If you want to improve the efficiency and safety of your landfill site, implementing a machine guidance system, such as Position Partners’ Carlson LandfillGrade, is one of the most productive ways to achieve this goal.

“The Carlson LandfillGrade machine guidance system helps our customers improve the efficiency and safety of their landfill sites through the maximisation of vertical space, leachate management, avoidance zones for gas wells and hazardous material placement and access to better, more accurate data,” said Andrew Granger, National Manager – Mining, Solar and Landfill at Position Partners.

To assist landfill site operators to achieve their goals, the Carlson LandfillGrade machine guidance system will assist in optimising the amount of soil used for daily cover (along with the introduction of an alternate daily cover system) and the compaction of waste to get the best value from each cubic metre of airspace.

The Carlson system has the capability to be installed on a wide range of landfill plant and has a demonstrated track record with Australian waste facilities.

Enhance the vertical space of your landfill site

Carlson LandfillGrade assists landfill site operators to maximise the void space of their landfill site through optimised compaction and increased density.

“Using Carlson LandfillGrade helps landfill site operators to enhance the vertical space of their site, the in-cab system means that machine operators don’t have to guess when they’re at optimum compaction – they know because the in-cab system tells them,” said Mr Granger.

This means that machine operators aren’t continuing to pass over an area after full compaction has been reached, this saves time, machine wear and fuel costs.

Improve safety on your landfill site by setting avoidance zones

The Carlson LandfillGrade system from Position Partners increases safety on site through improved operator situation awareness and Fixed Hazard Collision Warning technology.

Improved operator situation awareness is achieved through the constant and accurate display of the machine’s position relative to fixed infrastructure or hazards and the Fixed Hazard Collision Warning technology provides audible and visual alarms when the machine gets too close to predefined hazards such as buildings.

Carlson LandfillGrade from Position Partners also aids leachate management through accurate and easy slope designs to control water run-off and minimise leachate for disposal or treatment. The technology enables the set-up of avoidance zones for gas wells and hazardous material placement and eliminates the need for staff to gain access to machines to upload and download data with wireless data exchange.

Get real time data on waste compaction and airspace utilisation

With the Carlson LandfillGrade from Position Partners, landfill site operators get access to the Carlson Command control, monitoring and data management system. This system transmits data between the machines and the office.

Carlson Command gives operators the ability to get real time data on waste compaction and airspace utilisation. The Carlson system also provides instant feedback to the compactor operators so that they could both operate to design and know when optimal waste compaction had been achieved.

“Ultimately, data is supposed to make your life easier, not harder, so it’s important to get it working just the way it needs to, so that it enables productivity not hinders it,” Mr Granger said.

Bring Position Partners on site with you

Service and support are important parts of the Position Partners offering, along with capability and price. Customers have access to the local team of product specialists who can discuss how the system would be of benefit and optimise it to unique site requirements. 

Once the technology is implemented, users will have access to Position Partners technical experts (either by phone or email) via Tokara Link remote diagnostics and telematics.

“Feedback from our customers has always highlighted the importance of timely and efficient support,” Mr Granger said, adding: “we’ve prioritised this with the development of Tokara, which enables our technicians to solve most problems without even visiting the site – the time and cost savings are huge.”

Tokara is designed to help you get the most from your landfill machine guidance with fast, comprehensive support when you need it. The service enables Position Partners’ technicians to connect directly to your machine via a small telemetry link to offer faster, hassle-free remote support.

Tokara puts as it were, a virtual Position Partners technician by your operator’s side.

Position Partners technicians are experts in their field and with the remote service capabilities enabled with Tokara Link, these technicians can solve most technical issues that arise without the need to visit the machine(s) in person, saving you time and keeping you within your budgets.

“Position Partners technicians are experts in their field and with the remote service capabilities enabled with Tokara Link, the team can assist customers quickly without visiting the machine(s) in person, saving you time and keeping you within your budgets,” Mr Granger said.

Garry MacPhail, Geospatial Executive Manager for Position Partners, reflects on technology evolution in the last two decades and its effect on the survey profession today and beyond.

Having begun his career as a qualified engineering surveyor in the 1980s, Garry went on to start his own business selling and supporting survey equipment in Perth. His company Stadia Instruments – co-founded with business partner Bernard Cecchele – merged with four other state-based companies to form Position Partners in 2008. In his tenure in the industry, Garry has witnessed significant shifts in surveying practice, amplified by the quantum leap in computing speed and processing power.

Early 2000s – a step change in surveying

“In the early 2000s, GPS was becoming increasingly mainstream as part of a surveyor’s toolkit,” he said. “In 2004, Topcon released the first Bluetooth GPS unit, the HiPer Lite, which made the technology significantly more productive and less cumbersome as it eliminated back packs, long cables and external antennas. It was also the first true base and rover kit as we know them today, with two identical units.”

“Bluetooth was a real game-changer because it made the system much more versatile and user friendly,” he added. “For example, if you were under a tree canopy you could raise it up on a four-metre pole and get a fix without needing a six-metre cable.”

Garry explains that the late ‘90s and early 2000s also saw a dramatic change from point-based surveying to string and line surveying, with a design laid out on a data collector.

“Before this change, every point was measured out on a separate map and numbered, so you constantly had to correlate what was on the map with what was on the field controller,” he said. “The ability to do line work on the data collector was a big efficiency leap, particularly for marking road centrelines or kerbs.”

