases, including walk-through videos and concept images. 

“Visualization is incredibly important,” Unger said. “Anytime you 

can have a 3D model in front of your clients or consultants, it 

will be beneficial because of the quick understanding.” Building 

models can be placed onto 3D terrain models to visualize 

how a structure will fit the existing ground. Using SketchUp 

in conjunction with Google Earth, designers can access terrain 

information and insert proposed buildings into sites. 

Construction site logistics requires management of materials, 

machines and personnel on a rapidly changing worksite. Project 

teams can use SketchUp to create virtual 3D construction 

sites to communicate construction processes. By creating 

different scenes based on various stages of construction, planners 

can test the sequencing and movement of equipment 

and materials while communicating the potential impact on 

the surrounding community. For example, consider a site on 

which multiple buildings are under construction. Project managers 

can depict the buildings in different stages, and test to 

see that trucks and excavators can move around the site once 

the buildings are in place. The Trimble 3D Warehouse contains 

models of most heavy equipment, so it is easy to download a 

specific bulldozer to make sure it fits between the buildings. 

Accelerating the Trend to 3D Information 

Geospatial professionals utilize powerful tools that deliver rich, 

highly detailed information. Until now, the ability to leverage 

and share that information has relied on sophisticated, often 

complex software systems. But with SketchUp, that paradigm 

changes. SketchUp enables users across a broad range of 

skill levels to comfortably access data collected by advanced 

positioning and information systems. As a result, it’s possible 

to utilize and share information in ways never possible before. 

Geospatial professionals are quickly trending away from using 

2D paper or PDF plans to exchange site and survey information. 

3D provides much richer information, and SketchUp gives geospatial 

professionals a tool to develop and share the 3D data. 

And while clients recognize the value of 3D models produced 

by design and visualization systems, they often are not willing 

to invest in expensive systems just to visualize a model created 

by their consultants. SketchUp provides the ability to create, 

share and use 3D models in a common, cost-effective medium. 

Trimble’s integration and extension of SketchUp and 3D data 

is expected to make SketchUp stronger and more accessible 

to a new, broader range of uses. It’s poised to deliver on the 

promise of 3D information for everybody. 

See feature article in Professional Surveyor's September isssue: 

www.profsurv.com 




A Safe CALM Survey 



-16- 

The petrochemical industry has devised an ingenious 

method for loading and offloading ocean-going 

tankers in a safe and cost-effective manner: floating 

buoys, secured to anchors on the sea floor, that act as small 

oil or gas terminals. 

These Catenary Anchor Leg Mooring (CALM) buoys enable the 

massive tankers to remain in open water during the exchange. 

The fluid is piped from the refinery to the buoy, and the ship 

attaches hoses to the buoy to take it on board; the same process 

works in reverse. This approach eliminates the need to extend 

docking facilities into deeper water, saving money and resources. 

It is critical to ensure that CALM buoys are properly anchored. 

Any error in the placement of the anchor points can render 

the buoys dangerously vulnerable to high winds and rough 

seas, creating hazardous transfer conditions and jeopardizing 

a significant financial investment. In 2010, concerned over 

possible deviation from existing project plans, a Sicilian 

petrochemical complex commissioned an independent survey 

of the piles in order to solidify plans to secure a CALM buoy 

in the company’s operational hub on the Santa Panagia Bay. 

The Customer 

Italy’s Syracuse Industrial Triangle covers a large area in eastern 

Sicily and plays an important role in the economy of the region. 

First started in the 1950s, the Syracuse complex of refineries, 

chemical plants and gasification facilities is one of Europe’s 

largest petrochemical installations. Over the years, it has 

been expanded by many allied industries, such as builders of 

offshore oil rigs. 

Much of the region’s oil and gas is shipped by sea, and large 

tankers are common in the area. As an alternative to docking 

at piers for loading and unloading, the ships use CALM buoys 

for transferring fluid to and from the refinery. Each buoy is 

attached to metal chains, which are anchored to piles driven 

into the seabed. Connected to the chains, the buoy is securely 

held in the center of the area bounded by the piles. 

