Wildfire TV takes a walk through history with Landmark

Television production company, Wildfire Television has selected Landmark Information Group to source and supply a range of data terrain images for a series commissioned by Channel 4.

‘WalkingThrough History’ is the third series of six history documentaries that are presented by Sir Tony Robinson.   The programmes start broadcasting  on Saturday 25^th October at 20:00hrs on Channel 4 and will focus on locations across the UK, including the Cairngorms, Sherwood Forest, Pembrokeshire, the Yorkshire Moors, and the Channel Islands.

Landmark has worked closely with the production team to produce a series of images showing stylised terrain data overlaid with reference features including key road networks and coastlines.  This has been produced using a combination of Ordnance Survey open data and OS Terrain® 50 datasets.

Marisa Verazzo, Production Manager of Walking Through History for Wildfire Television said: “We are pleased to be working with the team at Landmark Information Group to provide us with a host of contoured terrain maps for Walking Through History.  The maps really put the areas that we will be focusing on in the series into context, and by working with Landmark we have been able to access exactly what we need.”

Matt Wills, Senior GIS Analyst at Landmark Information Group said: “We are pleased to be able to deliver a host of hill-shaded and coloured OS Terrain 50 maps to Wildfire Television for use in the new Channel 4 documentary.  It just goes to show another great way that our extensive range of datasets and maps are being put to use in the commercial world – so, as well as supporting the environmental, land and property industries, our data and mapping tools are also here to support media, marketing and other similar industries in piecing together the history of a given location.”

www.promap.co.uk 

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/walking-through-history

Landmark Information Group introduces new Licence Management Service to digital mapping products

We've introduced a new Licence Management functionality to the Promap digital mapping platform. The service makes it easier to renew export data licences in accordance with Ordnance Survey regulations, as well as viewing and managing licences online. 

The new Licence Management tool is designed to support clients in ensuring all export data purchased from our Promap service fully complies with Ordnance Survey terms and conditions, avoiding any penalties for expired or incorrect licences.

Carole Ankers, Product Development Director at Landmark Information Group said: “The introduction of Licence Management is one of our latest product enhancements and is designed to support our customers in keeping all data in licence.  It makes it easy to renew digital data export licences and centrally manage them in one single place. It also helps keep users notified of when a licence is about to expire so a renewal can be organised.”

Nick Macready, Strategic Partner Manager from Ordnance Survey: “We encourage the use and exploitation of mapping and data by providing a wide range of licences that focus on how customers wish to use our information and the rights we grant for those uses.   We have a series of licences, which underpin the rights being granted for use of Ordnance Survey products.  By implementing the new Licence Management tool in Promap, Landmark ensures its customers can benefit from the most current version and also fully comply with the correct licence for the mapping and data that each customer accesses via the service, and we applaud them for supporting our drive to clampdown on un-licenced data.”

For more information on Promap, telephone 0844 844 9960 or visit www.promap.co.uk.    

Promap Masterclass - Article 2

This is the second offering of Promap Masterclasses. This blog looks at tips to help in identifying sites and help navigating your maps.

• Using the ‘Site Info’ tool to locate and find out information about your site
• Using different styles on the OS Detail and UKMap Detail Layers.
• Finding the origin point of your OS Detail Map whilst roaming without incurring roaming charges.
  

Using the ‘Site Info’ tool to locate and find out information about your site.

The “Site Info” tool will allow you to click on any property on the Street, VML Raster, Aerial and Detail Layers and it will immediately give you the easting and northing co-ordinates and the full address of the property, enabling you to correctly locate your site without incurring unnecessary costs.

However, on a couple of these layers it will give you even more:

• Aerial - On the Aerial Layer the “Site Info” tool will also tell you the date the aerial photo for that site was taken.
• UKMap Detail (currently only available for the London area) – On the UKMap detail layer the ‘Site Info’ tool will also give you the land use, feature type, retail name, retail classification and building height.
  

      Using different styles on the OS Detail and UKMap Detail Layers.

