Introducing our latest sponsor Sanchez and Associates! Let’s learn a bit more about them:

1.   Company Name – Sanchez and Associates

2.   Location – Chicago, Illinois, USA

3.   Why did you get involved in Get Kids into Survey? We got involved after seeing a lack of awareness in the geospatial industry. Children and adults would come up to our survey crews or myself and ask us what we were doing, assuming that we are taking pictures with our total station or 3D scanner. We would respond with a simple and hopefully understandable “We take measurements outside to create a map in our office!”. Surveying is an industry that is deeply rooted in everyday life yet doesn’t get the recognition it deserves. We at Sanchez and Associates came across GKiS and instantly jumped at the opportunity to participate in getting exposure and awareness for our industry.

4.   What do you do? I’m the Mapping Manager. My day-to-day tasks consist of planning projects, coordinating with clients, guiding field crews, and technology implementation within our firm.

5.   How long have you been in the Survey Industry? I’ve been in the survey industry for about 13 years.

6.   How did you get into the Industry? Survey is all I have known my entire life since my father first showed me a total station when I was 9.

7.   Funny Fact about you – When I was 6 or 7, my schoolteacher had an assignment where we needed to ask our parents what they did for a living and present on it. I asked my dad what he did, and he mentioned “Surveyor”, which I interpreted as “Senator” for some odd reason. Which I then presented to my class stating he was a “Senator”, shortly after I was told by my teacher that he was not. Now I know that my dad being a surveyor was so much cooler than him being a senator.

8.   Favourite piece of kit and why? UAV mounted Aerial LiDAR System, it’s incredibly fun to be in a profession where we can fly drones and gather useful data from it.

9.   Favourite Survey technique and why? Aerial LiDAR scanning. It gives us the capability to survey massive amounts of land in a short amount of time. Being LiDAR, it also allows us to get ground elevations through tree canopies on big project sites that would otherwise be a very tedious task to undertake.

10.  Your website

11.  How did you choose the character and what does he/she/it represent? Mean to you? What’s his/her name? The character is a representation of my father, Gerardo Sanchez, founder and president of our company, Sanchez and Associates, along with his favourite piece of equipment, the Leica ScanStation P50. He means the world to me and continues to push all of us at Sanchez and Associates to become better surveyors and engineers every day!

Introducing one of our latest Brand Ambassadors Martin Graner! Let’s learn some more about him:

Where did you study? I’ve studied Geodesy at the University of Stuttgart and completed my master’s degree in 2017. I stumbled into University thinking the main focus will be on Geology and Geography but I soon found out that (luckily) I was wrong. 

In Stuttgart, the Geodesy program is split into four main faculties. At the Institute of Engineering Geodesy, you learn about land surveying, handling the usual devices like Theodolites, Total stations, GPS, geodetic leveling, and so on. At the Navigation Institute, you learn more about GPS, positioning, and electronics. In the Geodetic Institute, you learn about Gravitation and its influence on distance measurements, map projections, and a little bit of hydrology. Lastly, there is the Institute of Photogrammetry where you learn image processing and computer vision. Of course, you also have courses in Math, Physics, Electronics, and Informatics.

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area? It really depends on which part of the job you like to do. For example, for those who are interested in doing fieldwork, no particular degree is required. Many surveying companies will take you on as an apprentice and teach you how to operate the equipment and collect the data. However, to also evaluate and analyse the data, you would at least need a bachelor’s degree.

To become a state-certifed surveyor who’s allowed to take on sovereign tasks, a master’s degree + 2 years of state examination + leading your own company for 5 years is required. Then you need to get appointed to be allowed to do these tasks.

How did you get into surveying? By accident actually! I thought I will be studying geology, geography, or a mix of those, and didn’t realize geodesy is neither of those.

If you are not a surveyor, what do you do? After finishing my master’s I had the option to become a surveyor by joining a surveying company. Furthermore, I had the chance to become a state-certified surveyor, which would have taken two more years of state examination and 5 years of leading my own company. 