The Right Method 

The surveying and engineering company Archilab di Paolo 

Zappulla & C was selected to determine the planimetric 

position of several existing CALM piles driven into the Santa 

Panagia Bay seabed. The primary goal of the survey was to 

determine the exact position of each pile, using a dual system 

of WGS84 and Roma40 coordinates (Roma40 is Italy's geodetic 

system, and refers to the astronomical data of 1940), making it

possible to compare the actual location of the piles (which the 

client believed inaccurate) against earlier plan data. 

Most of the Syracuse piles are visible from shore and could have 

been measured from shore using total stations; however, the 

number of observations required and the difficulty of placing 

targets at sea prompted Archilab to use GPS for the work instead. 

The team used Sicily’s real-time network (VRS Sicilia) to provide 

RTK correction data. Data from the network was received by 

mobile telephone and used via the RTCM 3.0 protocol. 

The VRS Sicilia network, which uses Trimble VRS technology to 

provide centimeter-level precision, includes 20 Trimble NetRS® 

GPS reference stations located throughout Sicily. It allows the 

engineers to perform any type of survey on a regional level, 

using a single system of coordinates common for all users. Surveyors 

can also download data from the reference stations for 

use in post-processing. VRS Sicilia can be used in real time and 

by any type of GPS application, including marine construction 

and operations along the Sicilian coast. By using the VRS Sicilia 

real-time network, the Archilab team eliminated the need for 

an RTK base station and could provide results directly in the 

WGS84 system. 

The Survey 

The CALM buoy will be anchored with five chains approximately 

300 m (980 ft) long connected to five corresponding piles. 

Since the survey was to be conducted at sea, the Archilab team 

used a boat to get close to the piles to be surveyed. The work 

team consisted of a diver, an on-board engineer and the boat’s 

captain. Weather conditions were ideal during the survey, with 

bright sun and a calm sea. 

The work began and ended on land. To confirm accuracy, 

the team initialized a Trimble R6 GPS receiver with VRS Sicilia, 

and then measured an IGM95 control point at the beginning 

and end of the survey. The IGM95 network is a basic geodetic 

network built in 1992 by the Italian Istituto Geografico Militare 

(Military Geographical Institute or IGM). All IGM95 control points 

were established using GPS. 

Once the team arrived at a pile in the bay, the diver left the 

boat to stand on the pile and position the Trimble R6 at 

different points on the pile. These points corresponded with 

the pile’s center and also with the heads of the fixing bolts of 

each sealing cover. On four of the five piles, the team used RTK 

to mark, code and measure 10 points. Because the fifth pile had 

no sealing cover, only four points were measured, corresponding 

with the horizontal and vertical axes of the pile. 

Using a Trimble TSC2 controller running Trimble Access software, 

the on-board engineer catalogued the data and acquired 

the information necessary to determine the planimetric posi- 

tion of each point. The controller used a wireless connection to 

communicate with the Trimble R6. The entire survey, including 

work to verify control, was completed in a single day. 

A Successful Project 

The final data was prepared in the WGS84 and Roma40 coordinate 

systems. The engineers built a table of WGS84 geographic 

coordinates and exported them directly from the Trimble TSC2 

controller. An IGM software program, based on a grid containing 

the area of operations, transformed the WGS84 coordinates 

into the Roma40 coordinate system. 

Archilab delivered the data to the client, who then computed 

the differences between the earlier surveys and Archilab’s 

data. The results showed that the piles had not been placed 

in the design position, with differences of 24 to 57 m (80 

to 190 ft). Archilab’s survey also revealed that the radius of 

the rough circle of piles that will surround the buoy was not 

regular; this irregularity could affect the stability of the buoy, 

which is important for safety during the oil and gas transfer 

process. Thanks to the work of Archilab and GPS, the operators 

now have accurate information for safely and efficiently 

managing future CALM operations at Santa Panagia Bay. 

Top: Tankers connect to CALM buoys to upload oil or gas. The Santa 

Panagia Bay CALM buoy will be similar to the one shown here. 

Bottom: A survey crew determines the position of existing CALM piles. 





NMSS's Dave and Arnold Bansemer control the Gatewing X100 from the Trimble Tablet Rugged PC in Namibia. 

