QA/QC

1. LiDAR mapping projects should include a quality control plan.
2. A recent article by Raber and Jacoby provides a valuable set of QA/QC best practices.
3. The use of an independent quality control firm can streamline the overall project delivery.

As we keep hearing from the financial pundits when they analyze the next great bailout plan, “The devil is in the details”. This certainly applies when it comes to the planning and execution of a LiDAR survey. For those of us who have been making a living in the surveying and mapping business the need for a quality control plan, particularly on larger projects is a given, but to others new to the technology this is critically important.

I recently came across a valuable article written by Brian Raber and Doug Jacoby, both employees of Merrick and Company with extensive experience in the planning and delivery of aerial LiDAR projects. The full article can be found here.

One of the elements of their recommended best practices which I would like to highlight is the use of an independent quality control agent. This individual, or firm can guide a customer that is new to the use of the technology, and even in the case of an experienced customer, streamline the overall process of getting things done right the first time.

Another aspect of the article that I found valuable was the references. The authors state that several interim accuracy standards published by FEMA and ASPRS provide the best independent industry resources for establishing horizontal and vertical accuracy as well as dealing with other related issues such as sensor calibration and eye safety. In the end there is not substitute for experience when it comes to the issue of quality control.