http://www.leica-geosystems.com/media/new/product_solution/Reporter_60_741803_en

60 The Global Magazine of Leica Geosystems

Dear Readers, A new edition of the “Reporter” lies on my desk, ready for printing. At such moments, the thought crosses my mind how exciting the business we all work in is. In close cooperation with our customers, the editorial team manages to present the whole range of measurement technologies – geomatics, engineering, construction, machine control, geographic information systems, and high definition scanning – by describing fascinating projects. These projects, realized by our customers, are very diverse: for example the Arabian Canal in Dubai’s desert, the Gotthard base tunnel in Switzerland, an American oil refinery, or the capturing and processing of digital aerial images in the UK.

CONTENTS

Editorial

03 57 km long and in the right Place 06 The City Walls of Dubrovnik 08 Project Savings at Deer Park 10 Arabian Canal: A Miracle in the Making 12 Laser Land Levelling 14 Refined Dimensions 18 A new Level of Precision 22 Leica TS30: Pride in Accuracy 23 NRS TruStory: First Prize goes to Latvia 23 Leica Geosystems Technologies: «Singapore Quality Class»

Infrastructure projects are an important factor in helping to ease the economic crisis that dominates the news as well as our everyday conversations at the moment. This is also demonstrated through the economic stimulus programmes launched by governments all around the world. Sustainability, stability, and reliability are becoming increasingly important.

At Leica Geosystems, we combine these values with a deep understanding of users’ needs – accuracy, productivity, and efficiency. Transferring these values and this knowledge into products and solutions, we enable our customers to stay ahead of their competitors. Thus, we not only contribute to their economic success, but also ensure that our “Reporter”-Team will have exciting projects to present in the future.

Enjoy reading!

Imprint Reporter: Customer Magazine of Leica Geosystems Published by: Leica Geosystems AG, CH-9435 Heerbrugg Editorial Office: Leica Geosystems AG, 9435 Heerbrugg, Switzerland, Phone +41 71 727 34 08, reporter@leica-geosystems.com Contents responsible: Alessandra Doëll (Director Communications) Editor: Agnes Zeiner Publication details: The Reporter is published in English, German, French, and Spanish, twice a year.

Ola Rollén CEO Hexagon and Leica Geosystems

Reprints and translations, including excerpts, are subject to the editor’s prior permission in writing. © Leica Geosystems AG, Heerbrugg (Switzerland), May 2009. Printed in Switzerland Cover: BSF Swissphoto AG: Employee Reto Bardill surveying in the Gotthard base tunnel

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57 km long and in the right Place

by Agnes Zeiner, Pictures: BSF Swissphoto AG

With the modernization of its railway infrastructure, Switzerland seeks to connect to the European high-speed train network and achieve a reduction in the amount of the transit traffic on its roads. One of the key projects is the “AlpTransit Gotthard”, at the heart of which is the Gotthard Base Tunnel: A 57-km-long twin-tube railway tunnel and the longest tunnel in Europe.

A challenge to the surveyors – under and on the mountain.

Switzerland lies at the centre of Europe and the Alps.

This compact country of blooming alpine pastures and the classic children's story of Heidi, is the same country that has a major share of European traffic rolling through it north to south – and back again.

Traffic flows have increased continuously over the decades, as more and more people and goods cross the Alps in both directions. One of the most important transit routes in Europe passes over the 2’108 m high St. Gotthard Pass.

Modern low-level rail link with speeds of up to 250 km/h The Gotthard Rail Tunnel was built more than 125 years ago. Otto Gelpke and Carl Koppe, two surveyors working independently of one another, each created a triangulation network, which – checked by comparison of the two meshes – was to form the basis for all the later surveys. In 1880 when the breakthrough of the 15 km long Gotthard Rail Tunnel took place, the deviation of the two headings was only 30 cm – an incredible success for the surveyors involved.

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Gotthard Base Tunnel Length: 57 km Scheduled completion: End of 2017 Construction costs (2008): 6.43 billion euro (8.62 billion US$) Construction costs (2008) including Ceneri Base Tunnel: 7.76 billion euro (10.41 billion US$) Surveying: Consortium VI-GBT c/o Grünenfelder und Partner AG and ARGE LOS349 c/o BSF Swissphoto AG, www.bsf-swissphoto.ch

Instruments used for tunnel surveying: Precision total station Leica TCA2003 Digital level Leica DNA03 Nadirlot NL Instruments used for monitoring : Precision total station Leica TCA2003 Monitoring software Leica GeoMoS Leica GPS System 500

Monitoring the Nalps dam wall

This would have been way outside the accuracy of 10 cm horizontally and 5 cm vertically required of the engineers working for the surveying consortium VIGBT today, because the new Gotthard Base Tunnel is designed for a modern low-level, high-speed railway. The highest point on the route is only 550 m above sea level and the maximum gradient is limited to 0.8 percent. This means that from the end of 2017 (scheduled date), high-speed trains with people, goods, and vehicles on board will be carried safely through the Alps at speeds of up to 250 km/h.

Perfect alignment of the track is essential for this to happen.

The hole in the right place Ensuring that the alignment complies with these requirements is the task of Ivo Schätti and his team from Grünenfelder & Partner AG, the lead engineering consultancy in the surveying consortium. As the client's surveying engineers, they are responsible for maintaining the correct position, height, and direction as the mega-tunnel heading advances. “You could say we have to make sure the hole is in the right place,” grins Schätti during our visit to his office in Domat-Ems, a small town near the Gotthard section of the works. A map on the wall showing the whole project gives rise to the suspicion that it might be somewhat more difficult than that. “The special aspects of this project naturally include its length,

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the five entry points out of which we work, and of course the required accuracy,” he adds.

Great effort for control surveys The mega-tunnel is being built from five places at once – the two portals at Erstfeld (north) and Bodio (south), and intermediate headings at Amsteg, Sedrun, and Faido. The basic primary network was created in 1995 and was completely resurveyed ten years later. “In 1995 the use of GPS was still relatively new, but our measurements confirmed that the points were stable,” declared Schätti.

