People have forgotten that geospatial technologies and solutions have been around since the early 70s. Thanks to the maturing IT and engineering tools, geospatial is now at the forefront. The market has noticed this too and geospatial innovations are everywhere today. Practically, no single IT solution can ignore the ‘where’ component anymore.
Emerging technologies such as AI, and ML are accelerating the processing power for analyzing, correcting, and augmenting different types of geospatial data. Today, Merkator actively uses AI for change detection over vast and complex vector and raster datasets. A trending example of the fast expanding AI capabilities in early 2023 are engines such as ChatGPT, which have the potential to accelerate several areas of geospatial automation.
The real building blocks for Merkator are software, data, and services
Customers no longer want too many different vendors rather they count on stable partners that have the expertise in both the applications and the surrounding data.
Software is useless without data and vice-versa. One of the several reasons Merkator acquired Belgium-based GIM is to cater to customers who want end-to-end solutions. Now we can create a perfect triangle we call– SDS (software, data, services) facilitating the key building blocks for real geospatial solutions.
For example, Belmap tells where customers live, work and shop. It provides insights on energy and sustainability questions and integrates more than 50 data geospatial sources offering the most complete and accurate 3D Digital Twin of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg at present.
Emerging technologies such as AI, and ML are accelerating the processing power for analyzing, correcting, and augmenting different types of geospatial data.
For smart cities and infrastructure-related automation such as telecom fiber design and extending the electricity grid, we count on workflow-driven solutions like MarlinDT and Eaglebe. For instance, Eaglebe supports more than 170 local Belgian authorities in permitting public space for relocation, roadworks, and events.
Users no longer want an always changing ribbon interface and a pack of buttons in an application. A workflow-driven solution pushes the user to follow strict guidelines for both geospatial data creation and attribute related data entry. It really contributes to improved data quality as user errors are reduced to the absolute minimum. In the coming months, we will add AI capabilities to raise the bar even further.
Potential of true Digital Twin
If something is ‘broken’ in the real world it needs to be fixed. Digital Twin-enabled workflow solutions accelerate the repair or engineering of any infrastructure.
Digital Twin is a key building block of concepts such as the Metaverse. However, these environments will only be useful if the data is accurate and monitored or updated in real-time. This is where Marlin Digital Twin comes into play.
I see a huge investment of Digital Twin in the infrastructure sector, whether it’s water, oil & gas, electricity, or telecommunications. The infrastructure sector sits at a collision point of global disruptions, including shifts in capital availability, evolving social and environmental priorities, and rapid urbanization. Our geospatial network inventory is ready to cater to the unstoppable infrastructure demands of our human species.
(Geert De Coensel is the Co-Founder & CEO of Merkator, Belgium. The views expressed in the article are the personal opinions of the author.)
Disclaimer: Views Expressed are Author's Own. Geospatial World May or May Not Endorse it
