August 2012

Geospatial technology, according to Parsons, has a broader definition and is about "making use of the geographic information that is often created by GIS, but has far more mainstream applications. Yes, it's still used by enterprise agencies such as utilities companies, or those planning the location of supermarkets and hospitals. But it is also used by individuals when we come out of a tube station and want to know where Starbucks is." Geospatial technology is about making this data more accessible and Parsons' role as a geospatial technologist is to be the window into that world…Read more, eandt.theiet.org

EIGS Perspective

EIGS Annual Meeting Produces Valuable Insight for Future Direction of Program

The Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions recently held its Annual Meeting for its member companies on August 3, 2012, on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. After the meeting, Tom Koger, EIGS Executive Director, shared his perspective on the outcomes and success of the event.

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Washington Perspective

Commentary From: Michael Liu, Sr. Vice President, Dutko Worldwide

Handwriting on the Wall for Current Port Plans?
I ended my last column with the problems with the current Mississippi State Port Authority's (MSPA) plans and unused $500 million of Federal Community Development Block Grant Funds. I suggested that groups like MBA and EIGS could make a case to the Bryant Administration that reallocation of some of those funds to projects associated with geospatial technology job creation initiatives would be in order. Since then the expressed public concerns from leaders ranging from city council members to the Lt. Governor has risen to a crescendo. It was topped off by the release of a consultant's report commissioned by the Governor, critical of the current MSPA's current plan. This seems to be a clear indication that the foundation for a change in direction has been set. It may not be fast enough to avoid ramifications in Washington, but better late than never. When the change comes, it will be interesting to see who gets the blame—MSPA Commissioners? State and/or Federal Elected Officials? Consultants hired by MSPA? Will "60 Minutes" be filming in Gulfport?

Washington Very Quiet/Debates Will Count
With the Party Conventions on the horizon, the Nation's Capital is a ghost town. Polls are still showing a close race, but the Beltway insiders still give the President the inside track. While Romney may get North Carolina and is definitely gaining ground in Wisconsin, two states that went for the President in 2008, Virginia remains static and key big electoral swing states such as Ohio and Florida remain in the Democratic column. It will be all about the swing states and how those voters feel about "big" issues as election day nears: Medicare, jobs, overall economy.

How the two major party candidates debate these issues will be watched closely by the nation and voters in swing states. While both candidates are Harvard Law graduates, most observers will give the advantage to the President on debating style. My recommendation to the challenger is to avoid the usual advice of "not to get into the weeds." Mr. Romney has cast himself as the more competent leader, as the guy who knows how to manage and turn things around versus the President who was a "community organizer." To prove it and convince the voters of this, Mr. Romney should not be afraid of showing his command of detail and challenge the President on some subject that comes up regarding the economy or factors that businesses look at job creation. (This is a feature of Paul Ryan's capabilities that bothers the White House so much.) True, voters may not be able to follow the details, but the point will be to show competency and expertise that has been lacking. (And of course, Mr. Romney should bring up the national unemployment rate whenever he can.)

For the President, if he keeps the debates focused on leaders who should be transparent about their lives and being in touch with "regular" Americans (i.e., release of tax returns); Paul Ryan's first budget plan; and ending Osama Bin Laden's stay on earth; he could prove the London bookies correct in predicting another 4 more years of an Obama administration.

Government May Remain Split
If President Obama wins re-election Washington will remain dysfunctional. At a minimum Republicans will retain control of the House.

For Republicans, Senate control became much harder with the unbelievable comments by the GOP nominee challenging Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill. In addition, seats that the GOP now hold in Massachusetts (Scott Brown), Indiana (retiring Richard Lugar), and Maine (retiring Olympia Snowe) are "iffy" at best. Hence, even if Mitt Romney should win, there may not be an ability to move an agenda forward based on the poor track record of White House's in recent years of not being able to gain any kind of bi-partisan support for an agenda if at least one body of Congress is controlled by the opposing Party. Almost makes one want to consider a parliamentary system.

