2 | Reporter The Global Magazine of Leica Geosystems | 3

in this issue:

Dear Readers,

Leica Geosystems is a renowned leader in the devel-

opment and manufacturing of surveying measure-

ment instruments. With a history dating back to

Wild and Kern we have plenty of track records and

“world’s first” products to back up this statement.

Since Hexagon acquired Leica Geosystems, extensive

planning has been done in order to also position us

as a leading supplier of measurement instruments

and tools for construction applications. One key area

we are focusing on is Machine Control (MC), using

GPS technologies to monitor and direct construction

vehicles. In this issue of the Reporter you will see

some exciting projects realized with Leica Geosys-

tems Machine Control technology around the world.

Since last summer we have acquired three companies

in this area: Scanlaser, a leading systems integrator

of MC, Mikrofyn, a leading sensor and laser manu-

facturer within the MC segment, and SBG, a leading

software manufacturer for MC solutions. With these

companies and combined with the inherent knowl-

edge within Leica Geosystems for sensors (TPS and

GPS) and software, we now have a strong technical

as well as commercial base in MC in Europe. We will

continue our growth in this expanding market during

2007.

In the past year we have put a lot of effort into

enhancing our product offering in the measurement

tools area. At BAUMA we will show you the inte-

grated solutions we recognize as the key to success

on every construction site. Beyond our range of MC

products across all applications – from Grading and

Excavating to Paving – construction and indoor tools

like the new Leica Rugby 50 and Leica Rugby 55, and

of course the brand new Leica LINOTM L2, underline

our power in the world of the construction site.

Get a taste of the new Leica Geosystems construc-

tion venture for yourself – with the Reporter 56 and

at BAUMA!

Ola Rollén

CEO Hexagon and Leica Geosystems

Leica Geosystemsprotects Venice

Swedish Underground

In the middle of the Rhine

Non-stop paving

Leica Builder in the “Green Industry”

Rising High withGPS Network

Russia goes for Leica ADS40

Earth Dam Monitoringwith GPS Survey

Keeping track of moving structures

Beyond Scanning

Keep Up With the Youngsters

Sharp lines on site

News/Imprint

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Editorial

>>

Leica Geosystems protects Veniceby Emilio Palchetti

The 20th century has certainly endangered Ven-

ice’s ability to keep itself above water in the

Venetian Lagoon. The city ever more frequent-

ly falls victim to intensive flooding, which not

only reduces the quality of life for Venetians

but also causes considerable damage to their

architectural heritage. Following the evaluation

of numerous alternatives the “Mose” project,

an ingenious protection system, which includes

adjustable floodgates, is now being imple-

mented. A machine automation solution with

GPS from Leica Geosystems has been chosen to

ensure their exact positioning.

Over the last one hundred years Venice has subsided

relative to mean sea level by about 23 cm, while the

tidal range has increased by about 8 cm due to mor-

phological changes in the lagoon bed. The Ministry for

Infrastructure designed an integrated intervention

system to protect the city against high water levels:

these include local protection measures to save the

lowest-lying parts of the city and flood defences at

CO

NTEN

TS

Antenna

GPS receiver

Computer with control program

Inclination sensor

A1

A2

B

CD

The Global Magazine of Leica Geosystems | 54 | Reporter

the entrance to the lagoon, both of which will come

into action as soon as the water level rises by more

than 110 cm.

The Mose system

As soon as this mark is reached, 78 adjustable flood-

gates at the entrances to the lagoon (18 in Chioggia,

19 in Malamocco and 41 at Lido) are activated to sep-

arate the city from the open sea. Further protection

measures include various initiatives to lower water

levels in the lowest-lying areas of the city during the

very frequent flooding. All measures are augmented

by an extremely effective protection system, which

optimises the management of the gates and limits

closure of the inlets to 3 to 5 occasions per year

to preserve water quality and protect morphology,

landscape and harbour activities.

Works at sea

One of the first contracts, for the foundations to

anchor the floodgate modules was awarded to Gran-

di Lavori Fincosit Spa. The work was situated in the

area of the harbour entrance at Lido di Venezia: 176

steel piles, each 24 m long and 508 mm in diameter,

were to be anchored in the sea bed more than 16

m below water level in a 3 x 3 m grid. What is a

routine operation on land had to be performed at

sea without fixed reference points and in occasion-

ally unfavourable environmental conditions such as

marine currents, tides and strong Bora winds. At the

same time, the requirements were very strict with

the maximum permissible deviation from plan being

15 cm.

Surveyor Giulio Salvador of Grandi Lavori Fincosit Spa.

and engineer Filippo Rettondini of the subcontractor

VIPP Lavori Spa., technical manager of foundation

works, explained the challenging task they faced to

me and my team from Leica Geosystems Machine

Automation: First, a piling rig had to be transported

into position at the driving site and similar measures

taken as on land to secure it in place. Then it was

up to the machine operator to drive the piles to the

highest possible accuracy directly over the specified

design coordinates.

Positioning the piling rig

To complete this first part of the operation we used

the self-elevating platform “Lynx” provided by Grandi

Lavori Fincosit. This pontoon is specially designed to

transport large machines over water, in our case a

piling rig, and when required transforms into a fixed

platform anchored to the sea bed with the aid of

four telescopic elements attached to its sides. The

team from Leica Geosystems specially developed

a GPS system to determine the coordinates of the

Lynx, which would guide the pontoon operator to the

best possible anchoring position. The objective was

to obtain the ideal position for the rig so that it could

place as many piles as possible from each set-up and

reduce to a minimum the time needed to reposition

the pontoon when finished at one site.

Positioning the piles

For the second requirement, namely to help the rig

operator place the piles exactly in the specified posi-

tions, we developed a supporting navigation system

based the Leica GSM5-M20 GPS receiver. The receiv-

er, two antenna and appropriate control software

display the planimetric position of the antenna on

the rig in relation to the specified coordinates to the

rig operator.

The operator simply compares the reference points

on the monitor graphically and numerically and is

able position the ram’s antenna very quickly over

the coordinates for the pile, taking into account the

minimum tolerances. The software can also provide

stored reports on the driving of the piles if neces-

sary with information on how far the installed posi-

tion deviates from the specified position of the pile.

This provides a simple way of creating a certification

report attesting to the quality of the work performed

in relation to the required standard.

Thanks to this innovative GPS positioning solution,

the foundation works for the Mose project in Venice

were completed in the shortest possible time. With

this project Leica Geosystems was able to contribute

to saving the city of Venice, which is unfortunately

still at the mercy of natural forces of decay, in a very

real way.

A1 , A2

B

C

D

The experts at Leica developed a navigation system

consisting of two antenna (A1, A2), a GPS receiver (B)

and a special control program to allow the machine

operator to position the piles as simply as possi-

ble. The piles can be placed exactly at the position

specified on the drawings and driven into the sea

bed by the rig. An inclination sensor (D) provides the

machine operator with all the necessary information

to sink each pile exactly vertically.

As soon as the water level exceeds the critical value of 110 cm, air is pumped into the floodgates,

which rise from the sea bed to keep back the water.

Exact Control