However, at that time I was already working at PointCab as a student and they immediately offered me a full-time position as a software engineer once I graduated. By then, I had gained enough experience to know that I was more comfortable with data analysis and improvement than data collection. I have always enjoyed thinking about how to improve and simplify workflows and that is exactly what I am doing now as a developer. I can now apply my surveying skills to write point cloud processing software that facilitates the job of those who collect and analyze the data.

How long have you been in the industry? 5 years

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? I feel like the surveying industry with its many applications is incredibly important to improve modern society and the way we live. Surveyors worldwide are mapping the world right now, with unprecedented precision. This enables us to save, preserve and examine historic landmarks and build better and safer housing. It allows us to better understand the world we live in and provides crucial data to scientists worldwide from all kinds of disciplines. I could go on and on but the point is that the importance and the exciting aspects of this work are not nearly highlighted enough to children and young adults. That’s why I decided to join GKIS’s effort in getting the next generation onboard.

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? As I explained, the industry is incredibly important to society as a whole and unfortunately, at least in Germany, we’re facing a shortage of skilled workers in the industry.

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? As soon as the pandemic allows it, I plan to visit schools in the region, hold talks and answer questions about my profession and the surveying industry as a whole

What are your hobbies? Climbing, electric guitar, programming

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? PointCab does actually already have a character that will hopefully make his debut soon and it’s our founder and CEO Dr. Richard Steffen.

What poster or resource would you like to see next from GKiS? Since many kids in non-english speaking countries have a hard time understanding and reading the GKiS comics and posters, it would be great to have at least some translated. Also, in addition to information materials for children, I would be happy if there would be more materials designed for teens who are about to finish school and are about to choose which degree they want to pursue.

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in? If you are a parent or teacher reading this, please feel free to reach out. I’m always happy to come into schools and talk about the industry

Happy Global Surveyors Week 2022!

The aim of this week is to highlight the world of surveying, especially to the next generation.

Watch our Surveyors Week Video HERE... and meet some of our lovely Brand Ambassadors!!

There are so many avenues to go down in the geospatial industry! Here’s what a few of our Brand Ambassadors and supporters say about why they love surveying, why they chose this geospatial career, and reasons why the person reading/watching this should go into the profession:

Desiree Hurst- “I love the profession because…there are too many reason to count but I enjoy the variety of projects I have worked on throughout my career.”

Dan Curry-  “I love the profession because… I enjoy being outside and meeting people from all walks of life. When I am outside doing survey work, I don’t feel like it’s a job. There is nothing more satisfying to me than researching the history of a property, going out collecting field data and then putting that job on paper and seeing the results. I would compare the process to putting together a puzzle and when you have that drawing completed you have your puzzle put together and as we know some puzzles are harder than others!”

Greg Dunn- “I love the profession because… The geospatial industry is such a unique one. There are so many facets to become completely absorbed into.  I love the constant intersection of technology and people – always evolving, but somehow still familiar to those involved. This profession is unique, dependable, and challenging. Above all – it’s fulfilling. The work we do in the geospatial industry truly impacts everyone.”

Melissa Cintron- “I love surveying because… I fell in love with how broad the industry is being a Land Surveyor and contributing to society, for example, by helping build the first home, being part of a rehabilitation of a bridge or road, using new technologies, and positively impacting communities.

Surveying is for you if you like technology, positively impacting communities and learning.”

Junelle Wilson- “I love the profession because…there is always something new every day.  Whether it is an office day or a day in the field each situation presents new challenges!  You get to have the best of both worlds, a desk job and a physical job. Everyone should try out land surveying as a career, as it is such a great industry to work in.  The work provides variety and land surveyors are always in high demand so you will never be short of a job!”

Narelle Underwood- “I love the profession because… it offers a wide variety of career opportunities, not only do we get paid to play with some of the best and coolest technology but we also have an opportunity to influence, design and create new communities.”

Christopher Clay- “I love the profession because I get to help surveyors see through the vegetation using drone-based LiDAR scanning.”

Jay Sidhu-  “I love the profession because there’s never a day the same and challenging puzzles to be solved with amazing stories uncovered every day.”

