NASA/Reuters
Hurricane Sandy is seen moving toward the East Coast of the U.S. in this NASA satellite image taken on Oct. 29, 2012. For more information,
bing.com/images
Items of Interest
Mapping Springsteen
Slate Magazine (blog)
The video below was created by The Timoney Group, "a consultancy specializing in geospatial analysis and information visualization." It chronicles nearly every Springsteen performance in the United States since January 5, 1973. As time passes, red dots appear in the various locations Springsteen performed, and a halo of "heat" around it flares up, reflecting the size of the venue relative to the "overall population within 40km of the concert location… Read more, slate.com/.
New Resources for GIS Job Seekers
DirectionsMag.com
The new eBook, titled "Careers in GIS: an Unfiltered Guide to Finding a GIS Job," was published in April and offers content from the blog of the same name complemented by new material. The $4.99 price tag (Kindle or Kindle software only) makes it quite… Read more, directionsmag.com/
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Photo for the Record Gazette by David James Heiss -
GIS teacher Michael O'Neill, Chadelaine Huertas and Christian Preciado
in front of a map depicting crime hot spots in Banning.
GIS coursework helps Banning students help cops
The Record Gazette
And, thanks to some basic data entry and analysis at Banning High School's geographic information systems classes, a couple of students were able to help police determine when a couple of chronic criminals would continue their work - and accurately… Read more,
recordgazette.net.
Archaeologists Dig Up New Uses for GIS
Cadalyst Magazine
Crates of dusty field notebooks have given way to notebook computers; dog-eared paper maps have been replaced by GIS (geographic information system) maps that provide spatial context to diverse datasets. Digital 3D models give new life to ancient … Read more, cadalyst.com.
Global Geographical Information System Market in the Natural Resource …
The Herald | HeraldOnline.com
The Global Geographical Information System market in the Natural Resource industry has also been witnessing the increasing demand for integrated GIS solutions. However, the increasing popularity of open source communities could pose a challenge to the … Read more, HeraldOnline.com.
Did you know the Air Force is establishing a center of excellence for laser remote sensing and communications? Read more,
militaryaerospace.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
China To Deploy UAVs To For Remote-Sensing Marine Surveillance
Defenseworld.net
China will launch the drones in an effort to conduct "remote-sensing marine surveillance" along the country's coastline. Yu provided no further details on the project except that at least one would be stationed at each base. According to State-run… Read more,
defenseworld.net
Majority of cities yet to develop master plan
Indian Express
The Ministry also said the process of developing GIS database for select 152 towns and cities across the country is on and that satellite image for all these places have been procured. Addressing a press conference on the National Urban Information … Read more,
indianexpress.com
EIGS Perspective (Full text)
The Sensor: Tell our readers about MELHCORP, its history, and your role with the company.
Melhado: For as long as I can remember…and I've been involved with Mississippi's geospatial cluster way back into the days when it initially started as the Mississippi Space Commerce Initiative …so for more than 15 years now, Mississippi's geospatial companies have gathered to gain knowledge, increase collaborative opportunities, voice their opinions, and participate in what is always a very dynamic meeting. MBA feels it is very important to continue to provide this well-established and very successful benefit to EIGS members.
The Sensor: Give us an idea of what attendees can expect to gain from this year's Annual Meeting?
Melhado: I started the company in 2004 to support the ARMY Unmanned Aerial Systems Project Office. I have been supporting UAVs since 1999 and have experience in many of the aircrafts and also in low power, rugged electronics. We were lucky to migrate from just engineering support to design and manufacture of electronic payloads and sensors. Some of these sensors and software modules are deployed and have been used for many years. We have worked with Hunter, Predator, Raven, Shadow, Snowgoose, etc. in many technologies like precision air delivery, communications relays, payload control and monitoring, etc. Additionally, we design and manufacture meteorological sensors. I am the president of the company, but spend most of my time as an electrical engineer.
The Sensor: What have been some of the bigger accomplishments for MELHCORP?
Melhado: The biggest accomplishment is that our products have saved lives. One day we received a call from Iraq from an engineer we supported using our products in the Hunter UAV. He called me directly and told me that we saved many lives that day with a payload we had just designed and was in the first week of being used. A convoy was stopped short of detected IEDs. Previously, there was no way to communicate from a UAV operator directly to a convoy on the field. It made us very proud knowing that our guys were returning to their families safe and sound and that we had something to do with it.
The Sensor: In order to give our readers a better idea about the customers you serve, tell us a little bit about your current and prior clients.
Melhado: ARMY Unmanned Aerial Systems Project Office – Redstone Arsenal, AL – Through prime contractor Northrop Grumman Corp – Sierra Vista, AZ – NGC is in charge of the Hunter UAV for the ARMY and we are part of their engineering and technology group. Design and manufacture of electronic payloads and sensors. NAVO – Naval Oceanographic Office – Stennis, MS – Design and manufacture of Tide Gauge Sensors. Stand alone, self-powered sensors, with satellite telemetry. NRL – Washington, DC – Sensors and engineering support for benthic underwater power generator systems. Designed and manufactured test systems for NRL. Also, designed unattended sensors and telemetry. GTSI – Manassas, VA – We supply software and components to GTSI as a Value Added Reseller. NDBC – Stennis, MS – We supply satellite telemetry and other hardware to NDBC as a Value Added Reseller.
The Sensor: As a small business, you are used to facing challenges every day, but tell us about the challenges the company has faced over the last several years in this volatile economy.
Melhado: The main challenge for our company is having a contract vehicle. We have been very lucky that NGC has funded us for all these years directly and that the demand has been steady.
The Sensor: You recently attended the EIGS Annual Meeting as a member company. What value do you think organizations such as EIGS and MBA brings to your company and to the region?
Melhado: A group is a lot stronger than a single company, and we need to have our local high tech companies linked together. Any initiative that can help and mentor companies is definitely an asset to the companies and therefore to the region. The more high tech companies that we can have locally, the higher the tax base, the higher the standard of living, and the higher quality choices of employment to the younger generations.
The Sensor: What do you see on the horizon for MELHCORP?
Melhado: Companies like mine have to be dynamic. Technology is always evolving, and we are an engineering company. We need to continue to keep up with modern electronics. I've seen several small high tech companies downsize or close doors recently. We will do what we have always done, take care of our customer so that he feels it would be crazy to go look for another company.
About MELHCORP LLC: Melhcorp performs design and integration of embedded systems, drop sondes, meteorological payloads and sensor modules for severe environments. For more information, contact Julio Melhado at 228.688.2684,
Julio.melhado@melhcorp.com, or visit
melhcorp.com
Commentary From: Michael Liu, Sr. Vice President, Dutko Grayling
