Mapping goes mainstream

COMPUTING

Southern African mapping firm MapIT says mapping technology is starting to make business sense.

MapIT, which provides a range of digital mapping, cartography and navigation solutions, issued a statement ahead of its participation in the Conference of Southern African Surveyors (CONSAS) conference, AfricaGEO, in Cape Town next week.

On the final day of the conference, Etienne Louw, Managing Director of MapIT, will present his paper titled ‘ How Accurate, Current, Enriched Data is Needed to Fuel the New Interest in LBS Applications Across Africa’ at the speaker session  ‘ Mapping, cartography & visualisation’ .

“ The concept of navigation and convenience is changing,” explains Louw. “ People now have access to live incoming data. The innovations of how this technology will change the life of an individual are growing every day. We are seeing that people are relying more on maps to solve their needs.”

Given these trends, MapIT is concentrating on supplying accurate, current, enriched data by adding Points of Interest (POI) to the data.

Louw says “ One of the ways we add value to our POIs is through an initiative called “ Put Your Business on the Map” . Imagine the Global Positioning System allocating your business an accurate real world position on a digital map. Then anyone wanting to do business with you could - at the touch of a screen - navigate to your doorstep.

“ Or, through new ‘ connected device technology’ , they could lure you into their business by sending you relevant ‘ specials’ when they sense that you are close by.” POI needs are thus endless, says Louw.

  “ With the concept of location instead of mapping, the unique solutions for the future are advancing rapidly,” he adds. “ The future is simply a geo-connected society.”