Bamako, Mali – June 15, 2012 – In the heart of landlocked Mali, the Atlantic Ocean 800 miles to the south the Sahara desert adjacent to the north, lays the extraordinary Inner Niger River Delta, also known as the Macina, a 1.8 million hectare oasis of lakes and floodplains with a vast potential for hydro agriculture. CIRA, a major West African consulting engineering firm, working on behalf of the Office du Niger, a quasi-governmental Mali company charged with managing more than100,000 hectares of irrigated delta land, has completed surveying an additional 25,000 hectares for hydro-agriculture development.
In the course of two months during the dry season, two CIRA survey teams, each equipped with three ProMark 500s, a base station and two rovers connected via UHF, completed the entire 25,000 hectare survey collecting four points in x,y and z per hectare to produce the digital model. The model enabled the production of rough pre-study with all plans and a detailed pre-project CAD drawings for drainage, irrigation canals and related infrastructures
A very short eight-month contractual time set to complete the different studies meant that the land survey study would have to be completed as quickly as possible. The first thought was to use aerial photography combined with LIDAR, but setting this up would have taken too long, according to a CIRA spokesperson. Instead, CIRCA chose to employ differential GNSS, using base and rovers working in real time kinematic. CIRA’s experience suggested they would achieve reliable results and much quicker than using only optical total stations. CIRA elected to use Ashtech ProMark 500 GNSS receivers for the project. From experience, they knew the models were easy to set up and use, light in weight, offered long battery life in the field, and field to office data transfer would be easy. Their expectations were met, and the job was completed within two months and on time.
About ProMark GNSS Family
The ProMark 100 is the best tool for L1 post-processed surveys, ProMark 200 allow multi-frequency RTK. To get more constellations or to work in harsh environment, Spectra Precision ProMark handheld receiver as a controller and the ProMark 800 smart antenna powered with Ashtech Z-Blade technology is also a solution. The ProMark accuracy, advanced multi-path mitigation and ruggedness, adds up to better productivity and profitability. With the new ProMark 800 in addition to ProMark 100 and 200 receivers, Spectra Precision offers land surveyors the complete range of GNSS solutions to meet each surveyor’s individual needs, style and budget.
About CIRA
Created in 1991, CIRA is an engineering and applied research consulting firm working in transportation, hydraulics, civil engineering and the environment. Based in Bamako, Mali, the firm works in more than 15 African countries, primarily in West Africa, Central Africa and East Africa,
About the Spectra Precision Brand
Spectra Precision has long been an established brand, known for delivering quality products to the construction market. Focusing on the specific needs of the conventional surveying market, the Spectra Precision brand offers a complete product portfolio including Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), Global Positioning Systems (GPS), optical total stations, data collection hardware, field and office software, as well as a wide range of construction tools. Spectra Precision surveying equipment is an economical choice that utilizes technologies for optimal efficiency. With convenience and reliability as the foundation of the Spectra Precision brand, it is an ideal choice for value. The Spectra Precision brand is backed with the strong technical support that users have come to expect from a quality name in surveying and construction.