Global Trends in the Mapping Industry during the Pandemic

By Philippe Simard, Ph.D.
President, SimActive Inc.

The pandemic has brough uncertainties to all businesses and the mapping industry has been no exception. Slowdowns were observed during the first few months of 2020 as lockdowns were gradually enforced in Asia, then Europe, and finally the Americas. As expected, projects were delayed during that initial period as companies were reorganizing their operations to allow for remote work.

Once that transition was overcome, a great number of projects resumed, and the geospatial field has been gradually coming back to normal since then. That can be explained by different factors, including for example several governments accelerating infrastructure projects to stimulate the economy.

A lot of mapping firms have turned the pandemic into an opportunity to improve their processes.

A lot of mapping firms have turned the pandemic into an opportunity to improve their processes. Slower times allow reviewing production workflows and assessing bottlenecks. Once identified, new hardware and software solutions can be evaluated to optimize production. Interestingly, the resulting investments into new solutions has been significant. Companies are seeing a quick payoff as their workload is rapidly accelerating, leading to an increase in their bottom-line.

Overall, the mapping industry was able to rapidly adjust to the new reality caused by the pandemic. The changes that are being made in performing projects not only allow to minimize risks in the short term, but also to increase profitability in the longer term.