Computer Terrain Mapping, Inc. (CTM) is "about" an alternative, client-centric view for exploring the possibilities that geospatial technologies present. We've traditionally worked in a consulting environment, providing services predominantly in the land use planning arena. Along with analytical results, we've always felt that providing a powerful means of visualizing these results is a major part of the bargain. A component of our business has made visualization an end in itself, providing high impact maps and imagery to publications, enhancing their storylines with compelling visuals.
We're located in Boulder, Colorado, a beautiful city at the intersection of the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains. Like much of the American West, Boulder struggles with growth, preservation, affordability, evolving recreational issues and protecting its outstanding vistas. Boulder provides a wonderful laboratory to experiment with new ideas and test the validity of accepted norms.
Ultimately, every company is "about" their people - past, present and future. On this page, we take the opportunity to discuss what CTM's "about" to us as individuals.
Heidi Ochis, CTM President
I met Ed Russell / CTM while working at a planning firm as their GIS person. CTM was our technical support for software and project support when our software couldn't do what we needed it to do. I started working for CTM shortly after I returned to school to get a Masters degree in GIS / Remote Sensing. One afternoon while working on a project with county parcel data and recently flown orthophotos I was complaining that the two data sources did not align properly and that the offset was not consistent across the project area. I mentioned, in passing, that it would be nice to have the ability to "warp" vectors to an image or vice versa. Several days later, Ed demonstrated "exact-o-warp", a program he had created to do just what I had suggested.
The ability to tailor software to achieve project goals is a powerful asset. We have developed software on several occasions to meet project objectives including the skyline and landform delineation software. It's exciting to work with clients and shape their ideas into working solutions.
Ed Russell, CTM co-founder
Over one hundred and thirty years ago, Congress passed the General Mining Law of 1872. At the time, Colorado had not yet attained statehood; this Law was intended to help settle a sparsely populated western landscape, encourage economic development, and provide incentives for extracting the region's mineral wealth. Today, hard rock mining is all but dead in Colorado, replaced by a backcountry real estate bonanza.
Thirty years ago, backcountry recreation meant hiking. Those few who were fortunate enough to own 4-wheel drive vehicles got a little closer to their destinations, but walking was ultimately required to reach the end. Today, mountain bikes, dirt bikes and ATVs dominate many public land recreation areas and virtually everyone (including me) has a 4-wheel drive vehicle in which to get there.
In the early 1980s, I worked in the oil and gas industry. By the mid-1980s, this industry had collapsed; domestic exploration seemed to be gone for good. Today, rural landowners discover the concept of "severed rights" when a drilling rig drives on to their property. The BLM is overwhelmed with public land drilling applications that simultaneously threaten remaining roadless areas while striving to meet America's fuel appetite.
Moving targets. Confronting the challenges presented by issues such as these is what CTM's all about to me. We develop methodologies to provide a reference frame for understanding problems. More often than not, we've got to adapt these methodologies as we learn more about an issue. Sometimes, we have to scrap them altogether. That's something that a lot of other firms can't seem to do. To them, a project must fit within an existing conceptual framework, no matter how poor the fit might be. I understand where they're coming from: it's scary to abandon something that's familiar and has worked many times in the past. Ultimately, however, targets move and what's worked in the past doesn't work today.
My final thoughts (thankfully) involve the concept of access to opportunity: whether in our roles as responsible, engaged citizens, or in the form of a level playing field in our business environment. So many companies create barriers to opportunity - incompatible data formats, restrictive licensing or use agreements, software that doesn't "play nicely" with other software - to stifle competition. I've always felt that a product or service should stand or fall based on its merits, not on artificial limitations. This forces you to be creative in your thinking and to stay in touch with evolving trends and issues in technology and society. In turn, this creates a vibrant, rewarding work environment that values true innovation.