     The two detail layers on Promap will give you the following choice of map styles which are accessed via the highlighted section of the image above:

OS Detail

• Colour map style – This will usually be your default.
• Black and white – Ideal for large amounts of customisation.
•  Hybrid option – which will allow you to overlay the detail mapping onto an aerial photo to help you highlight information more accurately. To assist with the hybrid option a slider bar will also appear allowing you to control the dominance of the aerial and map images.

UKMap Detail (Available for London only)

• Colour – This will usually be your default.
• Colour with Trees – Showing all the trees above 3m in height.
• Black and white – Again useful when applying large amounts of customisation.Building Use – This gives the usage classifications for all the buildings.

  Finding the origin point of your OS Detail Map whilst roaming without incurring roaming charges.

If you have been roaming around on the OS detail layer and the roaming charge boxes have started to appear you can return to the point where you originally opened the map using the home button and avoid unnecessary cost.

NOTE: The OS detail is the only map layer that has roaming limits.

If you found this article useful, keep an eye out for our next post which is due to be published on the 13th AUGUST 2014. For more detailed advice on Promap why not book one of our training courses (which are all now FREE) or visit our training website by clicking here to find other useful tips and training aids.

Investing in Local Communities: How Landmark’s Promap supports Gentoo

Promap Testimonial:

Gentoo is made up of a group of companies that include divisions operating in care and support services; construction; design, build and maintenance; environmental sustainability; solar panels and specialist glass; and property rental and sales.

Its overall ambition is to improve the lives of the people, communities and the environment in which it operates. This is achieved by investing in people, the planet and property, in what it is calling ‘the Art of Living’.   As a ‘profit for purpose’ organisation, Gentoo uses any profits from its commercial activity to reinvest back in towards achieving this.

In 2011, Gentoo Group reached its tenth anniversary. During this time it has invested over £500 million into homes and communities.   In the same year, almost 10 per cent of new homes in the north east region were built by Gentoo, and in Sunderland it accounted for 66 per cent of them.

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Bill Fairley, Architectural Technologist at Gentoo:

“As a Group we are continuing to invest in the local community, which includes the creation of new affordable housing schemes in and around Sunderland and the North East region.

As part of our development and investment plans, it is important for us to be able to precisely plot parcels of land that we are looking to buy.  By doing so, it is then possible to develop accurate architectural schemes that are used for the planning and development process.

We rely on Landmark’s Promap service to access all the maps we need.  The process is simple.  

Via Promap it is quick to identify the area of land in question. Once highlighted, we can order the Ordnance Survey MasterMap that we want and in lots of varying formats.  We typically work in DXF or DWG format and, once selected, the map is downloaded from Promap and ready for immediate use."

"The Promap site is very simple to use and gives us everything we need to create the first stage architectural schemes for our planning applications, as well as land registration purposes.”

Landmark’s data team solve latest OS mapping mystery

Celia Craven, a key part of Landmark’s data team, recently solved a mystery surrounding an unrecognised symbol on an OS map, alerted to us by one of our clients.  The symbol (※) seemed to have no objective reference in historic map legends and subsequent googling only lead to more misinformation. 

It seemed like there would be no resolution…until Celia got her hands on the mapping.

The mapping in the area is derived, as Mr Peter Hobby from Ordnance Survey informed Landmark, from multiple map sheets. Using this information, combined with the indication that these are hand-drawn annotations, Celia was able to analyse the area logically to and determined the potential nature of the symbol. The addition of line features to distinguish map sheets from one another was also useful in this instance, both as a visual aid and a significant clue.

If we consider the nature of surveying and the methods applied to this process (historically at least) we can hazard an informed guess that the symbols are indicators of field area values where only partial elements of the field were available to the surveyor.

An example of this is depicted below – the coloured partial field object contains the mystery symbol. The line cutting through the map indicates the boundary of a map-sheet.

The red polygon and the symbol (with associated value) conform to the measure of the field only as it’s depicted on the southernmost map-sheet.  Perhaps the surveyor at the time was not able to measure the full extent of the field and was only able to capture the extent of the field as it appeared on their map? We can’t say for certain - that’s just speculation on our behalf.

The northernmost map-sheet and its acreage value (2.971) is for the entire field. The shaded area value (1.198) is for only the field area available on the map-sheet.  Applying this logic to the other areas divided by the map-sheet line is also true.

