Synchronize Winter 2010 Survey Newsletter

The Survey newsletter from KOREC WINTER 2010

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What Trimble KOREC Launch: The GEDO CE Track Measuring Device did next!

Intergeo Releases Trimble S3 Robotic Total Station Our newest addition to the optical total station family makes the Trimble brand more competitive for customers looking for reliability and proven Trimble technology.

The new Trimble S3 Robotic Total Station System includes everything needed to perform efficient surveying campaigns: precision positioning performance and powerful data collection in an integrated, ergonomic solution for convenient, all day use. It is built on proven, reliable, Trimble technology. The instrument includes Trimble Direct Reflex (DR) technology, for measurement without a prism and a low-maintenance servo system built on Trimble MagDrive™ technology – eliminating the wear and tear associated with conventional drives.

Ideal for: anyone doing a lot of building elevation and internal surveys who wants an extremely fast robotic total station.

Intergeo launches are continued overleaf....

A single prism can be mounted on either side of the TMD and then tracked by one of the Trimble S-Series Robotic Total Stations

We are delighted to announce that the GEDO CE Track Measuring Device (TMD) is now available, allowing KOREC to offer a highly productive and user-friendly rail measuring solution.

The TMD incorporates sensors for very precise measurement of the distance between the two rail lines (gauge) and super-elevation between them (cant). A single prism can be mounted on either side of the TMD and then tracked by one of the Trimble S-Series Robotic Total Stations allowing the geometry of one railroad (left line, right line and centreline) to be recorded in one pass to the highest accuracy.

Offering both ‘stop-and-go’ and ‘kinematic’ measuring options, the system allows in excess of 700 metres of track to be surveyed in one hour. All the data is collected on-board a standard Trimble TSC2 control unit, offering a completely cable-free solution. The TMD takes its power from the same standard batteries that power the Trimble S-Series Robotic Total Stations.

The S3 - Our newest addition to the optical total station family

The system is scalable, offering software for preparing alignment and tamping files as well as real-time comparisons with design geometry in the field. Robust, compact and light-weight, the TMD is easily manoeuvrable and has been manufactured to the highest standards.

STOP PRESS

Inside this issue

See our back page for more Trimble announcements

We round up the top Trimble launches at Intergeo Tips Tips Tips - why our Blog is worth a visit Customer Stories - Costain, Skanska and Newcastle University tell us why KOREC deliver

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WINTER 2010

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Intergeo Launches

continued

Trimble Access Specialized Application for Monitoring Trimble continues to build upon the success of its innovative Trimble Access Software Suite with the introduction of a new Monitoring module.

Like other streamlined workflows for Trimble Access, the Monitoring module guides surveyors through a step-by-step process that speeds setup, data collection and reporting. This optional module flattens the learning curve for those new to monitoring applications and allows surveyors to get their work completed faster.

Users can choose to pair this field solution with the powerful Trimble 4D Control Standard office software for advanced tools to analyze movement over time. Like the Roads and Tunnels modules in Trimble Access, the Monitoring module is available as either a perpetual license or as a monthly subscription.

These options enable flexibility to add more software capabilities easily as business needs change.

There is also a specialized Trimble Access for Spatial Imaging module.

Ideal for: surveyors looking for a fast entry to deformation monitoring

New GNSS Receivers for basic survey projects Trimble R4 The new Trimble R4 GPS System provides everything needed to perform basic survey projects. The system comes standard with GPS L1 and L2, with the availability to upgrade to GLONASS. With the easy to use Trimble Digital Fieldbook™ Software, surveyors can use the system in a Trimble VRS network or RTK applications and for static surveying work.

With an optional integrated UHF transmitter, it can also be used as a base station. The cable-free Trimble R4 is an accurate and reliable GPS receiver that surveyors can depend on when every point counts.