One of the principal tasks of Grünenfelder & Partner AG at the moment is tunnel control. As the client's surveyors, the team can take more time for its measurements, but also work more intensely, using special instruments such as a gyrotheodolite and enjoying better working conditions than the contractor's survey teams, who continuously monitor and control the heading. Their measurements are usually taken when the site is shut down. “This entails coming into work over Christmas and on other public holidays,” says Schätti.

The checks are necessary as errors can creep in through many factors. One source of errors is temperature fluctuations: ventilation equipment distributes the relatively high temperatures uniformly

under the mountain specifically for the surveying operations and the survey concept was designed to suit these conditions. “When you are underground you do not know how gravity is behaving in response to different rock densities – these errors would be transferred immediately into our measurements.

Therefore we refer back to survey models based on measurements we have taken on the surface,” explains Ivo Schätti.

Dam wall monitoring on the surface While the tunnel boring machines are continuously eating their way through the base of the Gotthard massif, other measurements are being taken on the surface. Some parts of the tunnel pass directly under three water storage reservoirs, and although the tunnel lies very far underground, the effects on the surface should not be underestimated. “A tunnel affects the normal flows and pressures of ground water. The pressure loss due to the removal of the water in the rock could cause the mountain literally to cave in,” explains Ivo Schätti. A change of pressure like this could have disastrous consequences for the dam walls of the three reservoirs at Curnera, Nalps, and Santa Maria in the Upper Rhine Valley – and the tunnel driving would have to be stopped immediately.

monitoring the valley walls near the dam walls and the area in front of them. Measuring points were fixed directly on the rock or were set on up to 3metre-high concrete pillars which the team constructed themselves. No easy task, given that all the materials had to be flown in by helicopter and the prisms fixed on to vertical rock faces. Highly precise Leica TCA2003 total stations, protected against the weather in small enclosures and controlled using Leica GeoMoS, measure the movements of the prisms and transmit the data to monitoring software developed in-house. “The instruments have been operating since 2000 and continue to work perfectly,” he adds on behalf of a satisfied BSF Swissphoto. Spot level surveys were carried out at particularly critical areas along the route using a Leica GPS System 500 to determine the settlement of individual points.

The long, hard winters in the Swiss mountains make the team's job even more difficult: “In places the snow depths are huge, some points in avalanche areas are off limits for the whole of the winter, and often ice forms on the prisms and can remain there all day. In spite of all this we have been able to reach 90 percent of our points, even in the winter,” concludes Ivo Schätti.

For this reason BSF Swissphoto AG, the lead surveying consultant of the ARGE Los349 consortium, is

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The City Walls of Dubrovnik

by Miljenko Žabcic; Picture: Gerald Loacker

Geographica d.o.o. recently completed a major project which included scanning and comprehensive documentation of the almost 2 km long city walls of Dubrovnik in the very south of Croatia for the “Society of Friends of Dubrovnik's Cultural Heritage”, a group of engaged citizens.

The medieval city, nicknamed “the Pearl of the Adriatic”, is on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. Purpose of the four year project was to fully document the current state of the city walls and fortresses for future improvements and in order to preserve their current state for upcoming generations.

The “Society of Friends of Dubrovnik's Cultural Heritage” (Društvo prijatelja dubrovacke starine) approached Geographica d.o.o. in 2004, as Dubrovnik’s city walls hadn't ever been completely documented before. 3D laser scanning was selected as the best method. The documentation included scanning, modeling, and drawing and will be used for multiple purposes such as everyday maintenance, legal requirements, interior design for functionality improvements, cost estimate calculations for various work, study of the object in terms of its origin, and building stages.

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The town fortifications, ramparts, and towers outside the walls were built, reinforced, and reconstructed in the period from the 12th to the second half of the 17th century. A number of engineers were involved in these works – well known names such as Nicifor Ranjina in 1319, Michelozzo di Bartholomeo in 1461 –1464, Juraj Dalmatinac or George the Dalmatian in 1465–1466, Paskoje Milicevic in 1466–1516, and Antonio Ferramolino in 1538.

The main wall is 1’940 m long (following the ring-corridor), 4–6 m wide on the mainland side and between 1.5 and 5 m wide on the sea side. It is up to 25 m high in parts. The wall was reinforced by three circular and 14 quadrangular towers, five bastions (bulwarks), two angular fortifications, and a large fortress called Sveti Ivan (St. John). Among the towers, the most monumental is the circular tower of Minceta, on the north-western corner of the ramparts. The reinforcement, along the main wall on the mainland side, includes one larger and nine smaller semicircular bastions, and the casemate fortress Bokar, the oldest preserved fortress of its kind in Europe.

Very dense scan data Since one of the products to be achieved with the scan data were plane drawings of the current state of the walls, including drawings of the wall’s struc-

ture, scans had to be very dense. Therefore all the walls ware scanned with a resolution of under 1 cm, usually around 5–8 mm, depending of the shape of the stones. Only the interiors of the fortresses were scanned with a resolution of 2.5 cm. The scan data is a very important part of the final product because it will be used in the future for precise measurements in the process of preservation.

3D model as simplified representation A 3D model was created as a simplified representation of the walls and fortresses but it contained all main construction elements of the walls. It is used for general planning in various projects, fast overview of parts of interest, calculations of quantity and expenses in preservation works and presentations.

The model was created in two steps. The first step was edge extraction, done with Leica Cyclone Software by converting the edges of scan data into lines and polylines. The second step was the generation of surfaces from the extracted edges. Surfaces were generated in a CAD environment to ensure the whole model is suitable for a wide range of applications and users.

Plane drawings as documentation of the current state Generating the plane drawings was the most demanding and time-consuming part of the project.

According to Croatian laws of preservation of cultural heritage this documentation has to be prepared for plot with a scale factor of 1 : 50 and must include ground views, horizontal, and vertical sections and facade (elevation) views with stone structure. Every drawing has to be dimensioned with plane and height dimensions.

