The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic two years ago really brought home to us the importance of maintaining and improving our health – both inside and out.

Maintaining our physical health could mean the difference between a mild or a severe case of covid, and the impact of multiple lockdowns, separation from our loved ones, and working from home, all took their toll on our mental health, too.

Combined with the distressing and upsetting news coming out of Ukraine on an almost daily basis, it does seem a challenge to keep ourselves upbeat and positive.

As a responsible employer, KOREC understands the importance of ensuring a happy, healthy and supported workforce – and takes action to ensure it.

To mark this International Day of Happiness, here’s just some of the initiatives we’re undertaking to bolster the health, happiness and prosperity of our people;

Perks of the Job

The company now proudly boasts 5 physical first aiders, including Steven Sreeves who just completed his Emergency First Aid at Work training, provided by St John Ambulance

Meet the KOREC mental health first aiders! Rachel Caddick and Stuart Guthrie-Cadge

On this International Day of Happiness, why not take a few moments out of your day to do something that makes you feel good?

Wishing you health, happiness and prosperity – from the whole KOREC team!

Christmas in March? We’re never one to miss a party, even if it is a few months later than planned!

1st February 2022 marks the beginning of the Chinese New Year. Three days later, on Friday 4th, the Beijing Winter Olympics begin.

To mark these two occasions, and because we are mad for a group fitness challenge (or just plain mad?) the KOREC team are committing to undertake a mammoth journey.

In February 2021, our UK and Irish teams undertook their ‘Fit4Feb’ challenges – traversing Europe and America (virtually, of course…), and totting up an impressive 6,200km between them.

This year, in the spirit of the Chinese New Year – the year of the Tiger – we’ve committed ourselves to an even bigger challenge.

We are going to walk, run, swim, cycle and hop our way back from Beijing to London – a distance of a whopping 10,681km!

The well-known quote ‘a journey of a thousand miles’ is attributed to the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu, and seems particularly apt for the challenge that lies ahead – at first, a journey of over 6,000 miles seems impossible – but all we can do is take that vital first step and begin our journey – and crucially – we’re not alone!

The Year of the Tiger

Since 2022 marks the year of the tiger, we’ve taken some inspiration from our furry friend. According to the Chinese Zodiac, the tiger is the ‘king of all beasts’, and is a symbol of Bravery, Competitiveness, Unpredictability and Confidence – some familiar traits we can see in ourselves!

So we’ve set some mini challenges based on these qualities, with some awesome (tiger-themed) prizes up for grabs!

BRAVE

  • Who is brave enough to join our challenge?
  • Who will brave dark and dismal early mornings for an invigorating run?
  • And most importantly, who is brave enough to share their most embarrassing workout outfit?!

COMPETITIVE

  • Who will get the most miles under their belt?
  • Who can most accurately guess where we’ll end up come 28th February?

UNPREDICTABLE

  • What will we discover en route?
  • Who will come up with the most wacky method of exercise?

CONFIDENT

  • Who actually thinks we can go the distance?
  • Who’s willing to give it a go anyway?

We hit the ground running on February 1st, and we’ll be providing regular weekly updates on our progress throughout the month via our social channels.

Wish us luck, or as the Chinese say – Zhù nǐ hǎo yùn!

30 new KOREC positions across all departments

KOREC is delighted to announce that group expansion means we are now seeking to fill 30 new positions, in a range of departments, across the UK and Ireland. These new roles include openings in our offices in Cambridgeshire, Dublin and Liverpool.

World beating technology for curious minds

KOREC specialises in bringing world leading geospatial technology to the UK and Irish markets, all backed up by in-house software development, training, technical support and servicing.

Through partnerships with companies such as Trimble, Esri and Parrot, KOREC aims to provide its customers with a wide range of ground-breaking geospatial technology. This offering includes everything from high accuracy GPS, 3D Laser Scanners, drones and robots to AI, Mixed Reality and Mobile Mapping solutions.

High profile customers

KOREC customers include some of the biggest names in the UK and Ireland including National Highways, United Utilities, Irish Rail, Network Rail, F1, Ordnance Survey, National Trust, Costain and Balfour Beatty; some of the smallest from sole ownership survey companies and drone operators to environmentalists and soil scientists; and let’s not forget some of the more unusual – Munro baggers, and mapping professionals involved in tropical disease vaccination projects or landmine clearing.