Image of the Month

New satellite imagery shows Iran covering up building IAEA wants to visit, says U.S. think tank

(Credit: GeoEye - ISIS)

For more information, www.haaretz.com

Items of Interest

Esri Selects New Global Industry Manager for Logistics and Supply Chain…
Sacramento Bee

Hall believes that the use of advanced mapping and spatial analysis is still in its infancy in the logistics and supply chain industries and is convinced that GIS provides the ideal platform to unlock the optimization potential at all levels of logistics and supply… Read more, computerworld.co.nz.

MAPPS Elects News Officers and Directors
DirectionsMag.com

MAPPS, the only national association of private sector geospatial firms, elected new members to its Board of Directors and a slate of officers to serve the association for 2012-2013. Jeff Lower, Vice President of Operations, Magnolia River Services, Inc… Read more, www.directionsmag.com .

Space Technologies Tackle Human and Environmental Security Problems
Space Daily

Secure World Foundation recently announced the release of the Summer 2012 issue of Imaging Notes magazine dedicated to highlighting the urgent, interrelated issues of Earth remote sensing for security, energy and the environment. Highlighted in the publication, a Secure World Foundation Forum underscores the needed use of remote sensing for remote areas, particularly in Latin America, now being characterized as part of "the Global South." Read more, www.spacedaily.com .

Did You Know?

Did you know U.S. forecasters are raising their estimate of potential storms in the remainder of the Atlantic hurricane season? NOAA forecasters say they expect a total of 12 to 17 tropical storms, with as many as five to eight hurricanes, for the season from June 1 to Nov. 30. Two to three of storms could become major hurricanes. Read more, msbusiness.com

EIGS IN THE NEWS

Houston Students Using GIS to Impact Community
DirectionsMag.com

The High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice (HSLECJ) is now back in session and learning concepts that few other schools across the country offer their students. Recently named in the top 10 percentile of high schools in Houston's Independent School District, the school has invested in creating outstanding Law and Criminal Justice thinkers. One of their programs making a positive impact in the classroom and the community focuses on geospatial technologies… Read more, directionsmag.com

DigitalGlobe Tells Analysts It's Prepared for Growth
DirectionsMag.com

In a recent conference call with financial analysts, DigitalGlobe's CEO Jeffrey Tarr promised the merger with GeoEye would create the potential for a "high growth, recurring revenue geospatial information business." With that, Tarr signaled to stockholders… Read more, www.directionsmag.com

Global Perspectives

Precision agriculture growth area for GIS
Computerworld New Zealand

By ensuring fertiliser and other soil-treatment chemicals are kept to the places where they will do most good and not leach into waterways, agricultural GIS can help farmers use chemicals more efficiently and reduce pollution. With today's larger farms it's not… Read more, www.computerworld.co.nz

New Remote Sensing Satellite on the Job
China Daily

China's first high-resolution, remote-sensing satellite for civilian use, Ziyuan 3, was put into service this month, marking a breakthrough in the country's drive to map the Earth from outer space. Launched on Jan 9, the satellite was delivered to its primary… Read more, usa.chinadaily.com.cn

EIGS Perspective (Full text)

The Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions recently held its Annual Meeting for its member companies on August 3, 2012, on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. After the meeting, Tom Koger, EIGS Executive Director, shared his perspective on the outcomes and success of the event.

The EIGS annual meeting covered a lot of ground and has put us on a great trajectory moving forward as an industry-lead organization focused on breaking down barriers and creating new business opportunities for our cluster companies. After a series of presentations on topics ranging from Washington DC trends impacting the industry to the latest market trends, we conducted a real-time poll regarding the direction and effectiveness of the organization and followed that up with an extremely productive discussion regarding the direction and future of EIGS. Among the top priorities moving forward is finding new business for our cluster companies and developing an industry-lead advisory board that will help us develop the strategies and programs needed to create and capture those new business opportunities.

The EIGS annual meeting has given us a much clearer picture of where we need to focus our energy and I'm extremely excited with the prospects of the cluster moving forward. We've been engaged in substantive discussions with policy makers regarding the business environment for the cluster along with the need to develop contracting opportunities that take advantage of the tremendous capacity represented by our cluster companies. I'm confident that these discussions will bear fruit in the coming year and we're looking forward to having the companies more involved in defining the future of our organization.

Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions – www.mseigs.com