Drawings were created in a CAD environment using Leica CloudWorks for AutoCAD. These drawings are very detailed and contain all the segments of the walls including drawings of every individual stone.

The number of required drawings was not defined at the project beginning. There have to be enough to represent every part of the walls and every segment of its construction. In case of disaster it must be possible to completely reconstruct the walls according to this documentation. Such drawings are also used for detailed planning in preservation and restoration, studying the walls’ history and phases of building, everyday preservation works in the field, and various other tasks.

About the author: Miljenko Žabcic is a surveying engineer and director of Geographica d.o.o. in Split, Croatia. Geographica d.o.o., founded in 1999, employs 12 experts covering the fields of geodesy, architecture, construction, and archaeology. The company was the first in Croatia to start using 3D laser scanning technology in 2003.

City Walls of Dubrovnik Total perimeter (including both sides of the walls): 4’300 m Total scanned area: 120’000 m² Scanning time: 240 days (1 scanner, 2 operators) Products: Leica HDS2500, Leica ScanStation Total project time: 4 years with two persons in the field and three persons in the office

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Project Savings at Deer Park

by Stefana Vella

One of Australia’s leading construction companies, Leighton Contractors, is realizing the benefits of using Leica GradeSmart and Leica DigSmart machine control technology during construction of Melbourne’s $331 million, 9.3 km Deer Park bypass. Leica Geosystems distributors CR Kennedy fitted several graders and excavators with the latest GNSS 3D technology to deliver higher productivity, machine utilization, and performance.

The Deer Park bypass is the largest design and construction contract awarded by VicRoads and features four lanes and four major interchanges over its 9.3 km length. Scheduled to open in late 2009, the bypass will eliminate 20 intersections and is expected to reduce journeys by up to 15 minutes.

Leighton Construction Manager Ray Wall chose to equip three graders (two John Deere 872 and a Caterpillar 140H) with Leica GradeSmart 3D technology and to fit two subcontractor excavators with Leica DigSmart 3D guidance systems. Calculating the return

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on investment was straightforward, Mr. Wall said: “The grader systems have basically cut out the need for two or three blokes with stringlines and pegs for each machine. And with the two excavator systems we have also been able to cut a man out because we don’t need a spotter measuring with the excavators.

The systems are cheap to buy when compared to what you are saving. When you add up nine wages if you were using surveying crews you are miles ahead and over a two-year project like this that adds up to substantial wage costs. You also don’t have to water or feed them or get them out of the weather.”

Compatibility with surveying equipment Deer Park bypass senior surveyor, Greg Bennett of GW Bennett & Associates said Leica Geosystems’ compatibility with surveyor’s equipment was a major feature. “We load the designs straight from our Leica LISCAD software already in the format required by the graders. With the Leica Geosystems’ system we can also load much more information onto the data card than any other system available and we can do it quicker because there are no compatibility problems. We can load 16 MB of data on one data card, but we generally break the project into two design

models of about 8 MB each. Compare that to some other systems that will only take 1 MB total – it is a massive advantage,” he said.

ably 20 percent quicker and you don’t have to wait for anyone to grade check – it becomes a one-man operation.”

Ray Wall added: “This gives us great flexibility with the graders because we can move them anywhere on the project – with other systems we are limited until we load new designs if a grader needs to move.”

Set in automatic mode, the Leica GradeSmart 3D system precisely controls the blade to the design model loaded, moving it to the required elevation, angle, and side shift in real time – eliminating operator guesswork, multipassing, and the need for re-work.

“Wouldn’t do it any other way”

One-man operation Fitting Leica DigSmart 3D technology to two contractor’s excavators has also delivered timesavings for Leighton Contractors. “With excavators you’d generally have to peg trenches up to three times as they got closer to the design, now with Leica Geosystems’ technology we start at ground level and go through in a complete cut – the operator does everything according to the instructions,” Mr. Wall said. “It is basically stake-less and with GNSS is accurate to ± 30 mm so when we are pulling up batters it is prob-

Leica DigSmart monitors the precise position of the digging bucket with the data appearing via an onboard monitor in real time allowing the operator to excavate, trench, or batter confidently. “We can have the GNSS machine cut slots in batters every 20 m and then put another excavator in there to work off those slots,” Mr. Wall said. “The accuracy we achieve using DigSmart when digging drains and other earthworks is a lot better than having an operator trying to measure off pegs. This is the first job where we’ve had a lot to do with the stake-less systems – I’ve seen it at EastLink [compare Reporter 57] and was impressed with it and thought we would give it a go here. Now I wouldn’t do it any other way.”

About the author: Stefana Vella is Business Development Consultant and Marketing Manager for Machine Control at C.R. Kennedy & Company Pty. Ltd., Leica Geosystems Dealer in Australia.

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Arabian Canal: A Miracle in the Making

by Agnes Zeiner

“Like our CEO, Saeed Ahmed Saeed, one must be visionary,” insists Dr. Nedal Al-Hanbali, Head of Corporate Geomatics Information Systems at Limitless LLC. Visionary is the way to describe the Arabian Canal, a project on which the surveyor will work for the next 15 years. In the Dubai desert, Limitless is building a 75 km long canal and waterside city where up to two million people will live and work.

Nedal Al-Hanbali’s life can be defined as dedicated to establishing and building a new standard and caliber of Geomatics/GIS in the real estate industry using state-of-the-art technologies. One of his most

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important projects is the Arabian Canal. “At Limitless we have visionary objectives that do not remain dreams, but are actually realized. The consequences are projects as unique and innovative as the Arabian Canal. This visionary approach is the reason I joined Limitless,” explains the Geomatics/Surveying expert, former professor at the Al-Balqa’ University in Jordan and researcher at the University of Calgary/Canada.

Modern city in the Dubai desert This fascinating project involves construction of a 75 km long canal, in the shape of a horseshoe, flowing inland from Palm Jumeirah harbor to the west to the new Dubai World Central International Airport, and east to the harbor area again. It will be approximately 150 m wide and 6 m deep.