Angela Bailey- “I love the profession because…it allows me to enjoy multiple aspects of my job. Sometimes my office is the great outdoors, and sometimes it’s at, what I call, my command center, a multi-monitor display surrounded by maps, data, and calculations. Every project is its own puzzle to solve. Some of those pieces are found in the field, some come from historical data/maps, and the rest are self-derived. That’s pretty powerful, knowing you are one of the pieces in the puzzle and it takes you and your team to complete the puzzle. Another reason I love this profession and why I would highly recommend it is for its emerging technologies. Ranging from the latest robotic field equipment, drones, laser scanners, and the newest 3D goggle/monitor hardware to software that will have you thinking you’re in a video game. If you are interested in new tech, a geospatial career will definitely quench your thirst.”

John Brady- “I love the profession because… I am able to get outside and use my hands and my head. It allows me to easily involve my kids in my work. I am providing a public service to society. Ultimately, it is FUN!”

Peta Cox- “I love the profession because it is so diverse & can take you anywhere around the world.”

Jamie Stephens- “I’d recommend land surveying for its ever changing technology, great work balance of outdoor site and indoor office time, project varieties, great peer group and a generally enjoyable career.”

Christine Wanja- “I love the profession because… Its adventurous you get to visit and meet people from different backgrounds, cultures and beliefs it is also fulfilling and challenging at the same time.”

John Perrott- “I love the different aspects of the job and the variety of locations I get to visit. I get to utilise some of the latest technology in the outdoors! What could be better than that?”

If this doesn’t give you the push to try surveying then I don’t know what will! Have a look at all of our free geospatial themed resources here… 

Introducing the Department of Environment Land Water and Planning, who are found on the Australia custom poster:

Company name – Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning

Location – Victoria, Australia

Why did you get involved in Get Kids into Survey? Victoria has a shortage of licensed surveyors and this is a great opportunity to promote surveying to younger generations.

What do you do? While the Department is very broad in its scope, Land Use Victoria is focused on Land Administration, including maintaining the land title register and surveying and spatial information.

How long have you been in the Survey Industry? The Department includes Surveyor-General Victoria, a branch that has existed since 1851.

How did you get into the Industry? As a government agency our role is legislated.

Favourite piece of kit and why? Our laser scanners as they have great potential in cadastral/boundary surveying

Favourite Survey technique and why? The re-establishment of cadastral boundaries – it is of fundamental importance to the state of Victoria

Your website: www.land.vic.gov.au

How did you choose the character and what does he/she/it represent? Mean to you? What’s his/her name? Leeroy was chosen to highlight how surveying helps protect culturally significant heritage sites in Victoria. Leeroy is a heritage officer working in south-west Victoria at Budj Bim, a World Heritage listed site with eel traps and other relics dating back over 6500 years in the traditional Country of the Gunditjmara Aboriginal people. 

Introducing our fantastic sponsors with Henry the Horned Toad!

1. Company Name – Baseline Corporation
2. Location – Texas (4 Regional Offices across the state)
3. Why did you get involved in Get Kids into Survey? Baseline is active in local activities to promote land surveying and supporting GKiS is a natural progression. Land surveying is a great career choice but relatively unknown and not promoted to kids who are only ~10 years from their first jobs. GKiS does a great job of creating those educational opportunities and targeting the younger audiences. 
4. What do you do? Baseline provides a variety of surveying needs for architects, engineers, government, and public clients. The projects may include conventional surveying such as control, topographic, boundary, right-of-way, easement, as-built surveys and staking to the use of emerging technologies like LiDAR scanning and drone flights. Baseline also proves speciality services such as tree surveys, hydrographic surveys, and has 2 Licensed State Land Surveyors (LSLS) the team. A LSLS is a surveyor licensed by the Board to survey land in which the state or the permanent school fund has an interest or perform other original surveys for the purpose of filing field notes in the General Land Office. 
5. How long have you been in the Survey Industry? Baseline has corporate roots back almost 100 years and some staff members have over 40 years of surveying experience. 
6. Funny Fact about you: Horned Toads can shoot blood from their eyes !
7. Favourite piece of kit and why? The plumb bob is not needed as often now with electronic measuring instruments, but is still the simplest and most reliable tool for doing accurate measuring and line sighting. It is one of the oldest tools known to man. 
8. Favourite Survey technique and why? Carrying a big stick, and not just as defence against aggressive critters! Seriously, we save a lot of time on topographic surveys in creeks and wooded areas by using a telescopic rod, up to 30 feet tall, to get our GPS receiver out of dense tree canopy.
9. Your website: www.baselinesurveyors.net
10. How did you choose the character and what does he/she/it represent? Mean to you? What’s his/her name? Henry the Horned Toad is a very appropriate character to represent Texas surveyors. Besides having a name that rolls off the tongue well, two of our licensed surveyors are named Henry. The Texas Horned Lizard, or more-commonly referred to as a “horned toad” or “horntoad”, is an endangered species with an ancient history. Also like a Texas surveyor, it is a unique creature that can utilize its skills and abilities to survive and get the job done. Henry represents two hundred years of Texas surveying, with more than a decade as part of Mexico and another as an independent country before becoming the 28th state. 

