Introducing Promap Labs

We are very excited to today launch Promap Labs; a new online portal that gives architects, surveyors and land or property developers the ability to test brand new digital mapping product concepts before they are launched to the market.

The Promap Labs portal showcases new beta mapping datasets and applications that can be tested before they are fully launched. This enables clients to contribute valuable feedback or suggest new ideas, for future development. 

The first new application to feature on Promap Labs is ‘Promap Labs View’; this provides the ability to easily view a wide range of data in one single map interface. Examples include natural environment data such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) sites.  It is designed to provide a simple way to quickly view a location and understand what environmental factors may affect it, without needing to be a Geographical Information expert.

Visitors to Promap Labs will also have an early preview of the new multi-browser, multi-device Promap digital mapping service, which is scheduled to launch next month.

Carole Ankers, Product Development Director, Landmark Information Group said, “Promap Labs offers our clients and the wider property and land development community the opportunity to access brand new digital datasets or services, before they are fully launched. It provides early access to new and innovative ideas so they can be tested and reviewed – this includes first sight of our new multi-browser and multi-device Promap service, which is set to launch very soon.  We believe it is important to work in collaboration with the industry when developing new digital mapping tools and datasets, and the Promap Labs portal provides a fantastic platform for us to do this. ”

Dan Hughes, Sector Manager of Land and Property at Ordnance Survey: “Promap Labs is a great concept. It provides the industry with access to new digital mapping innovations and a platform from which ideas and feedback can be openly shared, paving the way for future product development. We are fully behind new innovation in our industry and so we applaud Landmark for delivering this by introducing Promap Labs.”

Adds Carole Ankers: “The first application to be showcased on Promap Labs is Promap Labs View: we encourage as many people as possible to visit Promap Labs and test out the new concepts.  We welcome feedback, so please let us know what you like about it, would change or how you might use it. We’ve made it as easy as possible to post your comments and we look forward to receiving as much feedback as possible!”

To access Promap Labs visit: http://labs.promap.co.uk.  

Nine out of ten AJ100 practices rely on Landmark for digital mapping, property and environmental risk reports

We are pleased to today reveal that 92% of the prestigious AJ100 – the annual league table of the largest architectural practices in the UK – have been working with Landmark during the last three years to source property due diligence reporting or digital mapping tools for use in feasibility studies, planning applications or to analyse the suitability of a site for development purposes.

The AJ100 remains the authoritative survey of the UK’s largest architecture practices – based on the number of qualified ARB-registered architects employed. Almost 26,000 people work in the organisations included in the league table, and as such, it provides a wealth of information that architectural practices of all sizes can benchmark themselves against, including the AJ100 salary guide and an average fee scale.

Carole Ankers, Product Development Director, Landmark Information Group said, “The AJ100 is considered the ‘who’s who’ in the UK’s architectural industry and is a great way for firms of all sizes to analyse trends in the sector.  When reviewing the latest league table, we are very proud to see that of the 105 listed, 102 are registered customers of Landmark, of which 97 have been working with us on a regular basis to access the wide range of digital mapping and environmental risk data for site surveys, feasibility studies and planning applications; this includes nineteen of the top twenty.”

Working closely with data providers including Ordnance Survey, the Environment Agency, the Coal Authority and the British Geological Survey enables Landmark to offer current and historical environmental risk management information and desktop mapping solutions to architects, surveyors, developers and the wider property industry.  This includes Promap, which delivers access to digital OS maps, 3D models, height data, aerial photography and geo-data, including environmental, planning and geological reports to identify potential site issues.

The AJ100 analysis is authored by Professor Bruce Tether, professor of innovation management and strategy at Manchester Business School.

To find out more about the AJ100, visit http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/home/aj100-2013/. 

Promap Plug-In for AutoCAD 2014 launches

We have today launched a free AutoCAD 2014 plug-in, which simplifies the process of integrating digitised Ordnance Survey MasterMap data directly from Promap into the popular CAD application.

