Application of Geomatics sciences and Technologies

Geomatics science and technology is applied in a variety of situations and is used in many occupations related to the territory, the environment and infrastructure management. Here are some examples that are close to the fields of civil engineer and environmental engineer.

Drone survey using in mining

Geomonitoring: On a global scale, these new technologies make it possible to quantify the effects linked to climate change and to fight against them. Various methods of observing the Earth are used to measure the evolution of phenomena such as melting glaciers, rising sea surfaces, landslides.

Natural Resource Management: it is the subject of a thematic cartography by remote sensing in order to evaluate the cover of the ground and its evolution in the space and the time. This allows in particular to qualify the state of vegetation and other natural resources.

Management of agriculture: crop monitoring is also based on remote sensing methods that are complemented by predictive crop studies. This makes it possible to couple remote sensing data from agricultural areas, with soil information and with rainfall measurements of the watershed concerned. We can then calculate the volume of water stored by the snowy peaks during the winter and anticipate the management of a hydroelectric dam to limit the risk of flooding at the time of spring melting.

Transport management: Knowledge of transport networks, their condition and traffic load is essential to optimize vehicle management. For a logistics company, a management system must make it possible to know at all times the position of its vehicles as well as their operating and loading status. Trucks equipped with GPS and connected to a central are also a guarantee of safety in case of incident or theft.

Territorial development: The establishment of a master plan for a region is a complex exercise in which the translation of intentions must be coordinated between the different sectors and must be justified. Simulation tools, based on spatial and statistical data, make it possible to establish a development forecast for a region by combining demographic, economic and political data.

Geomarketing: this technique is used in a commercial context. It helps to target and locate the best possible location for the establishment of a new shopping center or point of sale. the communication axes, the presence of available and building land, the environmental protection zones, the location of the competition or potential users, etc., are all criteria to be taken into account in a preliminary project phase of development.

Construction: Topographic survey and layout measurements are the operations required for most construction work. When it comes to drawing up a plan for a road project or when it is necessary to precisely locate the footprint of a structure, topographic methods make it possible to accurately measure or render geometric elements.

These few examples show that spatial information is present in many fields of activity, from the public or private sector, too small or large scale. They all involve the tools and techniques of geomatics. However, attention must be paid to the quality of the geodata and the methods used. Given the widespread use of GPS, maps and virtual globes, many people think that is sufficient for many operations and do not always understand the difference with the methods and data used for a professional purpose where it is necessary comply with legal requirements and standards.