Introducing Brad Lariscy our latest Brand Ambassador from Georgia, USA:

Where did you study

Georgia Southern University

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area?

There are a variety of pathways to becoming a Licensed Surveyor in the State of Georgia. Whether you have a 4 year degree, 2 year degree or Certificate along with the respectful amount of experience licensure can be obtained.

How did you get into surveying?

I started surveying immediately out of high school with no family history or knowledge of what land surveying entailed. I loved being outdoors and I knew the company (Thomas & Hutton) that I wanted to work for and the values they held and this was an entry level position to get me started. Little did I know this was the start of a life-long career.

How long have you been in the industry?

18 years

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS?

As an ambassador for GKiS, I will continue to promote surveying to the next generation through STEAM nights at local schools, where we bring in various survey equipment for students to interact with and discuss applications for each. The drone is always a highlight and “wow factor” as we discuss how we incorporate it into our workflow and the model that it produces. In addition to STEAM nights, I think the GKiS platform will allow us to expand our network and reach even more kids. I am passionate about investing heavily into my community as well as education, I believe teaming up with GKiS would provide more tools and resources to reach the next generation.

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador?

I see the value in exposing children to surveying at such a young age, they are the future. I want to be part of an organization that shares these same values. As an ambassador for GKiS I believe we could get our foot in with local schools at an age group even younger than what we are targeting now. To partner with local elementary schools and show students the fun aspects of land surveying and the tools we get to use could peak their interests before even considering it being a career. It reminds me of my days in school sitting in math class thinking, “I will never need to know this information “ if someone would have come in and shown a real-life application such as surveying my perspective certainly would be shifted.

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry?

It is imperative the kids understand surveying and the geospatial industry. To comprehend the need for surveyors and the important role they play in construction as well as determining and creating property boundaries would be essential. For a kid that rides to school and sees a building being demolished, then the property is separated, and then construction on the new properties, then seeing the completed projects. It is essential that we teach kids to understand how a land surveyor is critical to every phase of that transformation. Without a surveyor how different would that site look? Maybe in their research, a surveyor finds evidence of an old easement that would prevent a building from being built in a specific location, maybe buildings cross over into the adjoining owner’s lot, maybe the building is not level or perpendicular to the street. All of these things explain why I love being a surveyor, we have the opportunity to be actively involved in a project from start to finish.

What are your hobbies?

My hobbies would include camping, boating, bike rides anything that brings my family together and gets us outdoors.

Anything else you want to add that you think our audience (surveyors, teachers, parents) would be interested in?

As a father, I see the importance of teaching my daughter the value of land surveying. The skills learned and real-world application that she will get exposed to can only strengthen her as a student and eventually as a professional. Even if her life takes her down a different career path the fact that she can see there are applications for the material she is being taught and understand the methods used to obtain data will broaden her capabilities.

Introducing Mr Craig L. Sandy our most recent Brand Ambassador from Victoria, Australia!

Mr Sandy, a licensed surveyor, is the Surveyor-General of Victoria, and Chair of the Surveyors Registration Board of Victoria, as such is the primary government authority on surveying and the cadastre. The Surveyor-General fulfils a range of statutory roles and responsibilities dealing with land and property boundaries.