Trimble R5 The new Trimble R5 GPS System is one receiver with many configurations. The modular system enables customers to choose the GPS antenna and communication options that best serve the needs of the application. Fixed to a tripod, secured on a rover pole, or stowed in a backpack, the Trimble R5 is ideal for any surveying task from control, measurement, design and stakeout, to as-built work.

With an optional built-in UHF radio modem, it can receive RTK communications quickly and easily. With GPS L1, L2, and L2C included and a GLONASS option, it can track more satellites in challenging environments.

Ideal for: anyone looking for a highly cost-effective entry to survey grade GPS

For full details on any Trimble product or service, please call your KOREC Survey Consultant Full contact details are on the back page of this issue of Synchronize

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WINTER 2010

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Software Focus

Customer Stories The Simple Life Skanska choose Trimble for ‘the little things’ that keep data flowing and a site productive

Trimble Access – Send data back and forth – not people!

Last years launch of Trimble Access saw Trimble take another step towards the “Connected Site”, providing a fresh, new field and office productivity solution for surveyors that improves collaboration and control for surveying teams through constant connectivity – a first for the surveying community.

As well as the Specialized Application for Monitoring featured in our Intergeo launches, 2009 also saw the release of Trimble Access for Spatial Imaging. This new field software is designed to take Spatial Imaging to the next level, enabling users to measure their productivity in terms of significant advances in “Time to Deliverable” not merely points per second.

The new software runs on the powerful Trimble Tablet to control the Trimble GX 3D Scanner. It simplifies Spatial Imaging workflows, so any surveyor can quickly become a Spatial Imaging expert. This means that anyone familiar with using Trimble Access to control Trimble GNSS receivers, total stations or the VX spatial station will now find it equally easy to perform complicated laser scanning jobs with the GX 3D scanner.

Following an order for four Trimble R8 Rovers with TSC2 loggers, two Trimble S6 Robotic Total Stations with TCU loggers and a Trimble 5500 with TCU, Skanska civil engineering Chief Land Surveyor Mark Lawton explains that it is Trimble’s attention to detail that makes the difference on site. “We have 12 surveyors on our team and have seen vast improvements in the newer members simply because of the way our Trimble instruments, with on-board Survey Controller software, handle data. The easy ‘drag and drop’ copying of our dxf and csv files between the PC and logger - with little or no editing - is a big plus, but perhaps the single most beneficial feature for us is the ‘style sheet’ option which really saves time and allows us to perform complex calculations right in the field. Trimble’s pre-designed style sheets are easily downloadable from the website and although we could create or customize our own, Trimble’s would be hard to better. It isn’t fancy and it isn’t new but I now have complete confidence in our new starters simply because it is so easy to download a stake out report through style sheets. The end result is that we can incorporate our procedures on every device, they look professional and the QA people love it. Not only do style sheets take a world of “Ten years ago I was getting paperwork away, but each day our processing time has been cut by 20 minutes through 20-30 level books a year, and overall, our QA process and data preparation time reduced by 25%.” now thanks to style sheets and The Skanska team additionally reports that the Trimble S6 Total Station offers some simple but useful unique features in the form of SurePoint™ which ensures accurate pointing and measurement even through windy weather and vibrations, and MultiTrack technology which ensures that their surveyors always find and lock to the correct target, without disruption from nearby reflective surfaces or other prisms.

electronic data flow, it’s down to just 1 – in this case simplicity really has led to efficiency!”

Mark Lawton

Mark also highlights the Trimble TSC2 logger speaker as another simple but useful idea.

“The speaker is brilliant in a noisy environment. We are often working on busy motorways and hearing and feeling ‘point stored’ through the speaker means that our surveyors can concentrate on where they are walking and not have to repeatedly check the logger screen.

The loggers also have a USB slot which means design data can be put onto a USB stick and downloaded in the field with no need to swap instruments or controllers.”

• Access Efficiency: Deliverable-based workflows streamline the process from start to finish.

• Access Confidence: Review the work and deliver from the field.

• Access Your Potential: With little or no formal training, you can become a Spatial Imaging expert.