On its banks will be hills and valleys – a new topography for Dubai – and a modern, sustainable city.

Supplied with water from the Gulf, Arabian Canal will have marinas, promenades, beaches, and public transport on the canal. Construction costs for the waterway – the most complex civil engineering project ever undertaken in the Middle East – are estimated at US$11 billion.

For a project of this magnitude it is crucial to use resources as economically as possible. “The project involves moving large amounts of earth each day, which requires a highly efficient system,” explains Dr. Nedal. “The basis for the system is a model of the terrain that is constantly kept up to date with the aid of a complex interaction between total stations, GPS/GNSS, HDS scanners, airborne digital sensor cameras with LIDAR, reference stations, and to some extent custom software.”

Continuous support Several Leica Geosystems instruments for static and dynamic measurements are used in this process. A high definition scanner, Leica ScanStation 2, provides point clouds of the terrain, while Leica SmartPoles are used for the surveying. A dedicated GNSS reference station network with five stations and Leica GNSS Spider software provide the necessary RTK correction data for the entire area. Soon a further reference station will be added.

Before appointing Leica Geosystems as a supplier, a number of possible systems were put through their paces, explains Nedal Al-Hanbali. “We organized a ‘competition’ between the various providers to obtain the best possible instruments for our requirements. Important factors included speed, efficiency, accuracy, the integration of software and workflows, and also the customer support and people behind these products. During this process all companies offered their equipment for several days of testing in the Arabian Canal pilot excavation. The regional sales partner for Leica Geosystems, Geco, was very cooperative, offering their scanner for three consecutive tests to explore all possible scanning and processing possibilities. As a result we could check on-site that the instruments – and service – met our requirements. Geco now also provides us with continuous support during the construction phase.”

Limitless LLC Global Real Estate Developer Business unit of Dubai World, one of Dubai's leading business groups Set up in July 2005 CEO: Saeed Ahmed Saeed Vision: “To enhance and enrich lives through the delivery of distinctive, sustainable developments.”

Geco – General Enterprises Company Leica Geosystems’ Partner in the United Arab Emirates for 32 years Distribution, training, and service 30 employees Projects: Al Garhoud Bridge, Dubai Reference station network Abu Dhabi Burj Dubai [see Reporter 56] Abu Dhabi Airport

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Laser Land Levelling

by Raymond Chia

The economical benefits of perfectly levelled fields are enormous, especially in India. For instance, a levelled field results in substantial watersavings and an increase in yield and product quality. Rotating lasers have become essential tools for agricultural applications. They make faster work of many jobs, while eliminating costly errors for precise levelling. Once considered “nice to have,” today they are a competitive “must have” to get the job done efficiently and precisely.

24 percent due to good field levelling. A large part of this increase is realized due to improved weed control. Therefore, with the improved water coverage, resulting from proper levelling, the weeds can be reduced by up to 40 percent. In addition, land levelling frees up land for cultivation, resulting in larger fields and larger farming areas, which improves the operational efficiency. Furthermore, levelling reduces the time needed for planting and transplanting.

It even gives a greater opportunity to use the much faster, direct seeding process.

Efficiency of water use Uneven soil surface has a major impact on the germination, stand, and yield of crops due to inhomogeneous water distribution and soil moisture. Therefore, land levelling is a precursor to good agronomic, soil, and crop management practices. Furthermore, resource conservation technologies perform better on well-levelled and laid-out fields.

Benefits of land levelling Effective land levelling optimises water-use, improves crop establishment, reduces the irrigation time and the effort required to manage the crop. It reduces the work in crop establishment and crop management, and increases the yield and product quality.

Research has shown an increase in rice yield of up to

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The average difference in height between the highest and lowest portions of rice fields in Asia is 160 mm.

This means that in an unlevelled field an extra 80 mm to 100 mm of water must be stored in the field to give complete water coverage. This is nearly an extra 10 percent of the total water requirement to grow the crop. Land levelling effectively terraces fields, allowing water in the higher fields to be used in the lower fields for land preparation, plant establishment, and irrigation.

Economics of land levelling The initial cost of land levelling using contractor sand machinery is high. This cost varies with the volume of soil to be moved and the soil type. However, using

Principle of Laser Land Levelling Leica Rugby 100LR transmits the laser beam

Leica MLS700 Sensor detects the laser beam

Levelled land

more sophisticated equipment increases the area that can be levelled each day and several examples show that the initial costs are paid back within 1 or 2 years due to the improved yield.

Farmers recognize this and therefore devote considerable attention and resources to levelling their fields properly. However, traditional methods of levelling land are not only more cumbersome and timeconsuming, but more expensive as well. For instance, rice farmers level their fields very often under ponded water conditions. Others dry level their fields and check the level by ponding water. With these methods a considerable amount of water is wasted.

Laser land levelling – the cost-effective solution Laser levelling systems are commonly used in agricultural applications in Australia, Japan, and the United States. Increasingly, laser-guided systems are being used in less developed country as well. The advantages are obvious: No waste of water to check the field level Reduced operating time Increased productivity Precisely levelled and smooth soil surface Before the levelling process can start, the fields must be to be plowed and a topographic survey undertaken, in most situations. Depending on the amount of soil that must be cut, it may be necessary to plow during and after the levelling operation, as well.

Leica MCP700 Control Panel helps control the level of the machine

Land to be levelled

MLS700 Laser Sensor and the Leica MCP700 Control Panel. The Leica Rugby 100LR is mounted on a tripod and placed in a central point of the field. This allows the laser beam to sweep unobstructed above the tractor. As the Leica Rugby 100LR has an operating range of 1’500 m in diameter, several tractors can work with the “plane of light above the field” coming from one device. The laser beam of the Leica Rugby 100LR is detected by the Leica MLS700 Laser Sensor, which is mounted on the mast attached to the drag bucket. It transmits the signals to the Leica MCP700 Control Panel, which controls the level of the machine and operates the hydraulic valves. With the hydraulic valves the levelling bucket can be raised and lowered.

