Wellington City Council wins the Supreme Excellence category

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EMBARGOED UNTIL 11PM 16 NOVEMBER 2016

Wellington City Council wins the Supreme Excellence category at the 2016 NZ Spatial Excellence Awards

A community-driven collaboration using smart technology to make Wellington safer and smarter for the city’s vulnerable took the Supreme Award at the 2016 New Zealand Spatial Excellence Awards Gala Dinner held tonight at Te Marae at Te Papa Tongarewa in Wellington.

Developed by Wellington City Council, Living Lab overlays sensory data such as glass breaking, screaming and anti-social behavior on a real-time map, with the resulting alerts used to help keep people safer in the city.

“The project represents the pinnacle of achievement and highest level of spatial excellence,” says lead judge Robert Deakin.

Now in its third year, the 2016 New Zealand Spatial Excellence Awards attracted 63 entries, almost double the number of entries received in 2015.

“Several organisations entered this year’s awards for the first time, which points to the growth of our sector as we integrate further with the wider information technology industry. One of the enduring observations by the judges is that there really is no business problem that can’t, in some way, be solved or enhanced through a spatial solution,” says Deakin.

Hadyn Smith, NZSEA chair, says the awards provide a public forum for spatial disciplines across government, industry, research and academia, showcasing the wide-ranging benefits to New Zealand through the innovative use of geospatial information and technology.

Sharing NZ expertise overseas played a part in this year’s awards, with Land Information New Zealand winning the Technical Excellence awards for its improvements to vertical datums (i.e. height information that is vital for managing water resources, assessing hazards, and carrying out large scale engineering), that are now being used in the United States, producing, what one judge says, is a “Star Trek – NASA complex” solution.

ThunderMaps, who in 2015 were awarded a $1.25 m grant from the European Commission to help make Swedish cities "smarter", took out the Export award.

Special recognition was awarded to William (Bill) Robertson, Surveyor-General from 1987 to 1996 for his contribution to the geospatial industry. Robertson is an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for his contribution to surveying, and a mountain in Antarctica has been named after him for his contribution to surveying and mapping in Antarctica. Robertson was involved in five international survey projects in the Middle East and Africa and has consulted to the World Bank, the United Nations, NZAID and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Robertson is a fellow at the New Zealand Institute of Surveyors and was a founding member of the Spatial Industries Business Association in NZ and continues to play an active role in the industry.

The Professional of the Year award went to Professor Wendy Lawson, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of Science at the University of Canterbury. The judges commented that Professor Lawson’s contributions to the industry will create enduring benefits for future generations, including the partner-based Masters in GIS and the establishment of the Geospatial Research Institute Toi Hangarau.

The winners in each category are now eligible for the Asia Pacific Spatial Excellence Awards that will be held as part of the 10th International Symposium on Digital Earth and Locate17 Conference, from the 3-6 April 2017, at the International Convention Centre in Sydney.

Read more about each entry at http://www.nzspatialawards.org.nz/winners/finalists/

The 2016 New Zealand Spatial Excellence Awards Winners are:

2016 Supreme Excellence Award

• Wellington City Council for Living Lab

Organisational Awards

Land Information New Zealand Environment and Sustainability Award

• Statistics New Zealand for Environment Aotearoa 2015

CoreLogic Innovation and Commercialisation Award

• Ballance Agri-Nutrients for SpreadSmart

Statistics New Zealand People and Community Award

• Wellington City Council for Living Lab

e-Spatial Spatial Enablement Award

• New Zealand Transport Agency for Spatially Enabling a Thriving New Zealand

NationalMapTM Technical Excellence Award

• National Geodetic Office, Land Information New Zealand for Improving New Zealand's Vertical Datum

Spatial Industries Business Association Award for Export

• ThunderMaps for ThunderMaps Europe

Individual Awards

Wellington City Council Undergraduate Student of the Year Award

• Jeanette Ma

Woods Postgraduate Student of the Year Award

• Mike McConachie

New Zealand Institute of Surveyors Education & Professional Development Award

• Dr Antoni Moore, University of Otago

Eagle Technology Young Professional of the Year Award

• Kurt Janssen, Interpret Geospatial Solutions

Eagle Technology Professional of the Year Award

• Wendy Lawson, University of Canterbury

~ends~

About the New Zealand Spatial Excellence Awards

The New Zealand Spatial Excellence Awards seek out and give recognition to the best, the high achievers, and the contributors who set the benchmarks that others will follow, becoming the role models for the next generation of the spatial profession.

The Awards are a joint venture between the spatial profession, business and government to hold annual awards for all sectors, disciplines and communities that make up the spatial industry. Each partner contributes its resources and expertise to make sure the awards reach the highest standards of excellence and independence.

NZSEA provides a stepping stone for organisations and individuals to be nominated in the Asia-Pacific Spatial Excellence Awards (APSEA) – the only awards for the Asia Pacific region that recognise the excellent achievements of both individuals and organisations engaged in the spatial information industry.

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