Just like the Surveying version of Trimble Access, new streamlined workflows are available for the unique needs of Spatial Imaging users in addition to the powerful General Scanning module.

Measured Solutions Construction | Surveying | Mapping

Members of the Skanska Survey Team test out a new Trimble S6 Robotic Total Station and R8 Rover

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Antarctic workout for Trimble NetRS Receivers Newcastle University, the largest geodesy group in the UK and a UNAVCO* associate member has taken delivery of 10 NetRS Trimble Receivers. These receivers will be used in the Antarctic on a new monitoring project, a collaboration between Newcastle University, Durham University and British Antarctic Survey along with other overseas partners. Newcastle’s Matt King, a Reader in Polar Geodesy explains, “The project involves measuring the motion of the Earth’s crust in Antarctica due to a process called glacial isostatic adjustment or postglacial rebound. Ice sitting on the Earth’s crust depresses the crust in that location. When the ice mass is reduced, as it has done since the last glacial maximum, the crust rebounds. By using our NetRS receivers to measure this three dimensional rebound, we can get a good understanding of how much ice was there.”

Newcastle University has the benefit of learning from UNAVCO’s vast experience in polar GPS deployment as well as their own experiences to draw upon when it came to selecting the GPS for this project. Matt continues, “We were convinced that the Trimble NetRS’s would deliver the robust permanent operation with low power consumption that we required. The NetRS provides easy setup, handles continuous data well and also allows us to directly log meteorological data in the receiver.”

Trimble’s NetRS features extremely rugged construction, low power consumption and dual power ports with intelligent switching. Its advanced communications control makes it easy to operate the receiver and manage data from a convenient location removing the need for a local computer. Following problems such as power loss, the NetRS receiver can reload its last known configuration settings eliminating the need to visit remote locations to manually reset the receiver.

The large internal memory of the receivers enables them to be deployed as permanent reference stations in the Antarctic where they will be monumented on the bedrock over a network spanning several hundred km. Recording parameters can be set up in advance on a computer and data will be downloaded once per year. When 2-3 years worth of data has been collected, it will then be analysed in scientific-level GPS processing software and ultimately used to produce maps of present-day ice mass change.

Matt concludes, “We’ve been impressed by the high level of support from KOREC and also from Trimble through UNAVCO, but ultimately on a project like this, the greatest challenges are deploying the instruments in cold environments, - especially given that we are trying to measure with a precision and accuracy of much less than 1mm/yr - and powering them.

Indeed, the power systems we are deploying in the Antarctic cost more than the GPS!” *UNAVCO is a non-profit membership-governed consortium, facilitates geoscience research and education using geodesy

Trimble GPS antenna shrouded in a radome to protect against the build up of snow. Below is the yellow Trimble box containing the receiver and battery.

Costain select Trimble Integrated Surveying Solution for high profile Belvedere Waste Project

The Trimble S6 was selected for its speed, range and accuracy

KOREC is pleased to announce that Maidenhead based civil engineers, Costain, have purchased a combination of Trimble R8 GNSS receivers and Trimble S6 Robotic Total Stations for use on the high profile Riverside Resource Recovery Facility* currently under construction at Belvedere in South-East London. These KOREC supplied and supported instruments will help Costain to deliver the main buildings, jetties, roads and offices for the £350 million project which is being developed by Cory Environmental and built by Swiss plant construction company Von Roll Inova.

“We need instruments that are reliable, flexible and easy to use,” explains Costain’s Survey Manager, Stuart Fagg. “Providing our surveyors with a Trimble integrated solution means streamlined data handling and less time in the office. Key to this is the ability to switch between optical and GPS instruments with a common user interface, in this case, Trimble TSC2 data loggers running Survey Controller software.

continued overleaf

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WINTER 2010

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KOREC and Trimble News Partners in Crime!