The desired rate at which the bucket has to be raised and lowered depends on the operating speed. The faster the ground speed, the faster the bucket will need to be adjusted.

Once a field has been levelled, plowing techniques must be changed to keep it level. Farmers are encouraged to plow from the center of the field out rather than continuing to use the traditional technique of plowing from the outside of the field into the centre.

If appropriate plowing techniques are used, re-levelling the whole field should not be necessary for at least eight to ten years.

About the author: Raymond Chia works as regional marketing manager in Asia Pacific for the Leica Geosystems Precision Tools Division.

An optimal combination of instruments for laser land levelling exists with the Leica Rugby 100LR, the Leica

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Refined Dimensions

by Seth Goucher and Brayden L. Sheive

Today's modern oil refinery is a huge, efficient industrial facility that takes crude petroleum pumped from deep within the earth and turns it into useful products such as gasoline, aviation fuel, lubricating oil, home heating oil, and more. Motiva Enterprises LLC, a joint-venture owned by affiliates of Shell and Saudi Aramco, is building an epic expansion at its refinery in Port Arthur, Texas. This project is vital to providing additional transportation fuels for the American consumer.

When completed in 2010, the Motiva Port Arthur Refinery Expansion Project will create a 325’000 barrel-per-day (b/d) capacity expansion at the Port Arthur refinery, increasing its crude oil throughput capacity to 600’000 b/d. The expansion will make the refinery the largest in the U.S., and among the top 10 in the world. The project is equivalent to building a major new refinery. The last new refinery in the U.S. was built more than 30 years ago.

To accommodate a project of this magnitude, the construction plans include offsite fabrication of modular units. The modules that are being fabricated are pipe racks and large sections of the process units. These modular sections of the plant are built to a tight

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tolerance, and are designed to fit one another while matching up correctly with the remaining sections of the unit that are built onsite. All the modules will arrive at the Port Arthur dock on barges, to be offloaded onto a large multiple-wheel transport vehicle which takes the modules directly to their final positions within each unit.

Four fabrication contractors located in Maine, South Carolina, Texas, and Mexico were selected from more than 120 companies worldwide. Located in Brewer, Maine, Cianbro Constructors, LLC is fabricating 53 of these geometrically complex modules. Each module weighs up to 650 tons, with an average size of 40 ft x 50 ft x 120 ft (12 m x 15 m x 36.5 m), and every module must be constructed to within one-eighth of an inch (3 mm) tolerance at pipe connections. It's a complex surveying task that normally is accomplished by using conventional total stations, tapes and automatic levels. Today, Cianbro surveyors and engineers look to the latest high-definition surveying and reflectorless total station technology for improved speed, accuracy and reliability.

From paper to oil Modern refineries are made up of heat exchangers, reactors, separators, compressors and other oil processing equipment. These components are linked by an intricate network of pipes designed to convert

crude oil into a useful petroleum product, efficiently and with environmental care. A critical phase of this conversion is called hydrotreating and/or hydrocracking, the process that removes sulfur and other contaminants from refinery products.

Cianbro's job is to fabricate Motiva's advanced hydrotreater and hydrocracker units, along with other modules for the expansion project. This task creates approximately 500 local, quality jobs and contributes significantly to Maine's economy.

As a start, Cianbro converted its 39-acre (150 m²) Eastern Manufacturing Facility located along the Penobscot River in Brewer from an idle paper mill into a state-of-the-art modular fabrication yard.

The jobsite includes a sprawling crushed rock yard, sidewalk-grade concrete slabs and giant hydraulic cranes designed to lift the steel beams and columns that eventually frame each modular section. A 500square-foot (46.5 m²) module fabrication pad is able to accommodate up to 20 modules simultaneously.

The administration building encloses 12’000 square feet (111.5 m²), and a heavy haul road leads to the barge bulkhead.

Tight tolerances Each refinery module is a prefabricated, self-standing steel structure approximately four stories tall.

It is constructed of steel beams that create the frame upon which pipes, valves, pumps and wiring are pieced together to form a catalytic-cracker-feed hydrotreater, and hydrocracker units.

Before the fabrication begins, a team of work package engineers at Cianbro's Eastern Manufacturing Facility dissects detailed 3D diagrams of the refinery units, drawings that are provided by the owner. The team builds work packages for each module, using 3-D Construct Sim software. The work packages consist of isometric drawings that detail weld types, pipe specifications, and 3D spatial data. Once a module's work package is complete, fabrication begins.

At each module staging pad, construction crews position transport beams and vertical column base plates that form the foundation of a unique module.

The horizontal transport beams are positioned four to five feet above the ground so that the hauling trailers can slide under the module, lift it and carry it to the shipping dock upon completion.

Cianbro's field engineers use two Leica TCRA705 reflectorless total stations tied to the Maine state plane coordinate system to monitor every module fabrication pad continuously. Once the beams and columns are in place, engineers are able to verify that the structural steel tolerances of 3/8 " (9.5 mm)

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on location, 5/8 " (16 mm) per 50 vertical feet (15 m) plumb and 1/8 " (3.2 mm) on elevation are met.

The two Leica TCRA705 total stations continue to monitor for settlement and/or column movement throughout the module construction, since such movements might cause the structural steel to be out of tolerance. Engineers check the tolerances every morning, and prescribe the proper adjustments so as not to hold up production.

Scanned alternatives Once a module's beam and plate foundation is in place, structural crews begin to piece the components together at the module's lowest level, based upon the specifications contained in the work package. Every work package includes pre-defined pipes and other components.

process which would prove detrimental to the tight timelines defined by the client for construction of the refinery's modules.