Mr Sandy is also a member of the following Commissions and Committees in Victoria: 

• Registrar of Geographic Names
• Victorian Electoral Boundaries Commission 
• Federal Redistribution Committee for Victoria 
• Intergovernmental Committee on Surveying and Mapping  – Chair
• Council of Reciprocating Surveyors Board of Australia and New Zealand – former Chair

Mr Sandy has a focus on engaging with the surveying profession to develop strategies for meeting the challenges that the current digital environment is creating.  In 2020, he was awarded the Asia Pacific Spatial Excellence Award for Spatial Professional of the Year for 2019 for his work in modernisation of the cadastre and in raising awareness for mental health issues in our profession. Mr Sandy is the former Surveyor-General for the Northern Territory of Australia, the only person to have held this title in more than one Australian jurisdiction.

Where did you study? University of South Australia

What are the requirements to be a surveyor in your area? An approved degree, two years of supervised experience and project-based exams and an interview with the Surveyors Registration Board of Victoria. 

How did you get into surveying? In year 12 I was tossing up between civil engineering, architecture and surveying. A family friend showed me an article about surveying being a great career for those with an interest in maths and love of the outdoors – I was sold.  

How long have you been in the industry? Around 40 years. 

Are you part of any associations or organisations you would like us to mention? I work for the Victorian Government as the Surveyor-General of Victoria  and I chair the Surveyors Registration Board of Victoria. I’m also a member of the Surveying Taskforce in Victoria and a national group which promotes the profession to primary, secondary and tertiary students. 

Why do you want to be a GKiS Brand Ambassador? We need new ways to attract people to our profession and GKiS is a great way to do this. I want every student to know about the possibility of a career in surveying and what it can offer.

Why is it important for kids to know about surveying and the wider geospatial industry? The work of surveyors and geospatial scientists is at the heart of land ownership and underpins the economy. There are so many career opportunities and, in the age of digital data, these can only increase.  

What are you going to do as an ambassador for GKiS? Promote GKiS on social media, in professional presentations and at every other opportunity. 

What are your hobbies? I have played many sports but now focus on golf. I also enjoy jigsaw puzzles and researching local history and the role of early surveyors. 

If you/your company had a GKiS character, what would it be? We created the Leeroy character – a heritage officer who manages land with culturally significant heritage value. Leeroy uses a drone to inspect eel traps built by Traditional Owners over 6,000 years ago. 

Welcome to USQ who are our latest Character as seen in the Custom Australia Poster! Read more:

Company Name – University of Southern Queensland (USQ) School of Surveying and Built Environment

Location – Brisbane & Toowoomba

Why did you get involved in Get Kids into Survey? The surveying industry needs more talented people from varied backgrounds to help the country run. USQ has been educating surveyors for 50 years and is the largest educator of surveyors in Australia. We need to play our part in showing what a rewarding career surveying can be.  We picked Zahra to represent us because she is an important member of the School and she embodies what we are trying to achieve.  

Let’s learn a bit more about Zahra!

1.   What do you do? 

I am a lecturer at USQ and I teach students all about drones and satellite positioning  to help them become successful surveyors. 

2.   How long have you been in the Survey Industry? 

Almost 12 years. I started my career as a land surveyor in a construction company in Iran where I was responsible for collecting and processing field data. After three years, I decided to continue studying and came to Australia to pursue my career as a lecturer and help others get into this exciting industry. 

3.   How did you get into the Industry? 

I have been passionate about mapping and positioning since I was a kid, especially treasure maps, and had always loved to learn how to generate cool and useful maps.

4.   Funny Fact about you.

I can make my drones dance😊.

5.   Favourite piece of kit and why? 

Drones. I love a bird’s-eye view, plus they are fast, fun to fly, and have a lot of interesting applications.

6. Favourite Survey technique and why?

GNSS (or Global Navigation Satellite System) or traditionally known as GPS. They can be used to map and locate features on the ground, air (e.g. drones, aircraft), water (e.g. ships), and even space (e.g. Satellites). 

7. Your website

8. How did you choose the character and what does he/she/it represent? Mean to you? What’s his/her name?

My character is me, Zahra and I am a passionate teacher who cares about her students and teaches them the latest survey techniques and technologies. As a female surveyor, my character would also like to encourage more girls into the surveying profession.