Within the AutoCAD 2014 environment, users can now access the ‘Promap Data Services’ plug-in to digitise their area of interest using Bing Maps, and from this, request pricing for purchasing Ordnance Survey’s MasterMap. Once the file format and gridlines have been confirmed, the required dataset is then downloaded directly into AutoCAD for immediate use.

Carole Ankers, Product Development Director, Landmark Information Group said, “For anyone looking to incorporate accurate OS mapping into their AutoCAD projects, the new Promap plug-in creates a seamless and simple way of doing this. Within a few clicks, accurate topography data can be integrated within the CAD system, saving time. We have developed this in response to our clients’ feedback and so are pleased to launch the new plug-in today.”

The ‘Promap Data Services’ plug-in is available for PC users and can be downloaded from today via http://labs.promap.co.uk/new-promap-for-autocad.  

The plug-in is available free of charge.

Research methodology – How to tell a story with data

The beauty of Britain is demonstrated by the famous landmarks, ancient and modern that adorns the landscape from Land’s End to John o’Groats.

Embellished with royal palaces, castles, magnificent cathedrals, legendary sites and picturesque villages, the ever-evolving British landscape has changed dramatically since World War II. Many new developments have been welcomed with open arms, whilst others have courted controversy.

Using our archive of 1.4 million map images, including Historical Maps, Landmark Information Group analysed the site of  the Angel of the North, one of the more controversial landmarks built post-war, to demonstrate how the British landscape has changed.

The Story of the Angel of the North

Overlooking the A1 at Gateshead, at least 90,000 motorists a day – more than one person every second – pass the Angel of the North, a steel sculpture of an angel, 66ft tall and with wings measuring 177ft, designed by sculptor Antony Gormley and completed in 1998.

Opponents raised concerns that the sculpture would distract drivers and cause accidents and ruin views.

Built in an area of coal mining, the Angel of the North signifies that coal miners worked beneath the structure for two centuries.

Sculptor, Antony Gormley commented of the Angel of the North: ‘I want to make something we can live with and that becomes a reservoir for feelings – feelings that perhaps we hadn’t known about until this thing was there, or feelings that couldn’t arise until it was’.

Our in-house analysis showed:

• That the coal pits and collieries surrounding the Angel of the North were largely dis-used by the 1950s.
• The Angel of the North is built on the site of an old reservoir, a potential source of ground instability.

How you can discover the story behind your site

Although investigating the past land use of a site or area can be a challenging and complex prospect, Landmark Information Group have reduced the complexity of this process by:

• Establishing and maintaining an archive of digital historical mapping. 
• Developing on online historical map analysis platform, Envirocheck Analysis
• Developing bespoke GIS tools for fast and easy data interrogation.
• Utilising existing GIS software such as Mapinfo and ArcMap for analysis.
•  Completing the project of analysing the UK’s historic mapping to identify past land use.

With these foundations in place a site’s history can be established  without having to leave your desk, by “peeling back” or “building up” imagery to create layers of easily visualised information. Where changes occur between the image layers changes to the environment and landscape can be identified, both minor and significant.  These can range from alterations of the landscape (in-filling of depressed land and water features) to the development of housing and industrial centres.

Visualisation of data provides unique insight into the changing landscape of the UK that can be accessed through our environmental product range.

Application: Analysis of the Angel of the North

Angel of the North site as depicted on streetview mapping

Using a bespoke data interrogation tool we selected and viewed combinations of the hundreds of datasets available to Landmark.   With our site selected we chose to view landfill data from multiple sources, both historic and contemporary, and current licensed waste sites, planning application data, fuel stations, areas of outstanding natural beauty and many more.

Next we composited historical map images with OS mapping to create a visual depiction of changes to the human and natural landscape. In the case of the Angel of the North we started by viewing a county series map from 1862. 

The map image depicts collieries, coal pits and rail infrastructure in the area.

County series historic map overlaid on contemporary Ordnance Survey mapping.

The 1862 County series map.

Layering historical map images reveals that the site of the Angel is built directly on top of a man-made reservoir.

Angel of the North site with Landmark’s in-filled land feature displayed as a red polygon.

