Towards Valuable Data that Works in an Autonomous Way

In this interview, Thomas Harring, president of Hexagon’s Geosystems division and CEO of Leica Geosystems, shares his thoughts on the present and future of the geospatial industry, including his views on the key market trends, technology drivers and challenges, and the impacts of COVID-19 and climate change on his organization and the sector in general.

What has been the impact of COVID-19 on your business?
甚至在当前的Covid-19大流行之前，数字化都是地理空间行业的主要趋势。Covid-19-19的大流行加速了这一发展，一旦危机过去，这种趋势将继续。在更传统的领域中采用数字解决方案已经增加，危机并未延迟计划的投资项目。以数字化的工作流程的力量还向那些以前不知道地理空间行业解决方案的决策者透明地展示了好处。由于真实和数字世界的持续融合，地理空间行业（其解决方案捕获，衡量和可视化物理世界）是理想的定位，可以促进自动化并提供自主决策支持。有几个主题由于19号而获得了相关性，例如使用数字工具之间的办公室和现场之间的实时协作，频繁的远程进度监控以及对准确可靠的数字现实的需求增加。我们和对地理空间行业感兴趣的每个人都应该利用“下一个正常”的势头来进一步加强地理空间行业，并朝着以客户为中心，可持续和自动的数字解决方案发展。

您认为未来几年的关键市场趋势是什么？

自治是我们看到并积极塑造的关键趋势。我们的自主技术在整个运营或行业的工作流程中“自动化”任何任务或过程。考虑一下我们在BLK系列中新推出的产品。Leica BLK Arc是一种用于机器人的自主激光扫描模块，与机器人载体集成，并可以用最少的人干预进行扫描。Leica Blk2Fly是一种自动飞行激光扫描仪，可以轻松捕获从天空中建造外观，结构和环境，在飞行时产生3D点云。这BLK ARCandBLK2FLY直接连接到六边形的基于云的可视化平台HXDR, where immediate upload, AI-enabled cloud processing and storage of the captured data provide instant delivery of a purpose-built intelligent digital reality to collaborators anywhere. Smart digital realities already help make informed decisions by visualizing as-is conditions and modelling scenarios. However, self-learning digital twins are increasingly autonomous; think, for example, of monitoring systems whose sensors detect minimal movements and, in the event of danger, automatically switch a traffic light to red to close off sections of the road to protect drivers.

Which technological driver do you expect to be most important in the coming years?
Technology has delivered on the promise of vast amounts of useful data. But instead of generating trillions in value, the data deluge is confronting industry with a new challenge. I consider the most important technologies to be those that allow us to put all this valuable data to work in an autonomous way. Exciting technologies, such as 5G, edge computing, cloud processing, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, IoT and AR, are all making an impact. I don’t see one single technology driving the industry, but rather the interplay of all of these. However, AI has already transformed machine visualizations and image processing, and pervades our solutions and platforms. Customers are benefiting from the use of AI in our smart digital reality solutions to gain previously unobtainable insights.

在不久的将来，您认为主要挑战是什么？

I see a bright future for the geospatial industry. However, a talent shortage might become challenging in view of the increasing demand for geospatial data and the growing number of applications. Fewer talented youngsters are entering the industry, while seasoned professionals are retiring. Our innovations respond to that challenge in two ways. Firstly, our developments help surveyors and other geospatial professionals be more efficient. With our robotic total stations, for example, such as the Leica Viva TS16 with DynamicLock, one person suffices to get the job done. Another example is the Leica GS18 I; with the GNSS rover with visual positioning, surveyors can quickly and efficiently capture areas in images and measure points in the field or later in the office. Secondly, innovative technology such as laser scanners, mobile mapping technology, UAV systems and increasingly powerful software also make the industry more attractive to a tech-savvy younger generation.

由于气候危机，公司和组织迫切需要为一个更安全，更可持续188asia备用网址的世界做出贡献。您对此有何看法？

我们认为，地理空间行业有责任使我们的世界更安全，更可持续。实际上，在六边形，可持续性是我们战略的核心。我们设想了一个自主，可持续的未来，在这种未来，行业，人类和环境可持续发展。我们不断努力最大程度地减少自己的环境足迹和价值链的占地面积。而且，我们看到了一个很好的机会，可以支持客户变得更加可持续。我们的解决方案有助于使可再生能源农场提高生产力，沿海地区更具弹性，城市更绿色，采矿和重型建筑效率更高，建筑建筑较精简和建筑物维护更聪明。

关于Thomas Harring

Thomas Harring is the president of Hexagon’s Geosystems division and CEO of Leica Geosystems. In 2011, he was appointed COO/CFO of Hexagon’s Geosystems division and Leica Geosystems. Prior to that, he held various management positions at Leica Geosystems. Before joining Leica Geosystems in 2003, Harring worked for many years in international consultancy and served on the academic council at the Technical University of Cottbus, Germany. He holds a degree in technically oriented economics from the Technical University of Stuttgart, Germany.