Student Review ArcGIS



ArcGIS Map



In my previous post I chatted some about the different thing Civil Engineers do and the different areas that a Civil Engineers can focus on. Civil Engineers are always looking for most accurate, new, up to date software programs on the market. One such product is the main serving software for Water Resource and Environmental Engineers. ArcGIS or Geographic Information System consists of something similar to Google maps in that it provides a satellite image of a given location, but is so much more than just mapping software. It is an analytical tool that the American Society of Civil Engineers said could perform, “mapping, monitoring, modeling, and maintenance.”



LIDAR



The ArcGIS software has been in the Engineering field for some time now but is only now really picking up. The features the software offers have also been evolving over time. The program now comes with the ability to view spatial data, layer maps, input data, and manipulate data. The programs ability to layer maps truly makes it a Civil Engineer’s favorite mapping tool. Perhaps the most valuable of all these maps is the LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) data. The data, much of which can be downloaded at http://www.lidarbasemaps.org/,  is collected in the fall from aircraft that fly grid patterns over the country side. The aircraft are equipped with a laser which scans the ground and the aircraft records the reflection time, much like radar works. The data provides three-dimensional images of the ground to accuracies within a foot. Having this data with ArcGIS would mean being able to layer it with a soil map and calculating potential problem areas for soil erosion. Or to use the LIDAR data as a means to analyze the areas that would be affected by flooding if water in the local river rose a foot or two.

The ArcGIS software does not come with exactly a cheap price tag. One can expect to pay $1500 to get the software on their computer. It is truly only for those who would be using it every day. But overall the ArcGIS software provides Civil Engineers with an effective easy to use tool to perform mapping tasks. Though it maybe be somewhat expensive; the ability to navigate the software easily, share documents through the server, layer maps, and have accurate data makes ArcGIS a highly sought after software.

ArcGIS is easy software to navigate, making it very user friendly. I myself can attest to the simplicity of use. My internship had required me to use some of the program and I found it to be quite simple to learn. Its ribbon toolbar is laid out much the same as current Microsoft Windows products are. One great advantage of the ArcGIS program has a server, allowing it to share data with others easily. This allows for much more efficient and effective communication to be done between co-workers, management, and clients. Surveying work done in the field can easily be plotted on an ArcGIS map, making it quick and simple for surveyor to get the engineer the data they collected.