Instead, Cianbro turned to high definition scanning, a relatively new technology that allows surveyors to create highly accurate, measurable 3D digital images of a structure or scene, quickly and easily. Studies conducted by Cianbro indicated that scanning a module would cut the position verification process from days to just hours, while providing improved accuracy and data consistency. In early 2008, the manufacturer purchased its first Leica ScanStation 2 scanner able to provide full 360 ° x 270 ° field of view from a single scan and long range accuracy to six millimeters, with 300-meter maximum range. The Leica ScanStation 2 fires at 50’000 points per second.

Collecting clouds When a module level is complete, Cianbro surveyors verify the positional location and accuracy of each component per the owner's specifications. In previous situations that required field verifications such as these, Cianbro relied on conventional tapes, automatic levels and total stations to gather the necessary spatial data. It's typically a long and tedious

As structural crews complete a module level, Cianbro surveyors set up the HDS ScanStation 2 on a tripod and begin scanning. A scan typically covers about one-quarter of a module depending on the module's size. That process takes about 15 to 30 minutes to complete and will record some 1.5 million points. The field engineering crew then moves to the next position to scan another portion of the module. The full verification scan takes about two hours as the scanner is moved four to six times to ensure complete coverage of the module. The crew uses a traverse method to collect, constrain, and register a 3D point cloud of the entire module. The data is then tied directly to the site's local coordinate system.

Once the 3D scan data is collected, the ScanStation 2 technicians map the information into a single file.

They verify that the collected data is precise and highly accurate by using Leica Cyclone 6.0 and Leica Cloudworx 4.0 software. The database created within the team's laptop in the field is then transferred to the Dell XPS desktop, which is also equipped with the proper Cyclone software for the final rendering and geospatial referencing of the structural steel and pipe end locations.

This information is then compared to the design values acquired from the owner's pre-determined theoretical design. If the engineers find a variance out of tolerance, they note the pipe end or structural steel values and relay the information to the Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) team. The appro-

16 | Reporter

priate crew then receives the required re-alignment procedures from QA/QC. The laser scan verification is repeated at each module's construction hold point, typically at the completion of a defined level. Follow-up scans at the second, third and fourth levels of a module provide further verification that variances found during previous scans have been corrected. The final report is then placed within the deliverables to the client.

Less risk, speedy support Typically, the structural crews can erect an averagesize module in a little over a week. The combination of high definition scanning and reflectorless total stations has allowed Cianbro to minimize its field engineering crew to four team members, who support more than 450 craftspeople in the construction of all 53 modules. The scanning technology has also helped minimize the risk to field engineers on the busy fabrication site by eliminating the need to climb modules to gather position data. With the high definition laser scanner, they can collect all necessary data from the ground. Not only is the risk eliminated, but the time to collect the data is only a fraction of

the traditional collection methods that are carried out by much larger field crews. By reducing the time needed to collect data, the field engineering crew is less apt to impact the production yield of the associated crafts who erect the modules.

By the end of 2009, all 53 modules will be completed and shipped to Port Arthur.

About the authors: Seth Goucher is a chief field engineer for Cianbro Corporation and a third generation Cianbro employee residing in Maine. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree with an emphasis in forestry from Unity College. Goucher is credited with introducing Cianbro to the spatial data collection capabilities of HDS technology. Brayden Sheive is a field engineer and HDS technician with Cianbro Constructors. He recently graduated from the University of Maine with a Bachelor of Science in Construction Management Technology Engineering with minors in Survey Engineering Technology and Business Administration.

This article is a reprint of “The American Surveyor�, March 2009.

The Global Magazine of Leica Geosystems | 17

“Landcover”

“Habitat”

Landcover refers to the physical cover on the Earth’s surface, be it a simple subdivision of vegetated and non-vegetated land or all the way down to vegetation species. Landuse on the other hand is the human modification of the natural environment and includes classes such as cultivated land, residential and industrial.

A habitat is a place or set of natural conditions where a plant or animal lives such as a hedgerow or heath land. Landuse and habitat maps are inherently difficult to generate because they may include several different landcover types or require a contextual interpretation. For example, a grassy landcover could be either a pasture or used for recreation, amongst other uses.

A new Level of Precision

by Andrew Tewkesbury and Anthony Denniss

Infoterra, a leader in the provision of geospatial products and services, originally purchased a Leica ADS40 Airborne Digital Sensor, like most other operators, in order to replace a conventional 9 inch film survey camera. However, the “satellite” sensor qualities of the camera have meant that Infoterra has been able to exploit the acquired imagery far more than expected.

On delivery, the Leica ADS40 was put into immediate operation acquiring data in the UK suitable for producing a colour RGB ground-orthophoto at 25 cm resolution. This was no small task because Infoterra, and its joint-venture partner, was in the process of flying the whole of England, an area of approximately 130’000 km², to build a seamless orthophoto mosaic.

This is an even more daunting task when you con-

18 | Reporter

sider the UK weather, which at best is unpredictable, even during the so-called summer months. When the sun does shine the Leica ADS40 certainly proves its worth by allowing more data to be captured during each flying day than was possible with the previous film camera technology.

Once captured, the data was very impressive, not only in terms of resolution but also in terms of image consistency and radiometric performance. The CCD array, capturing multiple datasets, has allowed Infoterra to expand its standard product portfolio beyond traditional natural colour imagery. A complete data stack is now available including colour infra-red (CIR), digital surface model (DSM), and digital terrain model (DTM). This data stack offers a wealth of information such as landcover, feature height, and slope information, which can help studies as diverse as habitat analysis and soil erosion estimation.

As the world becomes more ‘spatially aware’ there is an ever increasing demand to measure and monitor our environment, be it for climate change, biodiversity, or urban development. Such activities heighten the need for value-added products, beyond just imagery, to quantify key features present in geographic data. The depth and quality of information captured using the Leica ADS40 takes us a giant leap towards providing the required measurements.

Landcover Landcover information is a crucial first step requirement as it can be used as a quantitative descriptor of the landscape, as well as a base to derive other information such as habitat maps and landuse. Traditionally, landcover information is extracted in two different ways: either automatically by classifying the “color” of a satellite image into its most appropriate class or manually by interpreting aerial photography based on color and contextual information.