We have openings available for those in the industry and for those with no previous geospatial experience but looking to work in a fast-moving, technology led company. These roles include positions in sales, software development, recruitment, administration, technical support, training, marketing and servicing.

Alan Browne – KOREC CEO said “We may be a fast-growing company in a technology led industry but our 50 years in the business mean that we’ve had time to build and define our company culture and that means we’ve also created a great workplace and a world-class ethos. Our staff tell us that KOREC is a rewarding and exciting place to work and that’s something we’re really proud to have achieved.”

For further information, please visit https://www.korecgroup.com/careers-at-korec/

We are adding these new roles to the website regularly.

ENDS

Peterborough based KOREC customer, Sky Revolutions, is a company that certainly knows its way around the aerial mapping sector and as one of the very earliest UK surveying businesses to realise the benefits of drone surveying, it also has an extensive knowledge of the technology involved.

That’s why we are delighted to announce that it has become the first company in the UK to take delivery of senseFly’s newly released fixed wing drone, the eBee GEO.

Designed to deliver senseFly’s superior build quality and extensive functionality at a fraction of the price of similar drones, the eBee GEO is all about user ROI and is especially suitable for the many varied projects that Sky Revolutions undertake.

For company Director, Ben Gorham, the eBee GEO is a perfect choice for Sky Revolutions which has seen an upsurge in demand for aerial survey work following the restrictions imposed by COVID.

Ben rates the eBee GEO for four particular reasons:

Ben concludes, “There’s no doubt that the eBee GEO makes good sense for us financially and with its impressive accuracy it is the perfect addition to our fixed wing offering. KOREC’s been great at meeting our requirements and understands that we are a company valued by our customers for our specialist surveying skills and consequently have high expectations of every investment we make.”

Sky Revolutions has just successfully completed a first mission with the eBee GEO carrying out a coastal survey on behalf of Suffolk County Council.

https://skyrevolutions.co.uk

Sky Revolutions pick up their new eBee GEO from KOREC’s Huntingdon base. From left to right, James Tindall (KOREC Geospatial Technical Support), Lloyd Wilkinson (KOREC Geospatial Sales Consultant), Ben Gorham (Director, Sky Revolutions), Madison Gorham (Apprentice, Sky Revolutions), Anna Carter (Office Manager, Sky Revolutions)

Madison Gorham (Apprentice, Sky Revolutions) and Anna Carter (Office Manager, Sky Revolutions)

KOREC is delighted to announce that following extensive behind the scenes work demonstrating our ongoing commitment to support the Esri user community, we have been recognised officially as an Esri Silver Tier Business Partner.

This new status will further strengthen the KOREC/Esri relationship allowing KOREC to offer Esri’s ArcGIS software as part of its mapping portfolio to new and existing KOREC customers.

Silver Tier status will also provide Esri UK’s customers with access to KOREC’s in-house software development team and its specialist knowledge on the integration of Trimble GNSS into Esri mobile data capture software.

Potential development for Esri clients will include everything from small tweaks to bespoke workflows based on the ArcGIS system, bringing all the power of their existing software but with customisation options for specific data capture workflows.

The Trimble Catalyst solution with a TDC600

The KOREC mapping team will also be available to assist Esri users with the integration of GNSS into their workflows with up to centimetre positional accuracy. Esri users will now have access to the most cost-effective method possible for cm accuracy by means of Trimble’s subscription based, low cost Catalyst solution.

To discuss all development requirements please contact KOREC Business Area Manager – Mapping & GIS, Richard Gauchwin on 07786 118436 or at richard.gauchwin@korecgroup.com

Or visit www.korecgroup.com/mapping

KOREC is delighted to announce the launch of KOREC Mapping in a move to consolidate and expand the KOREC offering of field to office data collection and handling solutions available across the UK and Ireland.

This development will see new partnerships announced as well as an expanded team of KOREC development, technical and consultancy professionals. This team will be on hand to deliver and support a full range of AgEagle and Parrot drones, mobile mapping systems and services, Trimble hardware and software and KOREC’s own in-house KOREC Capture range of field-based solutions.

KOREC is unique in offering all of these services as a one stop shop.

Bringing together over 50 years of combined mapping experience, backed up by specialist industry sector knowledge, this larger team will operate countrywide  via a local network and will have strong links to both new partners (to be announced) and existing partners such as The Drone Pilot Academy, Ordnance Survey and Trimble.

