Tuesday, June 16. 2009

Intergraph 09 Opens With CEO Wise Stating “We’re not afraid to set aggressive goals.”

Intergraph CEO Halsey Wise (at right) opened the 2009 Intergraph user conference by acknowledging the global economic turbulence, with a hurricane graphic in the background to emphasize his point, and by stating "We are not afraid to set aggressive goals. We will use this trough to power through to the future. Some of our competitors have not even had the courage to hold their user event [this year]."

Wise cited several performance metrics to illustrate the success the company has realized:

• In 2008, the company reached $808 million
• Intergraph has grown operating profits 9x since 2003
• Intergraph R&D spending was $95.2M in 2008, an increase of 40% over last five years
• 32% of revenue comes from products that did not exist in 2003

Wise has set a goal of reaching $1 billion in revenue by 2012 and told the audience to "pay attention...next year we will announce new products and maybe new acquisitions."

More Maps = More Confidence in Renewables' Locations

There are already a handful of maps designating areas of renewable energy for the state of Nevada. The latest comes from the Western Governors Association. More are expected from state legislation. And of course, all the existing and future maps will be a bit different.

Charles Benjamin, who oversees Nevada activities for Western Resource Advocates, suggests more maps are better:

If you do get three different processes all identifying the same areas, that gives you confidence. It’s like getting a second or a third opinion.

I just wonder if the maps/data/results are in a form that they can be easily compared and integrated. I'm fearing no, but hope I'm wrong!

- Las Vegas Sun

Senate Finds Funds to Keep Loran

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation found the $37 million in the 2010 and its proposed 2011 Coast Guard authorization bill to operate the Loran system, and upgrade it to a enhanced Loran (eLoran). With the recent concerns related to GPS it makes sense Senators are more wary of shutting down what is considered the best backup.

- NextGov

The Challenges of Putting Cemetery Records into a GIS

The Worcester Telegram highlights the challenges one small town, Northboro, MA, is having getting its handwritten cemetery records into a digital, searchable form.

[Director of Public Works Kara] Buzanoski’s goal is to one day be able to type a name into a search bar and have a record, complete with burial coordinates, show up on a computer screen within seconds. Software for a searchable database would cost at least $5,000, she said, and a geographic information system, or GIS, map would cost at least $10,000. The DPW’s budget for this year already has been depleted, and next year may not be any better.

Equally interesting are the comments, one of which suggests that students, even high school students, could tackle the project as part of their history studies.