The satellite method usually gives a spatially coarse measurement but has the potential to identify quite specific classes quickly. The aerial photo method can create highly detailed mapping but is very labour intensive. Infoterra, using the ADS40 and the latest image classification technology, has moved towards a best-of-both-worlds solution using the “color” or “spectral” descriptor of the 4 channels, the high resolution, and height information for context.

Object-based image classification is used to semiautomate this process whereby the imagery is segmented (separated into meaningful chunks) into areas of consistent color and texture. Each of these objects can then be assigned specifics such as color, texture and height, but also contextual information such as the difference to surrounding objects.

Combining this technology along with the wide area coverage and radiometric consistency of the Leica ADS40 allows Infoterra to tackle large areas and provide a National product.

The specification of this classification was developed after reviewing numerous existing schemes both UK and European in origin (such as LCM2007, NLUD & CORINE), assessing market needs and iteratively trialling the classification technology to see what was possible and robust. A generic, thematic approach was taken while retaining the high spatial resolution of the original data. The prime reason this approach was taken is that it allows a high resolution measure of the basic landcover make-up, while being suitable for bespoke thematic upgrades to specific client requirements. The resultant product from Infoterra is LandBase™.

LandBase provides three Level 1 classes and ten Level 2 classes captured to a MMU (Minimum Mapping Unit) of 50 m² allowing analysis down to individual building and tree level. Level 2 classes include: sea

>>

The Global Magazine of Leica Geosystems | 19

LandBase Level 2 classification over Derby City

LandBase Level 2 classification over Ladybower

Center utilising LIDAR height information to further

Reservoir, Peak District, UK.

improve classification accuracy.

& estuary, inland water, artificial surface, buildings, bare ground, herbaceous vegetation, sub-shrubs, shrubs, tall shrubs/small trees, and trees.

Urban and rural settings In an urban setting landcover mapping can give useful insights into the make up of a city, such as sealed surfaces (surfaces sealed with concrete or paving for example) and urban density. The vegetation types identified as part of LandBase are suitable to accurately define the green space within a city which can be used for historical tracking, environmental assessments, and flood modelling. As much of the Leica ADS40 data stack as possible is included in the LandBase product to provide height information and local cover statistics. This information can be used for volumetric analysis and measures of building/tree density. Such information is routinely used for telecommunications network planning but may also be linked into diverse applications such as air quality models and human geography.

For urban areas, Infoterra has also enhanced the LandBase classification by incorporating Lidar height information, where available. This not only improves the height precision it also helps to better define buildings into regular shaped objects.

Classifying rural regions in this way opens up many new possibilities, for example woodland extent is captured in such precise detail to include individual and small groups of trees. Typically, existing wood-

20 | Reporter

land mapping by photo-interpretation only captures extents greater than 5’000 m². Identification of shrubs gives the possibility of hedgerow extraction and in turn an estimate of a crucial habitat. Seminatural environments, such as upland heath, have traditionally been mapped as either heather or grass dominant parcels, but can now be broken down in detail to grass, heather and bare earth components, allowing more precise extent monitoring.

Using LandBase it is possible to fulfil some very specific classification goals. For example, if a local authority or council was introducing a household composting scheme or monitoring the current collection volumes, then extracting garden area would be useful information. By using growing routines within a spatially aware ruleset, garden extents have been extracted automatically for a 25 km² test site in Leicestershire. The routine includes grasses, shrubs, and trees of small extent close to buildings, while excluding woodland, recreational, and common land.

A step beyond Landcover By using a similar approach of applying logical rules, a more detailed 16 class habitat map of the same study area was generated automatically to include classes such as reed bed, improved amenity grassland, and scattered scrub. Such mapping is used by local authorities for monitoring purposes but this same approach could be applied to add higher levels of landcover complexity or for detailed landuse mapping.

Garden extents extracted automatically using LandBase and CIR imagery over Leicestershire, UK.

In capturing a “snapshot in time” LandBase has been proven to aid change detection when used with historical data. Semi-automatic mapping has been carried out over Leicester and Maidstone to identify areas which have recently been built up; from new housing estates down to the level of newly tarmaced driveways. This was made possible by comparing the latest Leica ADS40 imagery and historical imagery within LandBase. Areas which have changed from vegetation to artificial surface or buildings are automatically highlighted by a classification routine.

Such a method has proven even more effective than manual interpretation because of the difficulties of a seemingly easy game of spot-the-difference – we all know is never as easy as you expect. The image resolution has allowed the identification of changes to existing properties, for example building extensions, as well as new developments to be detected, and the wide area coverage has added large sample sizes giving greater statistical validity when doing cross analysis.

About the Authors: Andrew Tewkesbury is Technical Development Manager at Infoterra Ltd. His focus is developing new image processing techniques and utilizing new satellite and airborne sensors. Dr Anthony Denniss, COO for Infoterra Ltd., is responsible for delivering operational efficiencies across the entire business on a dayto-day basis. Anthony’s academic background is in cartography and geological remote sensing.

The Future The quality and depth of data available from the Leica ADS40 has significantly helped Infoterra meet its goal of being able to quantify and monitor the environment/surroundings in acute detail. Also the wide area collection of the sensor gives more scope for consistent data and regular updates. Statistics at a level not previously available can allow more informed decision making for a range of areas – urban planning, environmental management, and flood modelling. As the above example shows, the real power of the Leica ADS40 and successive camera’s such as the Leica ADS80, might be in providing a time series of consistent imagery, from which detailed change detection can be undertaken – allowing a new level of precision for monitoring what is really happening to our urban and rural landscapes.

If you thought the Leica ADS40 only delivers good quality imagery, then think again about the wealth of information that imagery actually contains.