Surveying an open-pit mine can be a hazardous undertaking. 

In order to obtain accurate volume measurements, 

it is necessary to pick up edges—known in the industry 

as “toes and crests”—as well as heaps. These are important 

features, since they provide a way to verify the current shape of 

a mine; but in light of increasingly stringent safety regulations 

and penalties, some companies refuse to let the surveyor get 

too close to such areas. Surveying the site from the air is an 

effective solution to this challenge. 

It’s also a cost-effective solution. In fact, Namibian Mining 

Survey Services (PTY), Ltd. (NMSS), estimates that using an 

unmanned aerial system (UAS) can save more than 95 percent 

in mobilization costs, i.e., bringing in resources from outside the 

country to conduct a lidar/photogrammetric survey. Believing 

UAS to be an important part of the future of surveying, NMSS 

had been investigating the technology for some time, and a 

recent project provided the perfect opportunity to try it out. 

NMSS selected the Gatewing X100 for the job based on a 

demo at a platinum mine—the results closely tracked those of 

a previous lidar survey—and the firm’s positive experience with 

Trimble. “All my other equipment is Trimble, and the backup 

and support I receive from Optron is outstanding,” says NMSS’s 

Dave Bansemer. “I had no hesitation in purchasing the X100.” 

The Project 

The project was to survey a portion of Abenab Mine, a vanadium-lead 

mine owned by South West Africa Company and 


Aerial Survey 

-18- 

in Namibia: 

Safe and 

Cost-effective 

located just west of Tsumeb. The mine had been closed in the 

1960’s, but feasibility studies were underway to see if it would 

be viable to reopen the operation. Mine management needed 

to know volumes of all waste and tailings dumps, slimes dams 

and open pit excavations. The main pit was roughly circular, 

about 60 m (197 ft) deep and 120 m (394 ft) across. Two smaller 

pits were covered in fairly thick vegetation but had enough 

ground showing to provide an accurate shape. 

The survey area was approximately 100 hectares. The flying 

height was set at 150 m (492 ft) in order to provide a ground 

separation distance of 5 cm. Ground control points (GCPs) were 

constructed from 1 m (3.28 ft) lengths of masonite cut into 10 

cm wide strips; painted bright red, the strips were designed to 

provide 20x2 pixel coverage on the images. A total of 10 GCPs 

were set out in strategic positions covering a wide range of 

elevations, with points on top of the dumps, on undisturbed 

ground level and in the pits. The points were fixed from existing 

control on the UTM34S coordinate system, by fast static techniques 

using the firm’s Trimble R6 GPS systems. 

Launching the X100 

Based on the Gatewing training received, basic photogrammetry 

principles and a few trials, NMSS determined that 9 am–3 

pm was the best time to fly in order to avoid shadow. The flight 

area, including a previously surveyed area that would serve as a 

check, covered 140 hectares. Assuming favorable wind conditions, 

NMSS expected to cover the area on a single flight.

Arriving on site at 7 am, Bansemer started setting out the GCPs 

while his colleague performed the fast static survey. By 10 am 

all GCPs had been placed and fixed. Having identified a suitable 

take-off and landing spot (a farm road), they proceeded 

through the pre-flight and flight checklist and then launched 

the X100 at 11 am. After completing the flight in around 35 

minutes, with some turbulence at the 150 m flying altitude, 

the X100 landed safely, albeit short of the goal, in an open area. 

Once the data was downloaded, the team returned to Tsumeb 

to begin the processing. They started with the post-processing 

of the GCPs, and then moved to the coordinates obtained in 

the photo-control identification process. NMSS used Gatewing 

Stretchout Pro software for the photogrammetrical processing. 

After specifying the coordinate system and identifying the 

GCPs, the number crunching began; the processing ran for 

around seven hours before the final point cloud and orthomosaics 

were created. The mean horizontal error was 3 cm and the 

vertical error was 9 cm, well within the error budget. 

Impressive Results 

The first check was to see if all areas had been covered. NMSS 

then checked the point cloud against the previous survey, and 

was impressed with the results. The tie-in was perfect. Some 

gaps in the point cloud seemed to correspond with tree canopy 

areas; to ensure complete accuracy, the team resurveyed a few 

areas using the Trimble VX spatial station. 

