(Australia-NewsWire.Com, November 11, 2012 ) New South Wales, Australia -- The main topic of conversation during the New Zealand Institute of Surveyors annual conference October 25-28 in Invercargill will be how to fold the growing number of GIS professionals into the 124-year-old organization.
The conference will make clear how drastically the profession has changed with technology, said Southland surveyor and conference convenor Don Moir. These days there are are several thousand GIS operators in the country, while surveyors number fewer than 1000, said Moir.
Unlike surveyors who continue to use more conventional tools in their work, GIS operators incorporate digital information such as satellite photographs into maps. The role attracts surveyors, as well as others whose qualifications do not fit within the confines of the institute.
“What we're finding is that there is a big body of practitioners building up in that area and they don't have anybody to represent them," said Moir.
New technology has infiltrated all aspects of the surveying profession, said Moir. The country’s land information system is nearly all computerized. Surveyors file reports and other information to Land Information New Zealand through what is known as the Land Online system, he added.
"Even your basic theodolite is fully electronic now. I doubt anyone makes an optical one."
When Moir began working, surveyors used measuring tapes, mechanical adding machines and log tables to make calculations. Today they use computers to send information to their offices wirelessly as they gather it.
One of the conference talking points will be industry partnerships.Those in the institute predict this will be increasingly valuable in coming years as a means of maximizing new developments and opportunities within the profession.
The New Zealand Institute of Surveyors offers a wide range of professional services for its members, including continuing education, research and development, and awarding excellence to those within the industry.
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