The original query map corroborates this finding as it’s divided by four map-sheet divisions.  Here we can see a total field measure (3.914 acres) and the partial values in each map-sheet.

The south-western map sheet (from 1918) shows .388 and .128.

The south-eastern map sheet (from 1919) shows a total of 4.112 and a partial value of 2.728.

The north-western and north-eastern maps sheets were surveyed at the same time  (1923) so depict the same value of 3.914.

We can’t say for certain, but it seems the symbol represents a marker for a partial field measure.

Whilst some of us were excited at the prospect of X marking the spot Celia provided the balance of intelligence and logic that resolved the mystery. Whilst there is no buried treasure (seemingly) this minor revelation does indicate something previously hidden to us in the present, the ingenuity and diligence of mapping surveyors and the real-world work carried out by Ordnance Survey and their team of experts. These symbols were marked on maps by an individual, or group of individuals and the results of their work are still visible to this day.

 

 

 

 

 

At Landmark, we live and breathe data 24/7 – it’s our DNA after all. If you have any mysteries you need help solving, please contact one of the data team via askdata@landmarkinfo.co.uk.

Daniel Lewis-Carter

Data Information Co-Ordinator
Landmark Information Group

Identifying the 'Sacred Wonders of Britain'

We were delighted to be contacted by the BBC and production company Carbon Digital at the end of last year to help them in their pursuit to access 14 aerial maps of ancient British landmarks.  The imagery was to be used as part of a television series called 'Sacred Wonders of Britain', which is fronted by archaeologist, historian and broadcaster Neil Oliver.

The original aim was for us to not only access the mapping data, but to create digital aerial terrain images that could be used to illustrate some of most ancient landscapes and ritual sites that lie hidden below our land's surface.    

The locations include Anglesey Bryn Celli Ddu, Avebury Stone Circle, Grimes Graves flint mines near Thetford, Creswell Crags, Flag Fen archaeology park near Peterborough and Lindisfarne Holy Island to name just a few.  

With input from our friends at Ordnance Survey, we were able to access, create and contribute all 14 digital map images and have been delighted to see them being used in the three-part series, which aired on BBC2 during January.

Why not take a step back into history and learn exactly what these historic sites were used for? Sacred Wonders of Britain is available to download via the BBC iPlayer:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03nprt8/episodes/guide

Also see:
http://www.creativetimes.co.uk/news/bbc-two-series-%E2%80%98sacred-wonders-of-britain%E2%80%99-brought-to-life-by-carbon-digital

'Spookmap’ launches on Promap Labs for Halloween

Things have become a little spooky over at Landmark Information Group’s Promap Labs portal as Halloween approaches!  Ghosts have taken over the Promap View tool and created a ‘Spookmap’ of a particularly eerie town. The map shows the ‘risk of bewitchment’, presence of ‘ectoplasm’ and ghost sightings!

A competition has been launched to create a name for this spooky city. All submitted ideas will automatically be entered into a prize draw to win a Lego Haunted House set, worth £149.99.  To enter visit http://labs.promap.co.uk/ – entries close by 11:59pm on Friday 1 November.

Carole Ankers, Product Development Director, Landmark Information Group said, “The ‘Spookmap’ competition is a bit of fun for Halloween and we look forward to receiving many entries.  Behind this however lies an important reminder that for any land or property development, it is important to undertake research into the history of the plot in question.  Historic maps can provide a wealth of information on past activities that may impact a development so it’s better to analyse this upfront, rather than be haunted by any findings as a project progresses! ”

Also featuring on the Promap Labs portal is access to the new Promap service, which enables users to export Ordnance Survey (MasterMap) detailed maps for use in CAD or GIS software using multiple browsers*, Mac or mobile devices.   More details can be found here:  http://labs.promap.co.uk/promap-multibrowser-mac-and-mobile

With over 25,000 users, Landmark’s Promap service is used by surveyors, architects, property and land developers, builders, engineers and industry professionals that require instant access to Ordnance Survey maps and related digital mapping data.   It also provides access to 3D models, height data, aerial photography and geo-data, including environmental, planning and geological reports to identify potential site issues.