KOREC Business Area Manager – Mapping & GIS, Richard Gauchwin said,  “KOREC Mapping is offering a unique combination of hardware, software, industry specific knowledge and nationwide support, all from a one stop source. Our aim is to provide KOREC customers with a simple, easy to implement way in which to achieve their data capture and handling aims whether they be the digitisation of paper forms and automation of processes for greater efficiency, assistance with a new productive workflow or just a simple field data capture exercise.”

Find Out More

ENDS

Stay tuned to find out more or for information on any of our products, please  contact us.

There are seven days in a week, seven colours of the rainbow, seven seas, seven continents and now Survey Solutions has seven Trimble X7’s!

Following Survey Solutions’ recent acquisition of three further survey companies, Survey Systems, Locate Surveys and Kempston Surveys,  it is now the UK’s largest engineering survey company and one that prides itself on offering ‘more than a survey’.  Survey Solutions sees investment in the latest technology as an integral part of that process and has an extensive survey fleet that reflects this forward thinking approach. Most recently this has included expanding and updating its range of 3D Laser Scanners.

With nine offices – from Scotland to Somerset – company CEO James Cooper was particularly keen to ensure that his regional teams had access to a 3D Laser Scanner that would meet their demands for high quality data, ease of use and excellent productivity in the field.  In upgrading the fleet’s older laser scanners, he was also keen to replace them with an instrument that all the surveyors and engineers would engage with. Their choice was the Trimble X7.

Seven scanners later, we caught up with Survey Solutions South East Director, Dave Bredin, who kindly shared his views on why the X7 has been such a popular addition to their survey fleet.

Top of Dave’s list was onsite registration. With seven X7’s in constant use, the increased efficiency on site and time saved in the office is considerable and a vital part in helping their clients meet important project deadlines. Dave estimates that on every job, office time is reduced by at least one third with the registered point cloud going straight in to drawing up.

The onsite registration also ensures that the Survey Solutions surveyors have total confidence in the data they have captured with the ability to check there and then that there are no gaps or missed areas. This reduces rework as well as time spent travelling back to a site if additional information is required. Tellingly, Dave says that it would be counter-productive to highlight a specific example of this function earning its keep because ‘… it’s every time on every job’!

Second on the list as a requirement for any laser scanner to be used nationwide was ease of use. With a large number of surveyors having access to the instruments it was vital that they could pick up the workflow quickly, with minimal training and have total confidence in their ability to collect high quality data from the off.

Dave reports that aside from the sensible pricing of the X7, there are many features that make it a perfect fit for the Survey Solutions’ fleet. These include it being easily carried in a backpack (many jobs in his SE area are undertaken in central London), the auto-calibration and self-levelling functions that ensure greater productivity on site and the Trimble RealWorks processing and analysis software that handles and combines data from different sensors. However, the real proof of an instrument’s contribution to a fleet is how it’s perceived by those who use it every day. Dave concludes, “The mark of a good piece of kit is the feedback from the surveyors who actually use it and every one of our surveyors loves it! Clearly the advancements in the Trimble X7 represent the next step in laser scanning technology and the X7’s easy to use and productive workflow is highly beneficial to both ourselves and our clients. It certainly ticks all the boxes for Survey Solutions.”

It’s always interesting for us here at KOREC to see what sort of reception a new product gets and we have to say the Trimble TSC5 Android data logger has certainly had its fair share of coverage on social media since its March launch. We’ve had everything from the Trimble ‘data logger evolution’ picture to some really useful feedback and opinion from all over the world.

Rather than reproduce a Trimble press release, we’ve decided to keep things fresh with a few bullet points and hot off the press feedback from those who’ve aleady been lucky enought to get their hands on a TSC5…and they don’t all agree!

The six stand out features of the TSC5 commented on by our KOREC customers:

Straight from the site – early customer feedback

“At Tri-Tech we embrace the latest technology and innovation and today I’ve been out stretching the legs of of one of our new Trimble TSC5 controllers paired with a Trimble R12i. A real step up in performance in so many ways from the much loved workhorse that is the TSC3. The TSC5 is lightweight, fast and seems very durable so far, so hopefully it will stand the test of time like the TSC3 has. It’s light but powerful and the hand strap on the side is a useful thing as is the protective ridge around the screen. They keyboard is great and I love that the light comes on with the caps lock. The fact that it’s Android is also useful because that means we have access to all the data storage apps as well such as Google Drive and Dropbox and dfx and dwg viewers. You’d need a USB C if you’re not using the data storage apps.  The battery life is also impressive. I was out yesterday, used it for around 9 hours and still had 50% left in the tank!