NMSS learned some important lessons from using this 

cutting-edge technology, which Bansemer lists for the 

benefit of future users: 

• Make sure you have enough control. It is sometimes difficult 

to place your control points exactly in the corners 

of your flight and one in the center, as the actual flight is 

influenced by wind direction and the shape of the flight 

may change accordingly. Put down more points than 

recommended. 

• Make sure that your ground control point size is relevant to 

your flying height. You will not be able to identify a 10 cm 

wide strip if you fly at 300 m (484 ft). 

• Check the completeness of the job before you leave the 

area. 

• Make sure there is sufficient area for a safe landing. (Bansemer 

recommends at least a 300 m strip, taking obstacles 

into account in the event of a short landing.) 

”We needed a way to conduct surveys quickly and accurately, 

with minimal risk to health and safety,” concludes 

Bansemer. “The Gatewing X100 has fulfilled that requirement 

nicely. We are very happy with the performance and 

results from the X100.” 

From the top: The X100 prepares for flight. Aerial image of the X100 survey. 

Dave and Arnold Bansemer prepare the X100 for the survey. 




A Unique 

Measuring Campaign 

Working in a prestigious study program, Reine Stoffels, 

a Geomatics Masters’ student from the Universiteit Gent 

(Belgium), participated in a combined hydrographic and 

topographic survey of a reservoir in France. Along with gaining 

practical knowledge, Stoffels took photographs of the 

project and entered several in the Technology&more Photo 

Contest; the image on the far right was the winner in the last 

(2012-2) issue. Here’s the story behind the picture. 

Every summer, sailing and water sport enthusiasts 

come to the Lac de Vassivière in central France. One 

of France’s largest lakes, Vassivière is a 1,000-hectare 

(2,500-acre) reservoir constructed to provide electricity to 

the Limousin region. Opened in 1950, the lake feeds water 

to the Mazet hydroelectric station owned by Electricité de 

France (EDF). 

For several years, EDF had requested a detailed survey of the 

lake to better monitor the lake’s volume and water level. In 2010 

the European Union (EU) gave the green light for a three-year 

ERASMUS Intensive Program (IP) to do the work. Launched in 

1987, the ERASMUS Program supports education and training 

programs throughout the world. The IP brings together 

students and teachers from higher-education institutions in at 

least three participating countries. 

The project at Vassivière was sponsored by Boskalis, a 

Dutch company specializing in dredging, earth-moving 

and maritime infrastructure. For this IP, students came from 

the Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Techniques Avancées 

Bretagne (ENSTA-Bretagne) in Brest, France, Belgium’s 

Universiteit Gent (UGent) and Germany’s HafenCity Universität 

Hamburg (HCU). In addition to its significant size and 

-20- 

complexity, the Lac de Vassivière project became the first 

hydrography and geomatics course to be organized at the 

European level. 

Obstacle Course 

The survey objective was to deliver a detailed digital elevation 

model of the Vassivière reservoir. Data collection would 

involve topographic and hydrographic surveying, with positioning 

data to be developed using Trimble GNSS receivers 

and total stations. To serve as the basis for GNSS measurements, 

the university team installed two base stations near 

the lake. The stations were tied to the France Lambert93 

coordinate system. 

“It was a captivating experience,” says Reine Stoffels. “The measurement 

campaign started on October 30, 2011, and ended 

on November 10th. The lake was divided into 20 zones, with 

five groups of students surveying four zones each. Ideally, the 

groups would spend 2.5 days per zone. However, 2011 was an 

exceptionally dry year and the water was low, resulting in a 5 to 

6 m (16 to 20 ft) band of sand around the entire lake. To gather 

the needed data required more topographical surveying 

than was originally planned, and topographic measuring 

would take longer than the hydrographic soundings originally 

scheduled for the now-dry areas. 

The students conducted intensive surveys on the lake’s 

western side—and to a lesser degree the eastern side. The 

most important permanent features around the lake (the 

dam, jetties, etc.) were surveyed in detail. Over an area of 120 

hectares (300 acres), the team used a combination of total 

stations and GNSS to measure approximately 62,000 points. 

