Posted by: Woneal

Hello All,

I'm new to this forum and would like to say hello and apologize for potentially asking a question that my have already been asked.

Well, let me dive in.  My company has recently purchased a surveying company that has outdated software and hardware.  I am tasked with helping them update their software to be compatible with our Civil Engineering needs.  We use Autodesk Civil 3D.

Here's what the surveyors currently have:

1.  Vanilla Autocad (think 2004 or later)
2.  DS World (I am told this is used to locate benchmarks)
3.  Active Sync (used to connect to a data collector - TDS Ranger Data Collectors)
4.  TerraModels (creates 3D models for dozers/graders)
5.  Pathfinder (used to download info from GPS)
6.  Site Vision (create 3D models)

My question is this:

We are planning on updating their Autocad to 2011 or higher.  Should we stick with autocad and pair it with a land surveying software or should we just upgrade their software to Civil 3D.  The reason that I was chosen (the Civil Engineer) is to make sure their software is providing us with "Smart Data" that the Civil Engineers can use with our Civil 3D software.  We need AECC Points and AECC Contours (not text points and exploded lines) to create profiles, recognize tree's, etc.  I'm told that eagle point is crappy, Carlson is pretty good, and Terra is ok.  What is the most cost effective, user friendly land surveying software that will work with our Civil 3D needs on the engineering side?  Providing the surveyors with Civil 3D is expensive and isn't a user friendly program.  Obviously, we want to minimize the learning curve as much as possible for these guy's.

Your input would be GREATLY appreciate.

Thanks in advance,

William O.

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