Merrick Wins Contract in Alaska

Merrick was recently awarded a contract to provide aerial photography and Lidar services for the Municipality of Anchorage, Alaska, USA. This data will address important management issues for Alaska’s largest city. The municipality plans to make use of the Lidar data and aerial photography in many ways, including use by the Fire Department to assess wildland fire risk, mapping, building structures for property appraisal, land-use mapping for the Planning Department, watershed management, and in engineering and surveying at the Anchorage Water and Wastewater Utility and Public Works Department.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) awarded the Municipality a 50% matching grant as part of the national 3D Elevation Program initiative in order to complete the acquisition. Merrick will also work closely with the Municipality’s survey department to establish a survey control network for the entire area that can be used for future mapping efforts.

Christina Miller, GIS manager at the Municipality’s GIS Center of Excellence and project manager, described the project as a major milestone for the municipality’s mapping and GIS. Mapping at this level of accuracy and extent has never been done before in Anchorage. This new data will be of immense value to many of the municipality’s departments, she said. 

Merrick & Company, an engineering, architecture, design-build, surveying, planning and geospatial solutions firm, serves domestic and international clients in the energy, national security, life sciences, and sustainable infrastructure markets. The employee-owned company maintains offices in the US, Canada, Mexico and the United Kingdom.