GIS and Drone Technology for Campus Asset Mapping

Lack of tracking and management of assets is always a major issue when it comes to the management of large campuses such as university campuses, corporate offices and industrial facilities. Manual techniques of assets tracking and control are usually inadequate in terms of accuracy, time and adaptability in complex contexts. Now, let me introduce you to GIS drones and other sophisticated geospatial tools that are changing the face of how campuses are captured, managed and monitored.

When GIS is integrated with drone technology, institutions are able to capture, analyze and represent the layout of the campus like never before. Through this innovative mapping of campus, the administrators can have a real time information about their infrastructure, utility and other open spaces. Moreover, such advanced technologies as LIDAR technology are improving the efficiency of geospatial data capture, thus, also improving the asset management processes.

In this article, GIS and drone technology in addition to the use of geospatial data to revolutionize the campus asset mapping, and hence enable organizations to make adequate decisions.

What is Campus Asset Mapping?

Campus asset mapping is a process of documenting, locating and managing physical and operational resources in a campus area. Such assets can include buildings, utilities and infrastructure, green areas, parking and other outdoors facilities. A good map is very important to institutions especially those that are in a position to manage a large number of assets; the map gives a clear picture of the institution and helps in management, resource provision, and even planning.

Conventional asset mapping welfare has for a long time relied on cumbersome paper surveys and rigid records. Such methods could result in mistakes, slowness and challenges of tracking such fluctuating or newly introduced assets. However, as campuses develop into comprehensive facilities, the demand for precise, up-to-date, and real-time asset plans has heightened.

Now comes GIS and drone that allows accurate, high resolution mapping that changes how institutions manage their assets. By having these tools, campus will be in a better position to have a holistic view and management of the physical infrastructure in their compound hence enhancing their management of the infrastructure.

This paper examines how as campuses have had to adapt to contemporary requirements, asset mapping has emerged as best practice. Whereas in the past campus mapping was a simple process of drawing lines and placing labels on a map, today’s use of geospatial data and such tools as drones and LIDARs makes campus mapping a live tool for a campus administrator.

How GIS and Drone Technology are Revolutionizing Campus Mapping

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have remained at the vanguard of spatial data analysis by offering organizations a platform through which geographic data can be collected, processed, and analyzed in order to support decision making. In campus asset mapping GIS is used as a tool of storing, managing and visualizing data in a form of a map that displays the entire campus area with layers of information.

With the help of GIS, campus administrators can place layers of different information on the map at once, including the position of the building, utilities, roads, parking lots, and green areas. The integration of the above data in one place and easily retrievable format enables decision making by the stakeholders in real time thus effective management and maintenance of the assets.

For instance, GIS can record the history of maintenance of each building, study the flow of people on foot or even observe the use of energy. The fact that one can map this data geographically provides the campus administrators with the means to cut costs, make better decisions, and increase efficiency.

Asset Mapping Using Drones

Modern asset mapping is impossible to imagine without drones that are equipped with high definition cameras and advanced sensors. Drones can thus take high-resolution pictures and gathering spatial information of a campus to give the bird’s eye view of the whole area. Such kind of aerial surveying is useful in large and complex areas such as university campuses where it would take a lot of time and money to survey the entire ground terrain.

The GIS drones enable fast, inexpensive data to be collected, which would not be possible if using conventional techniques. Drones can be used in places that are difficult or unsafe for people and personnel to access, for example, roofs, transmission towers and large,WOODED regions. Third, drones can generate accurate, high-resolution maps within a short span of time; therefore, planning and asset management information on the campus is always updated.

This paper has demonstrated how incorporation of drones with GIS helps campus administrators to make effective decisions on time. For instance, drones can be used to check the roofs for signs of wear or to detect availability of parking space in a car park and relay data to the GIS system in real time. This capability of real-time makes the campus management efficient, cost-effective and provides better user experience to the students, faculty and staffs.

LIDAR Technology and Its Role in Campus Mapping

LIDAR is a highly developed technology in the field of remote sensing which employs laser beams to perform distance measurement and thus generate realistic and accurate 3D facsimiles of physical terrains. In contrast to other imaging techniques, LIDAR can scan through objects such as trees or other vegetation in order to provide accurate information about visible structures as well as structures that may be obscured from other viewpoints.

The integration of LIDAR with drones improves the level of detail of data gathered in the process of campus mapping. LIDAR sensors mounted on drones that can fly over the campus and sweep across the surfaces can capture the most precise view of the structures and even the contours of the land in 3D. This level of accuracy is way better than the conventional GPS surveys and is ideal for coverage large areas or areas with many twists and turns.

How LIDAR Improves Campus Visualization
For asset mapping, LIDAR is most effective, because it provides detailed 3D modeling of campus structures and facilities. For instance, those areas that have many trees, or those that have hilly grounds, the use of LIDAR in mapping the ground surface beneath vegetation is very useful. This is especially important for utilities such as cables or pipelines, which are practically invisible during other surveys.

In addition, high-definition data can be obtained from LIDAR for the height of buildings and structures, architectural designs, and the physical characteristics of the ground, which are useful in the design of new projects, or the changes that may be needed on existing structures, or the schedule for maintenance and repairs. LIDAR when integrated with GIS presents a complete picture of assets within 2D and 3D formats enhancing asset utilization and physical development of the campus in future.

LIDAR also plays a significant role in geospatial data analysis by forming point clouds which are data points at a specific location in a three-dimensional space. These point clouds can be used for different purposes such as terrain modeling, construction planning of buildings and even in monitoring the environment hence becomes vital in modern campus asset management.

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