GeoBuiz - 2019
1. Geospatial Industry 1.1 Overview The geospatial industry, historically associated with land-marine survey and maps, has evolved into a set of technology segments grouped under GIS/Spatial Analytics, GNSS and Positioning, Earth Observation (EO) and Scanning. But then definitions can be tricky, especially in a fast-changing technology landscape. With the onset of a digital revolution in which the ‘where’ dimension is becoming fundamental to all decision-making, geospatial has emerged as an enabler of the entire digital space. Smartphones in every hand and advancements in computing technologies, aero-space platforms, sensors and digital communication have steered the growth and expansion of geospatial industry into new and varied applications. The continuous growth in digital infrastructure and digital technology ecosystem of Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and Cloud is further accelerating the geospatial industry’s global reach and contribution.
STANDARDS
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE
ENTERPRISE
OPEN DATA
DIGITAL ENGINEERING
GIS/SPATIAL ANALYTICS
SOCIAL MEDIA
EARTH OBSERVATION
DRIVERS
SCANNING
INTERNET OF THINGS
APPS WORKFLOW AUTOMATION
INTERCONNECTED SYSTEMS
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
CLOUD
WIRELESS & BROADBAND
GEOSPATIAL VALUE IN WORLD ECONOMY AND SOCIETY
DELIVERY PLATFORMS
BUSINESSES
GNSS & POSITIONING
PROCESSES
FACILITATORS
WEB PORTALS CITIZENS
GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGIES
GOVERNMENT
Figure 1.1 — Geospatial Industry and Digital Ecosystem
BIG IOT DATA
One of the fastest growing industries globally, geospatial industry is today helping in translation of innovation into business practices across governance, developmental activities, enterprises and society. Over the years, it has transformed itself from a mere mapping tool into a complete industrial process offering immense value in terms of enhancing productivity, cost effectiveness, transparency, safety and project management. ¤¤The GNSS and Positioning segment is primarily driven by IoT and wireless technologies with interconnected systems as the facilitators. ¤¤The Spatial Analytics segment is today mainly driven by Cloud — which has evolved from being merely a storage platform to one offering analytical capabilities with open data as the primary facilitator. ¤¤The Earth Observation industry is being primarily driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI). Interestingly, the EO segment was one of the earliest users of Cloud and Big Data, mainly owing to the humongous size of data it produces. Even as it leverages AI, one of the primary reasons is the data volume. Capacity development and innovations in AI will primarily drive the commercialization of EO revolution. Open data is one of the primary facilitators here.
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