East View Geospatial (EVG) is now producing gold-standard, large-scale topographic data as an off-the-shelf offering under the product name EV-FGD – East View Foundation Geospatial Data.
EVG has long produced foundation data and mapping for government and industry partners. Work has ranged across scales and over all corners of the globe. What is different at this stage is the commitment EVG has made to weave together various specialized source material, a global complexity grid based, in part, on the LandScan Global Population Data and a blended US and non-US based workforce all aimed at gold-standard, yet affordable, data at 1:50,000 and 1:100,000 scales.
Traditionally, the emphasis has been on creating data acceptable to mapping organizations via government-supplied inputs and strictly mandated personnel production procedures, such as through the Multinational Geospatial Cooperation Program (MGCP). The MGCP program has successfully brought cooperative nations together for the sake of creating foundation geospatial data across key themes around the globe at 1:50000 scale. Tens of millions of square kilometers have been produced under the MGCP program. But much remains to be done, and maintenance to geodata already produced is also a consideration. EVG’s aim is to meet the MGCP specification but deliver the data for a fraction of the cost, faster and with global coverage. We do this by leveraging commercial imagery, authoritative local source data and EVG’s US and overseas workforce.
The results are better than expected. Quality, throughput and predictability is at high levels. Deliveries to early-stage customers have been received with no reworks.
Kent Lee, CEO and Founder, stated that this is a win-win situation.The company is delivering milspec data at a fraction of the usual cost to the end customer. Because we are using EVG's source data and software, the company retains the license and can offer this data to others, which has not been the case in the usual GEOINT environment. This further primes the production pump and results in more, better and less expensive geodata available to the MGCP community. It is the same economics that underscores the revolution of commercial satellite imagery and, more recently, commercial launch capabilities like SpaceX.
EVG will be discussing EV-FGD at the upcoming GEOINT show in Tampa April 22 – 25, 2018.