FYI
January 19th, 2012 – MicroSurvey is excited to announce that The Hexagon Group has entered into an agreement to acquire all outstanding shares of MicroSurvey Software Inc., the leading Canadian based developer of surveying and mapping software for the land surveying, construction, and forensic markets.
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> January 19th, 2012 – MicroSurvey is excited to announce that The Hexagon Group has entered into an agreement to acquire all outstanding shares of MicroSurvey Software Inc., the leading Canadian based developer of surveying and mapping software for the land surveying, construction, and forensic markets.
Great:-( now there will be more hands in the Star*Net bucket.
Hexagon/Leica owns Star*Net?
MicroSurvey owns Star*Net.
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I'm glad they didn't acquire Carlson, given their past association with data collectors.
I wonder how well they are going to work with Autodesk. The big conglomerates don't play well together and expect the other to bow to its "standards". Trimble equipment works well until it gets in the office (with the exception of Terramodel).
Might Be An Anti Carlson Move
I believe more Leica data collectors go out the door with Carlson software than with Leica software. Now Leica can say Micro Survey is just as good and use that product exclusively.
Paul in PA
Might Be An Anti Carlson Move
When I heard about this I started thinking about what has happened to TDS after they were acquired by Trimble. The functions of their software has been integrated into Trimble's own software package, the TDS development has pretty much stopped, and their clients are slowly moving over to Trimble.
Might Be An Anti Carlson Move
If you saw/used the latest version of Viva SmartWorx you would change your mind about that statement. After using all four (Carlson, Microsurvey, TDS and Viva), the Leica data collection system is now way ahead of the pack.
MicroSurvey is probably the leader in accident and forensic investigation software. Leica and the other instrument manufacturers have been chasing this business for years. Current trend is promoting scanners to police departments. Leica recently announced their single biggest order for scanners from police in the UK.
http://www.leica-geosystems.com/en/News_360.htm?id=3557
Police departments in the U.S. are also acquiring scanners for accident investigation and reconstruction. Buying MicroSurvey gives them an established base of police departments and private consultants, many of them retired police officers, as potential purchasers.
My second hand experience in this business is police departments prefer working with someone who has walked in their shoes so to speak. MicroSurvey has retired police officers working for them and many of the consultants who train also represent the product.
Colorado Hwy Patrol has a whole team of accident investigators.
http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/StatePatrol-Main/CBON/1251593176187
A few survey instrument retailers have made a commitment to this niche market. Leica/Hexagon would seem to be making a corporate commitment and telling the competition they are serious about getting this business. Police departments have been buying total stations and data collectors for 15-20 years. With scanners the opportunity for significant revenue growth. Compare the cost of a basic total station and data collector to the cost of a scanner system.
Additional info
Trimble purchased Visual Statement, another company in the accident investigation software business, in 2006.
http://www.trimble.com/news/release.aspx?id=101206a
The CHP MAIT team has scanners already.
My impression of it is that a uniformed officer complete with shiny badge using wiz-bang technology in the courtroom is impressive to juries.
They don't really understand surveying or the technology. Some day a high stakes case is going to come along and the other side may be able to get some traction against the officer with fancy show and tell by asking technical questions a la the O.J. case.
Might Be An Anti Carlson Move
How can you say that TDS development has stopped?
Spectra Precision released Survey Pro 5.o late last year and it is a major updating of that software package.
True, Trimble and SP are sharing more functions and common naming of functions these days, but Survey Pro is far from dead.
> ... the geodetic/survey/mapping development going on in canbada ...
A place full of bad asses?