INDIANAPOLIS — After a competitive bid process, the Indiana Geographic Information Office (IGIO) has tasked Woolpert with acquiring aerial orthoimagery and lidar data for the state of Indiana. Collected as a part of the IGIO’s Imagery and Elevation Programs, these data will support economic development, infrastructure, conservation, and emergency response planning needs throughout the state.
Under the contract, Woolpert will simultaneously acquire over 37,000 square miles of four-band, 6-inch resolution digital orthoimagery and Quality Level 1 lidar over a three-year period from 2025-2027. Woolpert also will acquire approximately 120 square miles of 3-inch resolution digital orthoimagery and QL1 lidar along the coast of Lake Michigan each year through 2028 in support of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources’ Lake Michigan Coastal Program. QL1 data are delivered at 25 points per square meter.
The data will be available at no cost for the public to download or stream through the IGIO website and IndianaMap. State and local government agencies can obtain additional services and products, including enhanced digital orthoimagery, lidar, and derivative datasets, through the state’s collective buy-up program.
Woolpert Project Manager Matt Worthy said that local governments rely on geospatial data for countless processes. The data serves as a base map for a range of applications, including planning, assessment, modelling, and research.
“The usefulness of the state’s orthoimagery and lidar data is virtually endless,” Worthy said. “In addition to the classic use cases of the base imagery and elevation data, we’ve already begun receiving requests for derivative products such as building footprints, impervious surfaces, elevation-derived hydrography, the list goes on. The excitement surrounding the program is palpable from the metropolitan government coalitions, down to the smallest rural counties and municipalities. It’s rewarding to explain Woolpert’s solution to others and watch their wheels start turning as they connect our data to projects that they’ve wanted to undertake but maybe haven’t due to previous technological or cost considerations.”
Woolpert Program Director Brian Stevens noted the growth and sophistication of Indiana’s statewide imagery and lidar programs.
“When I first started my career at Woolpert and working with several Indiana counties, we primarily collected and processed black-and-white aerial imagery to produce orthoimagery and manually derived derivative products,” Stevens said. “Now, with the technology being implemented today by the state, including high point density lidar and co-collected aerial imagery, Indiana is leading the way and serves as a model for the rest of the country.”
The contract is underway. Data acquisition is expected to begin this spring.
About Woolpert
Woolpert is the premier architecture, engineering, geospatial (AEG), and strategic consulting firm, with a vision to become one of the best companies in the world. We innovate within and across markets to effectively serve public, private, and government clients worldwide. Woolpert is a Top 100 ENR Global Design firm, has earned eight Great Place to Work certifications, and actively nurtures a culture of growth, inclusion, diversity, and respect. Founded in 1911 in Dayton, Ohio, Woolpert has been America’s fastest-growing AEG firm since 2015. Woolpert has over 2,700 employees and more than 60 offices on five continents. For more, visit woolpert.com.