The work went quickly; the team averaged approximately

1,000 points per group, per day. Project requirements called 

for average point density of one point every 5 m (16 ft), 

and the teams achieved that goal. The actual point density 

varied based on terrain conditions, with lower density along 

beaches and difficult-to-access woodland strips, and higher 

density in critical areas such as docks, piers and related 

structures. In addition, the working range for the total stations 

changed with terrain conditions around the lake. This 

range could vary from a couple dozen to hundreds of meters 

of free visibility. 

To complete the lake’s 3D model, the “dry” measurements 

were combined with bathymetric data and measurements 

made with terrestrial laser scanners. The experimental 

margin for error of the bathymetric data—used as basis for 

combining the other data sets—was 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 in). 

The teams needed to meet this criterion for the topographic 

measurements; Stoffels reported that the Trimble GNSS and 

total stations delivered data well within the requirements. To 

verify accuracy, cross-data validation tests were carried out 

in areas by measuring points with different equipment and 

from different reference points. 

Workload pressure remained high for 10 days. “We had breakfast 

at half past six in the morning and continued working until 

the sun went down,” said Stoffels. “Then we transferred the 

data from the instruments to our laptops and checked the 

data to eliminate any errors. We then sent the data to the 

central server so that we could go to sleep around 11 o’clock.” 

Everyone started the project in a good mood, but by the end 

of the first week it was clear that none of the groups would 

complete their assigned zones. At that point, the teams 

decided to redivide the zones and schedule a second 

measurement campaign in 2012. 

Student Insight 

One of the IP’s objectives was for hydrography and geomatics 

students of the three universities to exchange as much 

knowledge and experience as possible. “We cooperated like an 

international multidisciplinary team,” says Stoffels. “We received 

guidance from the scientific staff of the three universities, 

which proved necessary because the project required very 

specific knowledge. In addition, the measurement data from 

very different instruments had to be combined together, and 

that introduced some interesting challenges.” 

For the measurement campaign the student teams used a 

multi-beam sonar, side-scan sonar, laser scanners, inertial 

motion units, various total stations and GNSS with RTK. “The 

project provided us with a unique opportunity to work with 

professional equipment,” says Stoffels. “The partner universities 

had instruments from different manufacturers. The oldest 

equipment was barely automated, which did not help our 

productivity, but it did provide insight into the underlying 

measurement methods and processes.” 

While Stoffels worked with an array of equipment from ENSTA, 

UGent and HCU, she found she preferred the Trimble equipment, 

including the Trimble R6 and R8 GNSS receivers and 

and the Trimble S6 DR300 robotic total station, all connected 

to Trimble Survey controllers. “I found the Trimble equipment 

to be very user-friendly,” said Stoffels. “Due to the clear menu 

structure and the logical workflow, users can get up to speed 

quickly with the instruments and software.” 



Under the Towering Oak Trees: 

GNSS Performance Enhanced 

with Trimble Floodlight 



To improve the accuracy of its GIS maps, Louisiana’s St. 

Charles Parish purchased its own GNSS equipment but 

needed improved performance beneath the parish’s 

towering oak trees. Both productivity and accuracy were 

immediately improved when they upgraded to the Trimble 

GeoExplorer® 6000 series of mapping GNSS handhelds 

with Trimble Floodlight technology. 

The last straw for Louisiana’s St. Charles Parish came 

when an underground water pipeline burst beneath 

a busy street. Traffic had to be diverted as the water 

continued to spill out onto the pavement. An hour passed 

before personnel from the Waterworks Department found 

the shutoff valve and stopped the deluge. The delay was 

caused by a faulty map that incorrectly showed the valve’s 

location on the other side of the street. Enough was 

enough. Things had to change. 

The St. Charles Waterworks Department is responsible for 

maintaining, repairing and upgrading the parish’s network 

of above- and below-ground water pipelines. The Public 


-22- 

Works Department manages the storm protection and 

drainage infrastructure, such as catch basins, ditches, 

and levees. 

As is true for many local government departments, the 

Waterworks Department relied on as-built drawings and 

sketches supplied by developers and engineering firms to 

keep the network of underground water pipes updated in 

its GIS. At the time, the parish had no other option because 

it lacked internal mapping capabilities. 