For more information: visit: www.landmark.co.uk, read the Landmark blog, follow the team on Twitter, subscribe to the YouTube Channel or connect with via LinkedIn. 

Promap Labs: Early access to new and innovative digital mapping datasets and concepts

We are pleased to announced the launch of Promap Labs; a new online portal that gives architects, surveyors and land or property developers the ability to test brand new digital mapping product concepts before they are launched to the market.

The Promap Labs portal showcases new beta mapping datasets and applications that can be tested before they are fully launched. This enables clients to contribute valuable feedback or suggest new ideas, for future development. 

The first new application to feature on Promap Labs is ‘Promap Labs View’; this provides the ability to easily view a wide range of data in one single map interface. Examples include natural environment data such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) sites.  It is designed to provide a simple way to quickly view a location and understand what environmental factors may affect it, without needing to be a Geographical Information expert.

Visitors to Promap Labs will also have an early preview of the new multi-browser, multi-device Promap digital mapping service, which is scheduled to launch next month.

Carole Ankers, Product Development Director, Landmark Information Group said, “Promap Labs offers our clients and the wider property and land development community the opportunity to access brand new digital datasets or services, before they are fully launched. It provides early access to new and innovative ideas so they can be tested and reviewed – this includes first sight of our new multi-browser and multi-device Promap service, which is set to launch very soon.  We believe it is important to work in collaboration with the industry when developing new digital mapping tools and datasets, and the Promap Labs portal provides a fantastic platform for us to do this. ”

Dan Hughes, Sector Manager of Land and Property at Ordnance Survey: “Promap Labs is a great concept. It provides the industry with access to new digital mapping innovations and a platform from which ideas and feedback can be openly shared, paving the way for future product development. We are fully behind new innovation in our industry and so we applaud Landmark for delivering this by introducing Promap Labs.”

Adds Carole Ankers: “The first application to be showcased on Promap Labs is Promap Labs View: we encourage as many people as possible to visit Promap Labs and test out the new concepts.  We welcome feedback, so please let us know what you like about it, would change or how you might use it. We’ve made it as easy as possible to post your comments and we look forward to receiving as much feedback as possible!”

With over 27,000 users, Landmark’s Promap service is used by surveyors, architects, property and land developers, builders, engineers and industry professionals that require instant access to Ordnance Survey maps and related digital mapping data, including 3D models, height data, aerial photography and geo-data, including environmental, planning and geological reports to identify potential site issues.

To access Promap Labs visit: http://labs.promap.co.uk.  Alternatively, for more information: visit: www.landmark.co.uk, read the Landmark blog, or follow the team on Twitter.

Landmark launches Promap Plug-In for AutoCAD 2014

Landmark Information Group has today announced a free new AutoCAD 2014 plug-in for its Promap digital mapping service, which simplifies the process of integrating digitised Ordnance Survey MasterMap data directly into the CAD application.

Within the AutoCAD 2014 environment, users can now access the ‘Promap Data Services’ plug-in to digitise their area of interest using Bing Maps, and from this, request pricing for purchasing Ordnance Survey’s MasterMap. Once the file format and gridlines have been confirmed, the required dataset is then downloaded directly into AutoCAD for immediate use.

Carole Ankers, Product Development Director, Landmark Information Group said, “For anyone looking to incorporate accurate OS mapping into their AutoCAD projects, the new Promap plug-in creates a seamless and simple way of doing this. Within a few clicks, accurate topography data can be integrated within the CAD system, saving time. We have developed this in response to our clients’ feedback and so are pleased to launch the new plug-in today.”

The ‘Promap Data Services’ plug-in is available for PC users and can be downloaded from today via http://www.promap.co.uk/autocad.php.  The plug-in is available free of charge.

With over 27,000 users, Landmark’s Promap service is used by surveyors, architects, property and land developers, builders, engineers and industry professionals that require instant access to Ordnance Survey maps and related digital mapping data.   It also provides access to 3D models, height data, aerial photography and geo-data, including environmental, planning and geological reports to identify potential site issues.