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Certification in site optimization
BLUERIDGE Analytics is now registering civil engineers for certification in SITEOPS, its land development software that delivers cost-optimized preliminary site designs and cost estimates. Engineers must complete a three-day training session at BLUERIDGE headquarters in Charlotte, N.C., to become a SITEOPS Certified Professional. Engineering firms may also earn certification as SITEOPS Certified Providers. Benefits include listing on the SITEOPS website, use of the SITEOPS Certified mark on business cards and promotional materials, and participation in the SITEOPS Engineer Referral Network. To receive certification, participants must create, process, and optimize sites within the SITEOPS web application; generate Site Cost Optimization Reports (SCOR) showing site cost estimates for multiple design options; use web-based project collaboration features; apply value engineering principles throughout the design process; apply green building principles by designating tree saves and set-asides; and create building templates, truck docks, and disabled/specialized parking spaces.
BLUERIDGE Analytics—www.siteops.com
Stand-alone laser scanner
Topcon Positioning Systems says its GLS-1000 scanner offers surveyors and civil engineers an affordable, user-friendly instrument that operates as a stand-alone unit without external computers, cables, or heavy batteries. Topcon developed Precise Scan Technology for the GLS-1000, which uses time of flight measurement and phase-based analysis technology for stable and precision accuracy measurement up to 150 meters. Topcon used technology from Voxis, Inc.—now a wholly owned subsidiary of Topcon—which is recognized as an innovator in the design of precision, high-resolution motion systems. The GLS-1000 offers creation of 3-D models from point clouds; integration of mages with the built-in digital camera; connectivity with application software; a control panel for onboard scanning control and data storage; and simple and quick registration. Topcon expects to deliver the GLS-1000 to customers by late fall.
Topcon Positioning Systems—www.topconpositioning.com
Sign design software
Transoft Solutions, Inc., launched the latest version of its sign design software, GuidSIGN version 5.0. A new QuicDesign template system supplies national standard templates to help users create signs quickly and with greater consistency. DOT traffic engineers and consultants can share standardized templates. Designers can browse by road classification or sign designation to select the appropriate template. QuicDesign also gives users the ability to replace the content of the template by keying in changes or through the new Name Lookup feature. With Name Lookup users can easily select destinations based on the included American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials Control Cities or U.S. Geological Survey Place Name Lists. Inversely, users can create templates from previously created guide signs. Additionally, once created, users can create a custom library of their completed signs for use in traffic signing plans and structural detail drawings.
Transoft Solutions, Inc.—www.transoftsolutions.com
Lighter weight turf reinforcement mat
American Excelsior Company announced a new addition to its Recyclex turf reinforcement mat (TRM) product family. Recyclex TRM-V is a lighter weight (8 ounces per square yard) TRM that provides a 100-percent synthetic, permanent, cost-effective solution for low- to medium-flow channels that do not require protection from forces greater than 7 pounds per square foot shear stress and for slopes that require permanent vegetation reinforcement. According to the company, with the introduction of Recyclex TRM-V, design engineers will continue to benefit from the use of permanent fibers refined from recycled bottles. Recyclex fibers have a memory of 95 percent and a specific gravity greater than 1.0, thus they rebound from and do not float during hydraulic events.
American Excelsior Company—www.curlex.com
Accounting software for government contracts
Deltek, Inc.’s GCS Premier version 5.0 delivers enhancements to the company’s project accounting solution for small to medium U.S. government contractors. According to the company, a new user interface makes navigation faster and easier through improved look and feel, adds role-based navigation providing an additional layer of efficiency and compliance, and provides increased productivity and lower training costs through process-driven workflows. Premier Billing embeds functionality within Microsoft Excel 2007 to improve billing processes. Pre-built and customizable templates make invoicing faster and easier while data security is maintained to ensure Defense Contractors Audit Agency compliance. Intuitive role-based navigation and the incorporation of new capabilities in Premier Billing create a faster, more accurate user experience, Deltek says, which will accelerate accounting cycles and improve cash flow.
Deltek, Inc.—www.deltek.com/gcs5
Project document management
Meridian Systems announced the availability of Proliance Navigator for Microsoft Outlook, an optional add-on product for both existing and new Proliance customers. Proliance Navigator enables Proliance users to navigate seamlessly through data stored in their project management system using the familiar Microsoft Outlook user interface. Proliance Navigator allows users to save Outlook e-mails and attachments directly to Proliance, where they can be simultaneously linked to other critical project data, such as invoices, contracts, and change orders. Users can leverage Outlook folder structure capabilities to organize Proliance documents in any way that is meaningful to them; access Outlook’s capabilities to search, filter, group, and sort across multiple Proliance projects; and view, edit, and synchronize Proliance documents directly from an Outlook e-mail. Proliance Navigator automatically references and updates the Proliance document without leaving Outlook.