Example from Visual Statement’s Crime software solution

KOREC has further consolidated its position as a market leading provider of incident investigation solutions, with the announcement of a new distribution partnership with Visual Statement, a Trimble company specialising in collision reconstruction software.KOREC will offer sales and support throughout the UK and Ireland for Visual Statement’s FX3 Premium (Crash) and FX3 CSI Advanced (Crime) software solutions.

Visual Statement FX3 Premium The ultimate tool for accident reconstruction offering everything from diagramming, easy import of total station data, momentum analysis, calculations and SMAC (Simulation Model of Automobile Collisions) simulations to animations (2D or 3D).

Visual Statement FX3 CSI Advanced FX3 CSI Advanced provides users with a quick and easy way of animating the events of a crime. Using the animation system allows investigators to display and animate bullet trajectories, line-of-sight and easily display accurate poses for victims or other involved persons.

Calling all existing Visual Statement Users Here at KOREC we are delighted to be the new distributors of Visual Statement software in the UK and Ireland and are keen to assist existing and potential users in any way we can. Our starting point will see us aiming to forge the best possible links between Visual Statement and you, the users. Following on from our chats with Steve Green of West Yorkshire Police, who chaired and organised the last Visual Statement User Group, KOREC is pleased to take over this role and will host the next meeting at the end of February (TBC). If you would like to be included on our emailing list for any information on this event, please contact me, Colin Powell, directly at colin.powell@korecgroup.com

From left to right, James Pittman (Trainer on Visual Statement software), Colin Powell, (KOREC Survey Sales Consultant, Midlands), Dwight Ergang (Visual Statement Sales), Matthew Lock (KOREC Survey Sales Consultant, North)

Costain continued Having a single intuitive software program for all the survey work immediately reduces the learning curve for our engineers which is the first step in cutting out time consuming errors and rework. We are using almost every aspect of Survey Controller from the easy ‘drag and drop’ copying of our csv and dxf files from PC to logger, to the handy drop down menu with pictures for predefined prism types. This simple but excellent feature means that having 3 or 4 targets out there, all at different heights, is no longer an issue – a tap on the controller selects the one we are working with. However, the real bonus for us is the colour map display. We can check and view a point in real time before we store it, add attribute information to points, edit elevations, zoom in and out of the map to check gridlines and piling and verify where we are and which way we are pointing – all the things that give us instant answers on site and cut back on trips to the office and lengthy phone calls. The map really is the focal point and I haven’t seen anything else that even comes close to it.”

Stuart is also keen to point out that both the Trimble R8 GPS and S6 Robots must deliver individually as well as being part of an overall solution. The R8 is being used for multiple tasks including topo and verification surveys, barge positioning and checking the height of quay walls along the Medway Estuary to enable successful loading and unloading from barges. Initially it was also used in conjunction with Trimble’s VRS Now Service. The speed and ease of using Trimble VRS enabled Costain to spot immediately on arrival at the site that the original control was out by around 2m and rectify the problem without costly delays.

Costain selected the S6 Robotic Total Stations for their speed, range and accuracy.

Senior Land Surveyor on the jetty works, Ian Campbell, reports that the S6’s high precision has been invaluable for a range of jobs on the site. “ A 360 degree prism ensures that the S6 has been able to track us with mm accuracy from every angle. Not only are we getting the precision we require, but the long reflectorless range, often in excess of 150m, means that our engineers can carry out work from the safety of dry land rather than a rocking barge.”

Stuart Fagg concludes “Waste Management is Costain’s fastest growing sector and the company is already participating in the £398 million Greater Manchester waste PFI project. The award of the Belvedere contract will position us exactly where we want to be – as leading contenders for all future opportunities in the waste sector. We have a long standing relationship with KOREC and know that their Spectra, Nikon and Trimble instruments, all of which are being used on this site, will provide the rugged and reliable performance that a project of this stature demands.”

