AUVAC

DITCHING “DUMB” DATA Abandoning Archaic Deliveries for Smarter, Cost-Effective GIS Tools

June 27, 2014
Brown T, DITCHING “DUMB” DATA Abandoning Archaic Deliveries for Smarter, Cost-Effective GIS Tools, Ocean News & Technology, June 2014

The public abandoned paper maps in favor of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), so why hasn’t the survey industry? The preferred source of driving directions has moved from paper maps to GPS units to smartphones in under two decades, yet seabed survey data are still delivered in outdated formats. Archaic legacy data formats hidden amid complex file structures are delivered alongside paper charts and drawings that collect dust on clients’ shelves. While determining infrastructure locations on the seafloor could be done using objective analysis, it is still completed by matching pixels to a color ramp. As GIS platforms for smarter data deliveries are readily available, Exploration and Production (E&P) companies and survey contractors should move from archaic deliveries formats to simpler, more cost-effective, intelligent methods.

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