Meridian Systems—www.meridiansystems.com
Manage electronic communications
ColumbiaSoft Corporation released Document Locator v5.2, which includes new optional e-mail compliance components to help customers better manage electronic communications according to regulations and corporate e-mail policies. The new version also includes technology that makes it easier to organize and deliver files to others and verify the authenticity of documents using digital signatures, as well as improvements in document workflow. A new optional e-mail archiving solution automatically captures a copy of all incoming and outgoing e-mail messages, including attachments, company-wide. This gives firms the ability to better manage e-mail records in accordance with compliance policies, industry regulations, and legal requirements. Document Locator v5.2 also introduces a new document delivery and archive solution called DL FastPack that allows users to organize and package files quickly on external media for storage or to hand-off to others who may not be Document Locator users. Additionally, integration with Adobe Acrobat improves digital signature and PDF handling inside the document management system and makes it easier to trust the authenticity of documents.
ColumbiaSoft Corporation—www.documentlocator.com
Stationary or mobile laser scanner
Riegl USA, Inc., says its new V-Line 3-D laser scanners provide extremely high resolution, pulse repetition, and scanning rates, as well as a large field of view. The V-Line has multiple target capacity with an unlimited number of targets and can be used for stationary and mobile terrestrial scan data acquisition. Features include cable-less operation; internal flash memory data storage; pulse repetition rates up to 300 kHz; scanning rates up to 100 scans per second; data interfaces for GPS, LAN, WLAN, and USB; and a camera option. According to the company, excellent multiple-target capability provides increased performance in dust, rain, snow, and fog. The V-Line scanners are compact and weigh less than 10 kg on average.
Riegl USA, Inc.—www.rieglusa.com
Approved water-treatment membranes
Dow Water Solutions, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company, announced that its DOW Ultrafiltration (UF) membrane modules were approved as an Alternative Filtration Technology for treating drinking water. DOW UF was tested and certified under the California Surface Water Treatment Rule, as well as the federal Long Term 1 and Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rules. Testing demonstrated the effectiveness of DOW UF in removing harmful pathogens from water and the operational integrity of the modules. According to the company, benefits to the water treatment industry include an ultimate barrier for removing suspended solids and pathogens; pressurized, outside-in flow configuration to handle high-suspended solids, minimizing pre-treatment and lowering capital cost; and hydrophilic, PVDF double-wall hollow fibers that reduce fouling and have excellent chemical resistance and strength, resulting in durable, long membrane life.
Dow Water Solutions—www.dow.com
Expanded soil-strengthening technologies
Design-build contractor GeoStructures expanded its use of technologies that have the added benefit of being environmentally sensitive as they improve the performance of the Geopier system in strengthening soil prior to construction. The company has built Rammed Aggregate Pier (RAP) elements with a patented technique for using recycled, crushed concrete. The use of recycled concrete aggregates saves the cost of shipping in virgin-quarried stone and transporting out old concrete, as well as the environmental cost of land-filling concrete debris. In another patented technique that has been applied at a half dozen sites during the last 12 months, cement is injected into RAP elements as they are constructed with aggregate, increasing the capacity of the Impact Pier elements in soft soils and creating a barrier against water infiltration through the elements.
GeoStructures—www.geostructures.com
Online map service
ESRI’s ArcGIS Online provides ArcGIS users access to a new premium map service. The USA Prime Imagery premium service includes i-cubed’s Nationwide Prime 1-meter or better resolution imagery for the continental United States. Included with this imagery are i-cubed’s 15-meter eSAT imagery at medium to large scales and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Blue Marble: Next Generation 500-meter resolution imagery at small scales. ArcGIS Online services, a family of web-based data products, is available to ArcGIS Desktop, ArcGIS Explorer, and ArcGIS Server users. ArcGIS Online gives users the ability to access online map content as well as make content available to other users. ArcGIS Mobile users will be able to connect to ArcGIS Online services in the near future. A new version of ArcGIS Explorer supports the new premium services. In addition to premium imagery, ArcGIS Online gives users access to street maps, topographic maps, and shaded relief maps.