I’m still getting used to the screen because normally I use this version of Android on a larger one so would definitely recommend the stylus, at least initially.

I liked the TSC7 and I like the TSC3 but the TSC5 is a a great bit of kit and makes good business sense as and when we upgrade. All the team are looking forward to using it. Thank you to the KOREC Group and Amanda Bradshaw for getting the kit to us so promptly – great service as always.”

Ted Harland, Director, Tri-Tech

Ted has been trialling the TSC5 with his Trimble R12i

“I used the TSC5 the other day paired with Trimble’s R12i GNSS and noted some good improvements from the previous TSC3. The new Android system is exactly what was needed, this completely eliminates our use of USB’s as we can now directly download and then upload our data directly to our Google Drive system so all our information is accessible at any time. Another good improvement is the keyboard, I like how it is set out and with the LED’s that light up when you press the caps lock for example. Although it would be nice if the screen could fill the whole area, I’m not sure if that is physically possible. Overall I think it is a great logger and is a superb upgrade from the TSC3.”

Jack Brittain, Engineering Surveyor, Tri-Tech

Jack Brittain does the unboxing!

 

“Finally got my hands on the new Trimble TSC5 today and….I love it!

The TSC7 is nice but I found it a bit too big for running around with. The TSC5 is thinner, lighter, very quicker and it’s easy to see what’s going on with a screen that doesn’t blind you. It also has a narrower neck so you can reach everything you need with a single hand. The TSC5 is a great addition to the range.”

Paul Williams, Director at Survey Dimensions Ltd

Paul Williams rates the form factor of the new TSC5

We’re delighted to announce the launch of KOREC GEOSCHOOL, our on-line learning platform that offers a range of paid for and free of charge high quality training courses. These courses have all been designed to allow you to choose, where, when and at what pace you’d like to complete your training as well as providing lots of opportunity for questions and feedback from our qualified trainers.

It’s a tried and tested formula that we’ve based on the success of a summer training schedule that enabled companies to continue offering their surveyors and engineers personal development and technical training from the safety of their own homes.

First up for our new courses is ‘Measured Building’ a useful guide on measured building survey drawing from point cloud data using Trimble RealWorks and CAD software which will enable you to produce architect specified deliverables from point cloud data.  If you have a scanner, or are planning to invest in one, or have an interest in Trimble RealWorks then this course is a must.

Expect around 6 hours of video tuition that combined with your assignments and assessments gives a course of around 2 days for you to dip into as you please. You can view the course details here.

Introductory offer: Register for our Measured Building course in March and we’ll offer 20% off.

View course details

Register for sign up here

Can it really be over 4 years since Trimble launched the SX10 Scanning Total Station? We can’t believe it either, but if there’s one thing we are sure about, it’s that the Trimble development team never stands still!

…which is why we’re delighted to announce the launch of the SX12 which brings several new features based on both customer feedback and the Trimble desire to create an instrument that combines unrivalled versatility and ease of use.

Trimble describe the SX12 as ‘engineered for every day’ and there’s no doubt that the additional functionality creates new workflows and new opportunities, especially in tunnelling, internal surveys and construction.

So what have we got that’s new?

Vivid, eye-safe laser pointer

Green and focusable, the SX12’s laser pointer yields the smallest spot size in the industry, just 3mm at 50m. This useful feature has had tremendous feedback from early testers, including KOREC customers, who report that it is exceptionally bright making it ideal for internal buildings, tunnels, mines and construction sites.

Improved camera system

The SX12 now offers an 8.1 MP resolution camera (compared to the SX10’s 5 MP) and a 107x zoom (compared to the SX10’s 84x). This means clearer, more detailed pictures of far away objects resulting in improved aiming, more vivid colours and of course, less image noise in low-light situations.

The SX12 retains all the other stand out features of the SX10 and that includes ease of use, a short learning curve and versatility which means it could easily become the hardest working instrument on your fleet.

To celebrate the release of the SX12, we’re running a little promotion to allow a lucky winner of our prize draw to meet the new kid on the block before anyone else! Just follow the link here to enter your contact details and you could benefit from a week’s FREE hire of the SX12 and get your hands on it before anyone else!

Closing date – 19th March 2021.

info@korecgroup.com

Call UK Sales: 0345 603 1214

Call Ireland Sales: 01 456 4702

For anything else, view our contact page.