Surveying And Mapping Inc. (SAM, Inc), Miller Blueprint Company, and Sokkia Corporation have combined efforts to donate land surveying instruments valued at approximately $17,000 to two Texas colleges. The equipment will be used in the Land Surveying Departments at Austin Community College (ACC) and Texas State Technical College (TSTC) in Waco. Three Sokkia Electronic Total Stations donated by SAM, Inc. and refurbished by Miller Blueprint Co. with parts supplied by Sokkia Corp, are considered the first sizable and much needed contribution to assist the education of land surveying students at both colleges.

Land surveying has come a long way since the days of manual measuring systems. Today’s Texas surveyor must acquire a college education and be skilled in the use of sensitive high tech measuring devices like the Sokkia Electronic Total Stations. Both ACC and TSTC are in dire need of state-of-the-art technical instruments. The partnership by SAM, Inc., Miller Blueprint Co., and Sokkia Corp. affords a beginning for establishing state-of-the-art surveying laboratories for both land surveying departments.

Christopher T. Hilton, department chair for the Land Surveying Technology / Geomatics Department at ACC, said, “This contribution of “total stations” will serve to challenge and train students with the skills necessary to enter the technical field of modern land surveying.”

Sam Hanna and Bob Miller presented the equipment to Lee Hilliard, Chairperson of the Land Surveying Department at TSTC, and to Chris Hilton, Chairperson of the Land Surveying Technology / Geomatic Department at ACC, at SAM, Inc. on Tuesday. Also present were Paul Easley, Vice President, of the Capital Area Chapter of the Texas Society of Professional Surveyors (TSPS), Ron Carroll, Director, of the Central Texas Chapter of TSPS, representatives from the TSPS student chapter at TSTC, and the Land Surveying Student Organization at ACC. SAM, Inc. has been a long time supporter of student education.