KOREC’s Blog is well worth a visit for all the latest news, opinion and technical tips. www.korecgroup.com/blog

Measured Solutions Construction | Surveying | Mapping

WINTER 2010

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Technical Support Hints and Tips Tips from KOREC’s Technical Support Team have been coming thick and fast lately, so much so, that we’ve decided to dedicate a special ‘techtips’ category on our blog, found at www.korecgroup.com/blog. Visit us now for further information on all of the following, each of which are headed ‘SYNCHRONIZE Survey Tip’: Trimble Certification Programs Have you ever wanted to have official recognition for your Trimble survey product knowledge and your ability to use Trimble products effectively? Well now you can.

Find out more on Trimble Certification Programs on the KOREC blog.

FREE Web-Based Tutorial Courses Visit our blog again and then follow the Trimble link to the page where you can click on the “FREE” TUTORIALS icon on the bottom left of the screen.

Our Technical Director, Oliver Brooks, states that the Introduction to GPS and GNSS ones are very useful.

Events Trimble Geo-Spatial Days Trimble’s fully equipped Geo-Spatial Vehicle will be in the UK in early February and we will be hosting a series of demonstration days at KOREC’s Huntingdon office. This system is ideal for GIS / Asset Management, Pavement Inspections and Mobile Surveys. For full details please visit the News and Events section at www.korecgroup.com

Also visit our blog for answers on all of the following: Top Tip 1 Can I set Bluetooth wireless technology to turn on automatically after I reset a TSC2 / Trimble CU controller that is running the Trimble Access software?

Top Tip 2 How do I configure the R6/R8 internal radio as a repeater while performing a rover survey?

Top Tip 3 Trimble Survey Controller / Trimble Access Software How can I add a control code to a point?

How can I enter multiple codes for one point?

New Appointment

Infrarail 13th – 15th April 2010 will find us on Stand 900 at the NEC, Birmingham, exhibiting a full range of KOREC machine control, survey and mapping solutions for rail. This will also be the perfect opportunity to come and talk to us about our newly available GEDO CE Track Measuring Device

KOREC is committed to providing support and technical expertise for users of our equipment which is why we are delighted to announce the appointment of Richard Selby to a newly created role of Training Manager.

Richard, who is a Trimble Certified Trainer and has been with KOREC for 4 years, will initially be focusing on the development of classroom based courses, courses relating to specific Trimble products and generic survey and setting out courses. For full information on our Technical Support and Training, please visit www.korecgroup.com

Visual Statement User Group This meeting will be hosted by KOREC at the end of February (TBC).

For further information, please contact colin.powell@korecgroup.com

Richard Selby, KOREC’s new Training Manager

Contact Us Stop Press....

Just as we were going to press, Trimble announced several exciting pieces of news:

Surveying Solutions & Laser Scanning Sales

Trimble S8 – new models launched to expand market opportunities for the most advanced optical surveying instrument available.

Colin Powell (Midlands): T: 07774 239125

Trimble S6 – now includes the long-range EDM performance of Trimble DR Plus technology, which provides direct reflex measurements at more than double the range of previous models.

Matthew Lock (North): T: 07974 255597

Trimble S3 – option of new Autolock and servo-only models with an on-board control panel for streamlined performance in the field.

Gavin McDonald (South East): T: 07786 118435

Trimble VX Spatial Station – now features the long-range EDM performance of Trimble DR Plus technology.

Ryan Bowles (South West): T: 07771 517493

….and finally, after many years of faithful service, it’s time to say goodbye to our original DR total stations, the 5500 and 5600 which will be discontinued on March 31, 2010 and replaced by the new and powerful Trimble S3 range. Of course every cloud has a silver lining, please call your local Survey Sales Consultant for the best deals on 5500/5600 instruments! For full details on all of the following, why not sign up for our survey e-news letter via our homepage at www.korecgroup.com

Measured Solutions Construction | Surveying | Mapping

Sean Higgins (Ireland): T: 00 353 868 066477 Mark Poveda (Ireland): T: 00 353 866 005252