Falcon Informatics in New Zealand – Stand Fixing

Article : falcon-0505 Author : D Herries Key words: forest inventory, remote sensing, falcon, informatics, fixing, stand, shape
May 2005

Interpine have recently been demonstrating the Falcon stand and micro-stand level fixing to a client here in NZ. Interpine have been working with Falcon Informatics on forest inventory projects in the USA over the last 18 months, and have sparked interest in their innovative technology for the NZ forest industry.   On of the service in particular “stand fixing” is a highly effective process which automatically re-aligns and corrects existing stand boundary shape (.shp) files, while maintaining the integrity of underlying stand databases.   This helps eliminate human errors associated with manual stand digitization and varying projection systems, and creates geographically-accurate shape files that overlay intuitively onto aerial or satellite imagery. The example below is of a Hawkes BayP.radiata forest with reasonable complex mix of native, road, erosion and clearfell zones within. You can see the green lines are the original stand boundaries from the companies shape file records (all be them slightly altered by the client to put Falcon technology to the test). The red lines are the adjusted shape files post Falcon Fixing.

With net stocked area (NSA) being an important consideration in any forest transaction, the ability to reconcile stand boundaries and NSA throughout an estate can become formidable task without smart innovative tools such as Falcon offers.

It will be hard not to take notice of Falcon with comments coming from their USA clients such as :

"Falcon is the clear leader in the forest based GIS and inventory solutions. They offer a combination of speed and detail that has opened a host of new opportunities for timber management organization. Their results have been nothing short of amazing."

–Nick Blacklock, GIS Supervisor, Boise

Who is falcon Informatics ?

Falcon Informatics is the world leader in forest information services and solutions. Falcon’s international team of foresters and GIS experts help strengthen, expand and accelerate the forest analysis efforts of managers, owners, investors and insurers of forestlands across the globe. Falcon’s proprietary and patented methodology applies best practices in forestry and biometrics with state-of-the-art technology to deliver data that is both certifiable and actionable. This powerful combination allows Falcon’s experts to produce stand or strata level forest analyses with a speed, precision and consistency that is unmatched by traditional manual approaches alone. As a result of using Falcon’s powerful data, customers can make faster, more informed decisions on business-critical investment issues such as whether to buy, sell or hold land. Clients can also more effectively execute environmentally sound forest management strategies, while reaching new heights in productivity, profitability and long-term sustainability.

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Falcon Informatics Website

Contacts us for a demonstration of Falcon Technology in New Zealand.