More information: http://www.infoterra.co.uk/data_landbase.php

The Global Magazine of Leica Geosystems | 21

Leica TS30

Pride in Accuracy It all started more than 75 years ago with the Wild T3 precision theodolite that stunned the surveying community with highly accurate measurements. Now, four generations later, Leica Geosystems continues to build on the values of accuracy and quality. The latest generation of Champions, the Leica TS30 total station, has reached the pinnacle of accuracy.

Highly precise and accurate surveying has always been an important aspect in challenging surveying and engineering projects all over the world. Beside the optimum measurement network configuration and the appropriate operation of the survey equipment by survey engineers, the survey instruments are the most important factor in the success of any challenging project. Leica Geosystems has always provided engineers with the latest, revolutionary and most accurate technologies and solutions, achieving the highest possible accuracies.

The new Leica TS30 total station redefines precise surveying by offering unmatched accuracy and quality, delivering impressive performance in individual disciplines. It perfectly combines angle measurement, distance measurement, automatic target recognition and motorization. To achieve maximum acceleration and speed whilst maintaining optimal accuracy under the most demanding dynamic conditions, new direct drives using Piezo technology were developed for the Leica TS30. Piezo direct drives enable high

22 | Reporter

speed motorization and acceleration capabilities with low power consumption. The long service interval and low maintenance costs ensure maximum productivity.

The Leica TS30 is the result of a long tradition and constant innovations based on intensive research. It is in a league of its own, a true companion for surveyors who take great pride in accuracy.

Technical data Leica TS30 Angle Measurement Accuracy (horizontal, vertical)

0.5 " (0.15 mgon)

Display resolution

0.01 " (0.01 mgon)

Method

Absolute, continuous, quadruple

Distance Measurement Accuracy to prism

0.6 mm + 1 ppm

Accuracy to natural surfaces

2 mm + 2 ppm

Method

System analyzer based on phase shift measurement (coaxial, visible red laser)

Motorization Maximum acceleration

400 gon (360 °) / s²

Maximum speed

200 gon (180 °) / s

Method

Direct drives based on Piezo technology

NRS TruStory – First Prize goes to Latvia “Background information why, where, and how our customers apply our products and solutions to the benefit of their projects is very interesting to us and to other customers. Therefore we have initiated the ‘GNSS Networks & Reference Stations TruStory’ (NRS TruStory) program, which offers our customers the opportunity to provide relevant information on their project(s) in a compact, efficient, and attractive way,” says Frank Pache, Product Manager at Leica Geosystems.

station network in Latvia (http://latpos.lgia.gov.lv).

The NRS TruStories can be read online on our website at www.leica-geosystems.com/nrs.

If you would like to submit an NRS TruStory, please contact us via nrs.trustory@leica-geosystems.com.

Detailed information and a template document are provided with every Leica GNSS Spider installation media.

Janis Zvirgzds, Manager at Latvia Geospatial Information Agency, was the first Leica Geosystems GNSS Networks & Reference Stations customer to win a prize for his NRS TruStory. The prize, a Leica DISTO™ A2 handheld laser distance meter, was handed over by Andris Cinis, member of the Board at GPS Partners, Ltd., Leica Geosystems’ distributor in Latvia. In his NRS TruStory, Janis Zvirgzds described the establishment of LatPos, the first GPS base

Leica Geosystems Technologies achieves Singapore Quality Class Certification Leica Geosystems Technologies (LGT) Singapore has been certified with the Singapore Quality Class award. This award is part of the “Business Excellence” framework that helps organisations strengthen their business management capabilities to drive productivity and performance improvements.

of the certification”, says Josef Strasser. “A study from the National University of Singapore shows that enterprises certified to the Singapore Quality Class have consistently outperformed their counterparts in the industry by an average of 50 percent in terms of sales growth over a five year period.”

“This certification has clearly demonstrated our commitment and determination to continuously upgrade our business management capabilities for continued business growth. We strongly believe that having strong management capabilities means we can perform well, especially during economic downturns”, says managing director Josef Strasser.

Leica Geosystems Technologies manufactures products and tools for applications such as surveying, machine control, heavy and light construction, interior construction, and agriculture.

The “Business Excellence” framework is aligned to international business excellence frameworks. Certified organisations are provided with opportunities to learn from the best practices of leading organisations on the business excellence journey. After meeting the ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001:2004 standards two years ago, the Singapore Quality Class certification was a “logical step” for Leica Geosystems Technologies (LGT) Singapore. “We are very proud

Prof Cham Tao Soon, Chairman, Singapore Quality Awards Governing Council, hands over the SQC Award to Mr. Josef Strasser.

The Global Magazine of Leica Geosystems | 23

www.leica-geosystems.com Head Office Leica Geosystems AG Heerbrugg, Switzerland Phone +41 71 727 31 31 Fax +41 71 727 46 74

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São Paulo Phone +55 11 3142 8866 Fax +55 11 3142 8886

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Canada Leica Geosystems Ltd. Willowdale Phone +1 416 497 2460 Fax +1 416 497 8516

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Warsaw Phone +48 22 338 15 00 Fax +48 22 338 15 22

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Italy Leica Geosystems S.p.A. Cornegliano Laudense Phone + 39 0371 69731 Fax + 39 0371 697333

Portugal Leica Geosystems, Lda. Sao Domingos de Rana Phone +351 214 480 930 Fax +351 214 480 931

United Kingdom Leica Geosystems Ltd. Milton Keynes Phone +44 1908 256 500 Fax +44 1908 246 259

Denmark Leica Geosystems A/S Herlev Phone +45 44 54 02 02 Fax +45 44 45 02 22

Japan Leica Geosystems K.K. Tokyo Phone +81 3 5940 3011 Fax +81 3 5940 3012

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Illustrations, descriptions, and technical data are not binding. All rights reserved. Printed in Switzerland.

Copyright Leica Geosystems AG, Heerbrugg, Switzerland, 2009. 741803en – V.09 – RVA

Leica Geosystems AG Heinrich-Wild-Strasse CH-9435 Heerbrugg Phone +41 71 727 31 31 Fax +41 71 727 46 74 www.leica-geosystems.com