1951 Ordnance Survey mapping depicting the reservoir site still in use.

Landmark’s holding of historical mapping is viewable via Promap and within Envirocheck Analysis, an online software tool, aimed to provide significant time saving and improved accuracy benefits when undertaking historical map analysis,. These historical maps are projected over the national grid to ensure accuracy.   For any one area there can be as many as forty unique maps, spanning from the mid-1800s to the modern day.

In the case of the Angel of the North we have thirty viewable maps, ranging from 1859 to 2013.

The historic maps used for the analysis of the Angel of the North are available via Promap as part of the Envirocheck Report, which delivers site-specific information, that enable you to complete a phase 1 desk study.

Model Buildings

Our product developer director, Carole Ankers, has written an article for GEO:Connexion International on the topic of 3D models, looking at how - together with digital mapping data - they are giving architects greater visualisation capabilities than ever before. 

The article also includes as a case study from our client, Studio M.A.D, focusing on its use of 3D modelling in a recent central London project to create a mansard roof extension within a conservation zone.

Take a look at the full article here, which has been published in the July/Aug edition:

http://www.geoconnexion.com/publications/geo-international/issue/july-august-2013-international-issue/article/model-buildings 

Map Out Flood Risk from Day One

Flooding is an issue we are all acutely aware of, particularly as more and more unpredictable weather conditions continue to challenge us. In fact, according to the Met Office, 2012 saw the second-highest annual recording of rain since 1910 for the UK, while England faced its wettest year to date.  

As a result, architects must seriously consider the impact flood could have for future building projects.  For one thing, an important deadline is approaching that is likely to raise the topic of flood risk higher up the agenda: on 31 July 2013, the ‘Statement of Principles’ agreement between Government and the insurance industry is expiring. 

This agreement, which has been voluntarily extended by one month to July, commits insurers to continue offering reasonably priced flood insurance as part of standard household policies.  With its expiration, it has the potential to lead to difficulties in not only accessing affordable insurance cover for those properties deemed at significant risk, but also mortgage security.  

With such challenges in place, a number of guides have been produced for architects that offer best practice advice regarding integrating both control and mitigation steps into overall designs, yet continue to output sustainable developments.

In addition, desktop reports provide flood risk screening that help architects assess the risk of flooding to any given location. It is important to have a ‘bigger picture view’, to understand a site’s complete risk profile and while people use the Environment Agency website to determine one level of risk, our desktop reports provide clear, upfront guidance from a number of sources. This includes JBA Risk Management, official Environment Agency (EA) data and also British Geographic Survey (BGS) Groundwater information.

An example of this can be seen here in Hull, East Yorkshire – our flood report not only gives you EA data (blue) but also insurance claim information both historical and assessment of future premium (green). It also builds-in the different types of flood risk, so as to provide the complete picture of your specific area.

So, when accessing your OS mapping at the outset of any project, it makes sense to also consider the potential flood risk at the site in question at the same time.  Both Sitecheck (commercial) and Homecheck (residential) flood analysis reports are available within Promap.

Ultimately, environmental risks must be analysed at the outset so any future development is designed to not only resist whatever the elements may throw at it, but future owners can rest assured knowing that they will have no issues accessing appropriate insurances.

Details regarding our range of Flood Risk analysis reports are available to access here:

http://www.landmark.co.uk/our-products/flood

http://www.promap.co.uk/pro_reports_flood.php

Learning From Experience

We are proud to be supporting the BlueBox Partners CPD conferences, which offer training and education to the Surveying industry on a wide range of topics.

There are two events this year – the first is at Brighouse, which is taking place today, while the Swindon event is being hosted on 11 June.

Members of our team will be attending both meetings and will be discussing the subjects of flooding, environmental impact assessment and digital mapping. There will be live demonstrations of the Promap system, a breakfast briefing that helps delegates earn additional CPD points plus Promap experts will be on hand throughout the day to answer any questions.

Real life examples will be presented throughout the one-day conference, exploring residential valuation, building defects, and dilapidation issues.

For more information, visit: http://www.blueboxpartners.com/courses/BBP-Course-lfe2013/