In 2008, St. Charles created a GIS Office to support mapping 

needs of all other parish departments and hired Luis Martinez 

to manage it. Fortunately, Martinez had been trained to use 

GNSS technology for GIS data collection in his previous position. 

He convinced the parish it would be cost-effective to 

invest in mapping- and survey-grade GNSS equipment and 

train personnel to use it as part of their daily operations. 

”The first personnel we trained were the Waterworks and 

Public Works crews,” said Martinez.

Productivity Booster 

The GIS Office maintains a parish-wide, Internet-accessible 

GIS comprised of layers for nearly all departments. Aside 

from Public Works, the Waterworks Department has the most 

rapidly evolving geospatial data layers in the parish. With new 

water pipes being installed or old ones being replaced, the 

Waterworks infrastructure map is constantly in flux. Handheld, 

GNSS-based, GIS data collection units were seen as the ideal 

solution for keeping layers accurate and up to date. 

Waterworks crews experienced problems with accuracy when 

working beneath the stately oak trees that line many parish 

residential streets. The oak canopies deflect and partially block 

GNSS signals from reaching the receivers, impairing productivity 

through a phenomenon called satellite shadow. This same signal 

deflection problem often faces mapping crews working among 

tall buildings in many cities. 

Martinez quickly identified the satellite shadow problem 

and upgraded the parish GNSS equipment to the Trimble 

GeoExplorer 6000 series. These handheld GIS mapping devices 

come equipped with the unique Trimble Floodlight capability 

that overcomes the productivity-reducing effects of satellite 

shadow without sacrificing accuracy. The technology accomplishes 

this through a combination of multi-constellation (GPS 

and GLONASS) positioning, advanced tracking algorithms, and 

altitude-constrained positioning. 

Waterworks personnel onsite at every excavation project 

began using Trimble GeoExplorer 6000 GeoXH handhelds 

running Esri ArcPad data collection software. As new pipe is 

laid in the ground, the handheld devices are used to map the 

location and depth with submeter accuracy before the pipe is 

buried. Crews use pull-down Esri ArcPad menus on the touch 

screen to collect key descriptive data relating to each asset, 

such as the size and composition of the conduit. Additionally, 

locations of other important items such as shut-off valves are 

mapped onto the GIS layer with the same precision. 

“Before Floodlight, we could only get a strong signal from 

about six satellites, depending on the canopy,” said Martinez. 

“Even with differential correction, only 60 percent of our points 

achieved the desired 15-cm (6-in) accuracy, while most of the 

rest were off by as much as three feet or more.” 

Today, with the Trimble GeoExplorer 6000 handheld, Waterworks 

crews routinely lock onto 12–13 satellites and achieve 

15-cm (6-in) accuracy for 85 to 90 percent of all points in 

feature-mapping projects. In the field, they use a Bluetooth 

connection and cell phone to access differential correction 

points published on the Internet by a local continuously operating 

reference station (CORS). Points are corrected in real time 

with Trimble GPScorrect extension for Esri ArcPad software 

running on the handheld. 

Floodlight allows us to maintain mapping accuracy,” explained 

Martinez, “and it pays for itself by saving time for field crews. 

Without the technology, crews had to measure offset positions 

to get out from under the trees.” 

This wasn’t necessary once they obtained the Trimble GeoExplorer 

6000 handhelds. Martinez said that measuring an offset 

could take two to five extra minutes to collect a single position, 

compared to just 15 seconds when occupying the feature 

itself. In addition, Floodlight technology allows the receiver to 

maintain satellite lock when it is put back in the vehicle for the 

drive to the next collection point. This also shaves several more 

minutes off each point collection. 

“Waterworks is so pleased with the GeoExplorer 6000s that they 

plan to buy two just for their department,” said Martinez. “They 

will integrate the mapping units with electromagnetic linelocating 

devices to map the pipes already buried underground.” 

The St. Charles GIS has never been more up-to-date and 

information-rich than it is now. But Martinez sees room to grow 

and is considering expanding the use of Trimble GIS mapping 

equipment to other departments, including Planning and 

Zoning. Inspectors from this department will soon carry integrated 

GIS mapping devices that enable them to document 

code violations in writing with time- and location-stamped 

photographs. 





