Height data definines physical landscape

Ordnance Survey is announcing a major enhancement to its detailed digital height data defining the physical landscape of Britain.

Insurers, utilities and civil engineers will be among the first to view enriched digital terrain models (DTMs) for a series of areas at a pre-launch event in London on 15 March.

The enhanced data, Land-Form PROFILE Plus, is both high resolution and high accuracy, enabling nationally consistent 3-D modelling for activities such as flood risk assessment, pipeline maintenance, and route planning for road and rail.

The data offers an overall 2 m post space DTM, with height accuracy within 15 to 25 centimetres for selected high-risk areas such as flood plains and urban areas.

"Decision makers in many business activities and across local and central government are increasingly calling for high-resolution 3-D digital models of real-world environments," says James Brayshaw, Ordnance Survey's Director of Sales and Market Development.

"This sort of information is an essential tool for height-critical analysis, visualisation and planning".

" We have a long tradition of supplying height information and we are now enhancing our offering still further as part of our integrated geographical framework of Britain." Land-Form PROFILE Plus offers significant potential efficiency gains for insurers assessing flood and subsidence risk and targeting premiums at the individual household level.

Utilities can benefit from better visualisation of pipe networks, mast locations and other infrastructure, and civil engineers can improve their modelling of development scenarios and so reduce the need for extensive site visits.

John Harrison, underwriting manager for property at Royal and SunAlliance's geographical risk assessment unit, says: "Targeting urban areas and flood plains with height accuracy of not more than 0".

"5 metres is an excellent decision as this provides the most granular set of data any insurer would require." Ordnance Survey is releasing the enhanced data on a roll-out basis from this spring.

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