Putting the serve into surveying

Author: Moritz Lauwiner

EMBRACING INNOVATION

Innovation is part of our culture at Hexagon because we know that without it, our business will stagnate and falter. The same is true for surveying firms. While our innovation journey arrives at industry-disrupting hardware and software like the expanding Leica BLK family, the surveyor’s innovation quest leads to unique service offerings. We would like to be partners along your path and are committed to consulting with experts worldwide who excel at service innovation, gathering strategies for success and connecting you to resources. As we equip you with leading technology, we also share insights that help deploy that technology to create innovative services.

THE ESSENCE OF SERVICE

Services only exist in the moment they are consumed. This intangible nature creates timing and capacity challenges for the surveying service provider who must remain available and capable of delivering services on demand, not knowing where and when. Technology that collects, processes and shares data faster and more accessibly offers a way to mitigate these challenges. For example, Hexagon’s new cloud services portal, HxGN GeoCloud, powered by HxDR, allows seamless access to your data wherever you are, whenever you need it. Additionally, innovations like the Leica AP20 AutoPole speed up robotic total station surveying workflows, freeing resources to enhance capacity.

BEYOND TECHNOLOGY

However, service innovation is more than the adoption of new technology. Accurate sensors and intelligent software are merely ingredients in your business, not the full recipe for successful services. Innovating at the service level should be based on a deep understanding of client needs and your own resources — the magic web of people, processes and technology. The reality capture arena shows this principle clearly: As innovative laser scanning technologies become more affordable and intuitive, democratising opportunity, the distinguishing factor becomes how surveyors deploy that technology in the service of their clients. Technologies like the Leica Pegasus TRK100 and Leica Pegasus software make it easier than ever to capture and process high accuracy data in shorter time frames with limited and less specialised personnel. Yet, service innovation means ensuring that you can deliver this data to clients in a format that helps them solve their problems and clearly demonstrates value, creating a competitive advantage.

STRATEGIES FOR CREATING UNIQUE SERVICES

The stony path to value creation is subject to strong forces of change. Therefore, to create resilient, unique services, you must continually rethink the way you serve your clients. A range of strategies and approaches can help you do so. Start by going to the source to learn what your clients need, expand perspectives on how you can provide a solution, and make a plan to clearly communicate this value to clients. The case of Derek Twente, an innovative Geospatial Manager at the US firm TWM, provides a clear example of these principles in action. When first incorporating reality capture technology at the engineering-focused firm with the Leica RTC360, Twente found that customers could not work with the data sets, diminishing the usability and perceived value of the point cloud deliverables. To solve this problem, he and his colleagues helped clients learn to use processing software for their project needs. As a result, clients clearly understood the value of the services, ultimately contributing to exponential business growth. To ensure their capacity could meet this growing demand, Twente and team invested in and integrated Hexagon’s mobile mapping technology, enabling them to successfully scale their innovative services.

NAVIGATING RISK AND UNCERTAINTY WITH COURAGE AND OPTIMISM

Despite careful research, planning and investments, innovating comes with risks; this cannot be avoided. Innovators bear the responsibility for failure. Yet, when this vulnerable position is approached with courage and optimism — optimism grounded in preparation, realism, determination and domain expertise — the spark of creativity and force of innovation can emerge and provide a transformative path forward. The history of surveyors has always been intertwined with innovation. As a surveyor, you innovate to serve your clients, your communities and the planet. However, you are not alone in this mission. At Hexagon, we are your willing and supportive partner in this undertaking. We are here to back you with all our tradition, experience, strength and resilience. As partners, we can bravely face uncertainty together, help you mitigate risks and support each other in our mutual mission to innovate. As innovators together, we are willing to act when there is no guarantee of success and invest not knowing whether it pays out. We are courageous because we believe in optimism’s power when it comes to innovating for a better future and contributing to a better world.