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March 2005 Welcome to The Sensor -- the newsletter of the Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions (EIGS) bringing you the latest developments from Mississippi’s emerging geospatial industry cluster. Please feel free to share this with friends and colleagues. To subscribe, visit www.eigs.olemiss.edu For further information, or to submit story ideas, please contact Lisa Stone - lstone@olemiss.edu |
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What's Inside This Month's Sensor: |
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Regular Features: |
March Articles: |
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The Director's Cut “In today’s complex world, no single organization is capable of mobilizing all the resources required to accomplish everything it needs to do. The key to success: smart partnerships with individuals, community groups, and other organizations. The Power of Partnerships gives you access to resources, talents, and strengths of other companies and organizations, thereby multiplying your capabilities and compensating for your limitations.”
By combining the talents, capabilities and resources of private industry, government, education and economic development organizations, Mississippi can more effectively play a part in the geospatial global marketplace. And by recognizing what each of these entities is contributing to Mississippi’s geospatial capacity, and by making the effort to communicate and collaborate, we are light years ahead of other states. The end result, we hope, is that we are creating new synergies and gaining a competitive advantage through these successful partnerships. |
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Company Spotlight As a charter member of Mississippi’s geospatial technology industry cluster,
GeoTek Management Services Company has played a key role in laying the foundation for the growth of this industry in the state. A geographical technology services company that specializes in remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) services and products, GeoTek is a spin-off company of the nation's space program at Stennis Space Center that also owns GeoTek Aerial Data Services Company. A change detection study by GeoTek Management was recently featured in the inaugural edition of The Stennis News on February 1, 2005. GeoTek partnered with the Franklin County Soil and Water Conservation District to conduct a three-year study of the Homochitto River. The study, funded by NASA Stennis Space Center, focused on change detection along the Basin from 1957 to 2003. GeoTek acquired multispectral imagery along the River and utilized historical imagery in order to better understand how the unstable riverbanks have caused destruction to highway and railroad bridges, pipelines and fertile fields. “This study is significant because its findings will be an extremely useful decision-making tool for infrastructure planning and natural resource management,” stated Daniel Lee, president of GeoTek Management. [Read entire article] For additional information about GeoTek, contact Daniel Lee at 228-688-2847, geotekmgt@aol.com. |
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New Website Feature - Ask EIGS Have
questions about EIGS or geospatial products & services, |
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IMAGE OF THE MONTH
Imagery by GeoTek Management, taken on February 11, 2005 near Hattiesburg, MS, provided to economic developers for monitoring and marketing industrial parks. GeoTek, an EIGS company member, is this month’s Company Spotlight. SEEN AND HEARD From the Opinion Editorial page of The Clarion Ledger, February 9, 2005: State Could Recruit Geospatial Industry Metro/State columnist Eric Stringfellow wrote: "Government officials should be encouraged to continue exploring creative avenues to stimulate the state's economy and raise living standards in the Magnolia State. But in searching for economic development projects, they should not trample on widely accepted business practices and ignore common sense" ("Spoiled plan at beef plant bad policy, inexcusable." Jan. 9). I agree. A successful "creative avenue" the state has pursued to boost the state's economy is supporting the growth of Mississippi's geospatial technology industry cluster through the Enterprise for Innovative Geospatial Solutions, a state program providing geospatial companies in Mississippi with research and business support. Since 1998, $8.7 million in state funds has been invested in this industry and geospatial companies have returned $119 million to the Mississippi economy in salaries, office space and operating expenses. This is a 13-to-1 return. Mississippi cannot continue to solely rely on manufacturing and agriculture jobs. To grow our economy, we must seek diversified, high-tech, high-growth opportunities. The geospatial industry represents such an opportunity; it is a high-tech industry with an annual average salary of $50,000. Mississippi should be lauded for its foresight to support the emerging geospatial industry which is projected to $30 billion worldwide. There are sound investments out there for the state to pursue and the geospatial industry continues to be one of them. Craig Harvey |
UPCOMING EVENTS March
2, 2005 March
3, 2005 March
6 - March 8, 2005 March
6-9, 2005 March 7-11, 2005 March 22-24, 2005 May
15-18, 2005 LEGISLATIVE CORNER Bill of interest: SB 2670: MS Land, Water and Timber Resources Board; abolish and transfer duties to the Mississippi Development Authority. This bill has passed the Senate and has been referred to the House. If you have a particular bill you are interested in, please let EIGS know and we will be glad to track it for you and keep you apprised of developments. DID YOU KNOW??? That GIS is being used in relief efforts. An article in the Bangkok Post notes: "Aid agencies are also using geographic information system (GIS) software, utilizing computer-generated maps as an interface for integrating and accessing massive amounts of location-based information. GIS allows relief agency staff to get critical information about how humanitarian support efforts are progressing to ensure appropriate response agencies are acting in a coordinated and efficient manner. Once in the field, the co-ordination can continue as new data can be added and disseminated via wireless applications and Internet/Intranet connectivity." CONGRATULATIONS EIGS is pleased to announce that Lisa Stone has been promoted to Associate Director of EIGS. Lisa has been involved with Mississippi's geospatial technology industry cluster for eight years. We congratulate her on this new leadership role with EIGS. |
