Changes…

Technology moves so fast these days it is almost impossible to keep up with it all, but it is important that we do all we can to at least be aware of the changes.  You don’t necessarily need to rush out and buy the newest “thing” today, but you should know it is out there and how it will or can impact you, especially as a business owner.

In the CDS newsletter “Tools of the Trade” this month I did a technical segment on Building Information Modeling (B.I.M.) and the role of the Surveyor in B.I.M..  A year or even two years ago it was important to know what B.I.M. was about and that it was coming, today it is important to be looking at ways to take advantage of B.I.M. and position your company to be a B.I.M. Expert.

The role of the Surveyor seems to be changing in many ways today.  While some may look at the changes as negative, others see opportunities.  In the Construction world we have seen more and more companies move to 3D machine control and fewer and fewer stakes going in the ground.  Many would look at that and say the machines are taking the job of the Surveyor, but we should be looking at this as an opportunity.  As a Surveyor we should be building models, tying in control, providing checks, and performing other services that Surveyors are already able to do, but maybe not used to doing.  There is an article written by Houston Neal titled “Automation of Surveying Creates Disruption and Opportunities” that I think covers this topic very well.

Just getting back from the SPAR 2011 Conference I too am well aware of the changes that have happened in the last year as well as the changes coming.  Who would have thought that the scanner I use on my game console could be used to gather data for making working 3D models?!

B.I.M., HDS, Machine control, GPS, data collection, Field to Finish, or any other topic that affects, influences, or otherwise impacts your business is probably something we know about or deal with on a regular basis.  I want to be your partner in these changes and do everything I can to keep you as informed as possible and make sure we find ways to leverage your abilities and capabilities to keep you moving forward as things continue to change.