Carlson led the way with this innovation through its SurvCE software, which worked on the Windows CE platform and enabled surveyors to import DXF files onto small PDA devices such as the Compaq handheld data collectors. “They weren’t the most rugged systems, but they were reasonably inexpensive and the workflow benefits were significant,” Garry said.

The early 2000s also saw the emergence of ‘one-man surveying’ with the refinement of robotic total stations. “By 2005, the standard toolkit we know today of a robotic, GPS base and rover and data collector was established in the market,” Garry said.

From 2005 onwards, we have seen the constant refinement and evolution of these systems to be faster, lighter and more robust. “After a period of rapid innovation, we typically see a period where it is refined and then evolves incrementally to something that is better and more efficient, but essentially relies on the same core technology,” he added.

2010 to present – data, data and more data

By 2010, 3D laser scanning was available, but it was highly specialised and very expensive. 3D mobile mapping, used to capture ‘street view’ imagery first in the United States and then globally, began in the mid-2000s and enabled large-scale data capture at speed. In Australia, it was used to map affected infrastructure after the devastating Queensland floods in 2011.  

“In 2010 Position Partners signed a distribution agreement for a fixed-wing Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS), which was the first of its kind to be introduced as a survey tool in Australia,” Garry said. “Since then, the technology has evolved to include fixed-wing, rotary and vertical take off models and it is slowly becoming a standard tool or service offered by the surveying profession. With the introduction of LiDAR it will take it into another level of accuracy and versatility.”

The dramatic uplift we’ve experienced in computer speeds and processing power has enabled point cloud technology to evolve as quickly as it has, Garry explains. “Technology doesn’t necessarily mean a surveyor’s work is done faster, it just means that the quality and amount of data at his or her fingertips has increased,” he said. Surveyors can now work with accurate 3D models rather than 2D plans, giving a complete picture of a job site and the ability to offer greater output and deliverables to clients.

From point control to data management

Alongside technology evolution, the role of the surveyor has also shifted. “On a road project, the surveyor has become the data manager across the site,” Garry explained. “20 years ago when we first controlled a grader with a total station, the ‘pegless jobsite’ was defined as a new goal. Now we can see that goal become reality, with surveyors managing a design across machinery and survey rovers centrally – and often remotely – via telematics tools such as Tokara Link by Position Partners.”

As technology refines and becomes more user friendly, accessible and cost effective, adoption rates across multiple sectors increases. “It’s no secret that in Australia and around the world, we are experiencing a shortage of surveyors,” Garry said. “With the advent of simple tools like the Topcon LN-100 layout system, building contractors can do the set out themselves. Of course the legal liability and control remains with the survey profession, but these systems help eliminate the stop-start of waiting for a surveyor to set out a few points.”

The surveying profession has evolved into the geospatial market, with a wider range of associated professionals using technology to capture data and implement design. “Position Partners has also aligned the company around our core markets of geospatial, construction and mining, with geospatial reaching across all sectors as the technology is used for an ever-increasing number of applications,” Garry said.

GNSS infrastructure is another key to wider dissemination of accurate positioning technology. “Our AllDayRTK CORS network began in the mid-2000s and now covers vast areas of the country to enable high accuracy positioning,” he said. “Its usage is becoming increasingly widespread from farming, to transport and logistics, automated cars, Internet of Things and even the smartphones we all carry,” he said.

Not everything can be digitised

Reflecting on the changes and advances to surveying and technology, Garry said the role of a high-quality industry magazine has held its ground. “Our business has had a long-standing partnership with Position magazine since its inception and kudos to the publishers for keeping it relevant and engaging when so many print media publications have closed their doors in recent years,” Garry said.

“Everyone is overloaded with digital communication these days and trying to keep on top of our inboxes, so I feel there is a strong place for a printed magazine that you can sit down and read,” he added. “Other industries have a fragmented trade press, but Position magazine has managed to cut-through within our profession to be the industry standard nationally.”

Zoller + Fröhlich (Z+F) 3D laser scanning solutions to be sold and supported by Position Partners across Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.  

Intelligent positioning systems provider Position Partners announces the company’s appointment as master distributor for Z+F, a German-based electrical engineering firm that manufactures a wide range of precision industrial instruments including 3D laser scanning systems.

Under the agreement, Position Partners will be the primary contact for all sales, support and service enquiries of Z+F laser scanning products in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea (PNG).

“We are delighted to announce this extension of our partnership with Z+F, which will offer customers local and reliable sales, service and support capabilities from our branches throughout the region,” said Martin Nix, Position Partners CEO. 

Z+F 3D laser scanning instruments are used by surveyors and engineers for a wide range of applications within the built environment, resource sector, forensics and other specialist areas. These highly sensitive and accurate systems provide a detailed 3D model of an environment or structure via millions of points, known as point clouds.

Position Partners began distributing Z+F 3D laser scanners in 2016. With a number of employees that have been manufacturer-trained at Z+F’s headquarters in Germany, the company is well poised to deliver a high level of technical expertise and local support.

“Our workshop team is able to perform local calibration checks on the Z+F scanning range, saving customers the time and expense of sending their instrument overseas unless it requires a more detailed service or repair,” Paul Malatzky, Position Partners Market Development Manager – Scanning Systems.

Commenting on the new agreement, Dr. Christopher Fröhlich said: “Position Partners is a valued distributor and the company’s broad network and experience with our product range will offer Z+F users a streamlined and efficient support channel as a result of this master distributor agreement.”