CASE STUDY

Logan Simpson Design Selects TerraGo Edge for Mobile Data Collection

Quick Summary

Logan Simpson, a leading environmental planning and cultural resource firm, deployed a TerraGo Custom Field Application for mobile GPS data collection and enhanced navigation utilizing smartphones and cellular-enabled tablets. Before TerraGo Edge, survey teams needed to use a combination of GPS handheld devices, paper maps, printed forms and manual data entry to complete field surveys—often in remote geographies and rugged terrains.

Challenge:
  • Expensive proprietary GPS devices for data capture
  • Costly handheld device failure, disruption, data loss and rework
  • Time-consuming paper forms and manual data entry
Solution:
  • TerraGo Custom Field Application with iOS and Android Apps for GPS data collection
  • Customizable mobile forms, specific to projects and customers
  • Field worker location tracking for safety and collaboration
Results:
  • One integrated app for GPS capture, forms, surveys, photos and videos
  • Improved safety by monitoring workers in remote areas and rugged terrains
  • Offline maps and aerial photos are available even when network is not

The Challenge

Logan Simpson Design (LSD) provides landscape architecture and environmental planning services that care for the natural environment and selectively reimagine the built environment. LSD provides award-winning services that span the environmental, planning and landscape architecture areas, including: National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance, permitting, biology resources, cultural resources, Clean Water Act, environmental monitoring, visual resources, project management, site restoration, historic and archaeological preservation, tribal consultation and community planning.

LSD’s practice areas have very different customer requirements from project to project, but share a common need for accurate field survey data to support engineering, planning and design projects. LSD field teams have traditionally relied upon single-function GPS devices to perform survey and field data collection work, along with paper forms, tablets and manual data entry. However, the GPS devices were very expensive to purchase and deploy; further, when a device would fail, it wasn’t only the cost to replace but also the cost of lost data, disruption and inevitably rework.

“The TerraGo Custom Field Application opens up the possibility for our field teams to fully integrate data collection and mapping, while allowing us to navigate easily when working beyond the reach of cellular service.” – Craig Johnson, Environmental Group Manager at Logan Simpson

The Solution

Over time, LSD field crews began using mobile apps on their personal devices so they could navigate to work areas and instantly view satellite imagery over the web. The GPS device interfaces paled in comparison with black and white screens, and no zooming or scaling features. Because many projects took place in remote terrains, they also needed mapping, data collection and navigation that could work when they were off the grid. Therefore, most teams were forced to utilize a combination of paper maps, handwritten forms, manual data entry, proprietary GPS devices and GPS-enabled cameras. LSD operations began researching mobile apps and solutions that would allow them to bring all these elements together for their field operations projects.

After researching the available solutions for mobile GPS data collection, LSD operations chose a TerraGo Custom Field Application for its ability to combine the features of modern, mobile devices with the required GPS accuracy, all while giving them custom forms able to meet the varied needs of different customers and projects.

“TerraGo also provides the level of precision that our teams need at a reasonable cost, with the added benefit of being able to monitor the safety of staff working in remote areas.” – Craig Johnson, Environmental Group Manager at Logan Simpson