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Diverse Crowd Attends EIGS Annual Meeting On February 17, 2005, more than 100 people came out to learn more about EIGS and developments in the geospatial industry. Participants for the EIGS Annual Briefing included EIGS Staff, Member Companies & Partners, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Mississippi Department of Homeland Security, representatives of NASA’s Stennis Space Center, representatives from U.S. Senators Thad Cochran & Trent Lott, the U.S. Small Business Administration, Entergy, various state agencies, and other private sector guests. The Keynote Address was by Lee Holcomb, Chief Technology Officer for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. In this capacity he is responsible for assessing information technologies for use in DHS and development of the Enterprise Architecture for Homeland Security. Following Mr. Holcomb’s keynote address, he remained to hear presentations by EIGS Member Companies, where they provided 5-minute snapshots of who they are and what they do. Eleven EIGS Member Companies participated in this session, which was met with rave reviews. State and local attendees were anxious to hear more about the core commercial capabilities of the companies and many were excited to know that all this is happening right here in Mississippi. Suzanne Case of U.S. Senator Thad Cochran’s office said, “I knew this cluster existed, but I wasn’t familiar with what the individual companies did. I didn’t know that much of what they do has a direct impact on our citizens. It is very exciting,” said Case. The Annual Meeting also had several guest presentations. Andy Taggart, President and CEO of the Mississippi Technology Alliance (MTA), provided an overview of MTA and the services they will be providing EIGS Member Companies. Joe Graben, Program Director for MS-FAST, provided an overview of MS-FAST and the Federal SBIR and STTR Programs and how EIGS companies can more fully utilize these resources. Stefanie Weaver, Manager of Adult Entrepreneurship Education at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation provided all attendees with a copy of FastTrac: The Business Mentor software which helps entrepreneurs hone the skills needed to create, manage, and grow a successful business. A number of EIGS Staff members provided presentations, which gave attendees the most up-to-date developments within EIGS. Following presentations, attendees participated in a variety of interactive sessions, utilizing wireless keypads to register their opinions and responses to a variety of questions. The data will be used to help EIGS prioritize its goals as it looks to the future. Be sure to visit www.eigs.olemiss.edu/newsroom/annual_brief05/index.htm for additional information about the EIGS Annual Meeting including speaker presentations, attendee list and event photos. Thanks to all those who participated and helped make this year’s meeting a resounding success. We look forward to seeing you next year. |
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Open House Celebrated for DSU’s Center for Interdisciplinary Geospatial Information Technology
The Center for Interdisciplinary Geospatial Information Technology at Delta State University welcomed the community on February 23rd with an open house celebration. Nearly 50 people attended and enjoyed looking at local and regional maps, 3-dimensional models, and various GIS-related gadgets and gizmos. The Center is pleased to be "open for business" and is rolling out a minor and certificate program in GIS, a professional master's degree in geospatial technologies, and many ground and online courses dealing with geospatial information technologies at both the graduate and undergraduate level. Presentations about these programs are planned for both the regional community and at upcoming national meetings for the Geospatial Information Technology Association and the Association of American Geographers. Parties interested in partnering with the Center on cooperative research and development projects and interested students are encouraged to contact: Talbot J. Brooks, Director, Interdisciplinary GIS Center |
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Graduate Fellow Feature Brady Smith, originally from Tulsa, Oklahoma, is a graduate student in the Geoscience program at Mississippi State University where he received his Bachelor of Science degree in Geoscience in 1996. Brady has 6 years of work experience as a broadcast meteorologist in Columbia, South Carolina. Upon completion of his graduate degree, he hopes to work as a GIS analyst. Under the direction of Dr. John Rodgers, Brady’s project, “A Remote Sensing and GIS Analysis of the Effects of Extreme Weather and Climate Events on the Estuaries of Coastal Alabama and Mississippi,” uses remote sensing to determine the effects of the 2000 drought and 2004’s Hurricane Ivan on the vegetative health of the Weeks Bay and Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserves. LANDSAT images taken before, during, and after the drought are being used to analyze the changes in the condition of the vegetation in the Reserves. Digital aerial photography acquired by EIGS member company GeoData Airborne Mapping and Measurement, Inc. is being used to examine the effects of Hurricane Ivan. The study of the effects of extreme weather and climate events in estuaries with aerial and satellite-based remotely-sensed data assists in developing comprehensive plans to deal with human encroachment on environmentally-sensitive coastal areas. The conclusions drawn by this research project will be useful in developing accurate models of this complex system. These models will be useful to resource managers, planners, and policy makers in developing strategies to mitigate the effects of natural and anthropogenic hazards on coastal areas. |
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The International Council On Systems Engineering comes to Mississippi By Christian Tulodieski Prior to World War II, architects and civil engineers were the Systems Engineers of their time. While some architects built large projects such as the Egyptian Pyramids, Roman aqueducts, the Eiffel Tower, Hoover Dam, Golden Gate Bridge and the Empire State Building, others designed cars, trains and large ships. Despite their successes, these early Systems Engineers operated without any documented theory of the science of Systems Engineering or any defined and consistently applied processes and practices.
Systems Engineering methodology is employed by proactive engineering organizations to ensure that a holistic, life cycle approach is taken throughout the design and development of products. For example, geospatial technology is inherently complex, involving remote sensors, data transmission, analysis and the integration of all these elements into the best possible product. As such, it is an industry that lends itself naturally to the benefits provided by Systems Engineering. |
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EIGS in the News Air-O-Space
Receives Recognition for Using UAVs for Law Enforcement Training
Lab will bring clout (Digital Quest Open Geospatial Training Center) Forest
One Selected as Small Industry Award Winner Recognized as a Leader in
Their Segment NVision’s REACT Selected as Innovation of the Year NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission Director Has Chosen Radiance Technologies to Develop Geospatial Toolkit |
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