A new joint article from The Survey Association and Leica Geosystems, Guardians of Precision: the role of surveyors in reality capture workflows, provides a timely and welcome reminder of the critical role professional surveyors play within modern geospatial workflows.
The article highlights how digital models can appear visually accurate while still being technically flawed if they are not anchored to robust survey control and ground truth. It reinforces the importance of professional judgement, quality assurance and adherence to recognised standards in surveying – particularly as project complexity and risk increase.
Importantly, the guide explains how surveyor involvement should scale appropriately with a project’s requirements. While simple measurement tasks may be suitable for accessible tools, higher-risk environments such as commercial refurbishments, infrastructure projects and heritage documentation demand the expertise of qualified geospatial surveyors to ensure data can be relied upon for design, construction and long-term decision making.
At Powers, this approach aligns closely with our own ethos. We believe survey technology should support and enhance professional surveying – not replace it. Accurate, dependable geospatial data comes from experienced surveyors who understand both the digital tools, the physical reality they are capturing and how to interpret that data into readable 2D and 3D maps and models for use outside of the profession.
We welcome this article as a positive step in aligning technology messaging with professional standards, education and best practice across the geospatial profession.
Read the full guide: Guardians of precision: the role of surveyors in reality capture workflows