PHOTO CONTEST 

Once again, our Facebook fans have spoken: after our editors chose the top four photos, the Facebook Trimble Survey 

fans (www.facebook.com/TrimbleSurvey) chose the top two winners. First place—and a Trimble 3-in-1 all-weather 

jacket—goes to “Somewhere Over the Vineyard,” which received the most Facebook fan votes. Second place—and an 

iPod Shuffle—goes to “Road to Heaven.” See the other options, which are also prize winners, and be part of the action: check 

out Trimble Survey Division on Facebook for the next issue’s photo contest contenders. 

Somewhere Over the Vineyard 

In 2010, New Zealand’s Landlink, Ltd., won a New Zealand Institute 

of Surveyors Gold Award of Excellence for its work on 

the Bishops Vineyard, Ohau Village project in Horowhenua— 

and we received this beautiful image! The project features a 

master-planned layout of four “precincts,” a large vineyard and 

two areas of preserved historic stone buildings. “Our surveyors 

were involved in the project from urban design, resource 

consents, engineering design and land transfer surveys right 

through to the end of the title process,” said Landlink Registered 

Professional Surveyor Paul Turner. “The judges agreed 

that Bishops Vineyard demonstrates the surveyor’s skill in managing 

a project from start to finish.” Landlink used the Trimble 

R8 GNSS system for topographic surveys, set out of roading 

and infrastructure and final survey for titles. "The Trimble R8 is 

a versatile and robust piece of equipment that is indispensable 

for efficient land development projects," Turner said. 

Road to Heaven 

Professional Land Surveyor Vickus van Dyk of South Africa’s Van Dyk & Associates, Inc., took this breath-taking image while performing 

a road survey using the Trimble M3 total station. Van Dyk’s crew was working just outside of Hermanus on a mountain 

overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and part of the Hemel-en-Aarde (Heaven and Earth) valley. While van Dyk’s assistant Hilton 

Hamman took a back sight to one of the Trig beacons on another mountain, van Dyk noticed the photo op: “Taking only one 

photo wouldn't have captured the view so I took a panoramic photo,” he says. “Hermanus is one of the most popular tourist 

destinations in South Africa and one of the best whale-watching spots in the world. Surveying in an area like this beats any 

normal 9-to-5 office job.”




A Day in the Life 

If you had to outline a day in your life, what would it 

look like? 

From sunrise to sunset and beyond, geospatial 

professionals around the world lead some pretty 

exciting lives. And we want to highlight yours. 

Whether you’re a surveyor in a large city or the back 

country, whether you work alone or as part of a crew, on 

spectacular construction projects or setting up cadastre 

in developing countries, tell us about your day—and 

we’ll share it with others. 

This new feature will run in each issue for as long as we 

find fun and exciting professionals to highlight. You'll 

gain publicity for you and your firm, as well as a Trimble 

prize—plus the excitement of seeing your professional 

life both in print and on Facebook! 

Just send a brief paragraph highlighting what your day 

looks like with your name, contact info and a photo or 

two to Survey_Stories@trimble.com—and we’ll do the rest. 

Check back here in the next issue to see what YOUR day 

may look like. We look forward to hearing from you—and 

spotlighting your “Day in the Life.”



Photo Contest 

Enter Trimble’s Technology&more 

Photo Contest! 

The winners of the Trimble Photo Contest receive 

Trimble prizes and the photos are published in 

Technology&more. This issue's first place winner 

is the Somewhere Over the Vineyard photo 

from Paul Turner of New Zealand’s Landlink, Ltd. 

See top winners on page 24. Send your photo 

at 300 dpi resolution (10 x 15 cm or 4 x 6 in) to 

Survey_Stories@trimble.com. Make sure you 

include your name, title and contact information. 

To subscribe to Technology&more for free, go to: www.trimble.com/t&m. 

You can also send an email to: T&M_info@trimble.com. 

You can also view Technology&more online at www.trimble.com/t&m. 

Optionally, copy, fill in and fax this form to us. 

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