INTERGEO 2019: Data, data, data!

Karlsruhe/Stuttgart, 21 March 2019. It’s generated in huge volumes and grows by the hour – data, data, data. It stems from sensors, apps, IoT-linked devices, plants and satellites. According to the “DataAge 2025” study, the data volume generated worldwide is set to rise from its current level of 33 zettabytes to around 175 zettabytes by 2025. Gathering, processing and visualising data is particularly important in the geospatial industry. There has never been such a wide range of tools for this task as there is now. The possibilities have increased enormously, and the sky is full of point clouds. In its 25th year, the leading international trade fair INTERGEO is focussing on the core issues this raises, asking: Who needs this mass of data? How can it be turned into information? Is it the currency of the future?

As the world becomes more globalised and increasingly digital, the opportunities and challenges for the entire geoinformation sector are growing, too, since it already covers an incredibly broad spec-trum, with new fields of work being added all the time. One challenge for this year’s INTERGEO CONFERENCE is to examine this from a range of perspectives.

Official surveying is both a driver and a beneficiary. Federal, regional and local authorities will be discussing how they are facing up to these challenges, focussing on future information systems and open platforms that allow as many specialisms as possible access the data.

The POSITIONALE – a sub-section of the INTERGEO CONFERENCE concentrating on navigation and satellite data – will discuss future aspects likely to emerge in GNSS. “Galileo for Navigation” ranks highly here. UAV applications are also becoming ever more diverse and challenging, with autonomous drones and new sensors creating a new boom. GIS and BIM are increasingly symbiotic. Digital twins are becoming crucial to planning and building construction. It is becoming clear that geoinformation will create even more interdisciplinary collaborations. The fact that Autodesk is coming on board as a new partner and sponsor of INTERGEO underlines this development.

It’s hard to imagine urban planning without 3D city models nowadays, and it requires a huge amount of other specialist data. New platform economies combined with relevant sensor data are starting points for further development. This dynamic will also provide more stimulus and movement in the direction of “digital cities”.
The German Cartography Conference, organised by the German Society for Cartography and Geoinformation, is an integral part of the INTERGEO CONFERENCE. This year’s slogan is “Playing with an open hand”. Exciting insights into the visualisation of our world of data are guaranteed.

Around 680 companies, institutions and associations from more than 40 countries are showcasing their services and innovations for the geospatial industry at INTERGEO EXPO.