Fall Seminar to be Presented as a Webinar
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Due to the restrictions on attendance at group gatherings caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the VAS Fall Seminar will be presented as a webinar.
The education program will be on Friday, September 18 beginning at 10:00 AM, featuring two sessions of two hours each. A total of four hours of continuing education credit will be awarded. The sessions are as follows:
The Surveyor in Court (or not)
Instructors:
Jerry Taylor, LS, Esq., and Steve Douty, LS
In this webinar, surveyors will learn how to understand, prepare for, and present as an expert witness in court and other formal presentations. In addition, it will focus on how to help your client avoid the litigation experience and how to market your services after the dust has settled. Mr. Taylor has represented his clients as both a surveyor and attorney in cases relating to land use and boundaries. Mr. Douty has served as an expert witness in federal and state courts, where he both succeeded and failed to properly represent his clients.
Early Surveying Techniques and the Evolution of Surveying Equipment
Instructor: David Ingram, LS
This webinar will examine early surveying techniques and the evolution of surveying equipment including directional devices, distance measuring equipment, and calculating devices. Visual aids will depict actual equipment in many variations, original patent diagrams, photographs of surveyors at work, actual survey work products, and numerous other items that depict the life and work of surveyors of yesteryear. Mr. Ingram has a vast collection of historic surveying instruments, including many he has researched and restored.
For further information and registration,
click here
.
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From the President
by Kevin Wood
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We are drifting into the heart of the Summer, so I hope your work and vacations are going well. The VAS Board held an online meeting in June. In conjunction with that, an online seminar was provided as well. We had approximately 80 participants in the seminar. The Fall board meeting and seminar will follow the same course. The VAS is trying to help the members maintain their continuing credits even while we are all social distancing. The board meeting minutes can be viewed on the VAS website and I encourage all of you to keep up with what is going on.
So, what is going on with your board? We discussed several topics such as what is happening in the chapters. I will give a shout out to the Mount Vernon Chapter. Your chapter has a lot going on and your Board is very active. Several other topics we discussed are as follows:
- The deadline for submittals on the VAS plat contest is now September 1st.
- NSPS working to recruite new members of the CST board.
- The Education Trust voted to extend a deadline for scholarship applications to August 15th.
- Revisions to the Constitution and Bylaws were reviewed.
- We completed a review of the updated Policy Manual and Strategic Plan.
I would like to thank Kevin Shreiner for his work on the VAS policy manual. Kevin reminded us that this document is a living thing that needs to be updated as the VAS changes in time. This revision was a big one and Kevin spent a large part of his time coordinating the revisions. Others such as Will Nash have put in countless hours working on the bylaws. How many of us look through these documents? There are several VAS documents that are in place to assist in how the membership operates, such as the policy manual and the bylaws, and then there are others, the strategic plan and the standards of practice, that help the membership to grow and assist in day to day activities of the surveyor. I have learned to appreciate the policy manual and the bylaws as I have worked on your Board and during my time on the Tidewater Chapter Board. I am pulling my standards of practice manual out to figure out what the future of this document should look like. Gary Faulhaber has led the charge to review the VAS strategic plan.
Every business and large group needs a plan. The VAS created a strategic plan in the early years that I was on the Board and it is a comprehensive document. It has guided the direction for the VAS and now since we have moved forward in time, we need to look at the future and decide how we will achieve our goals. The Board is looking at updates to the plan and a working model will pass around during the next few months. The primary goal is to grow our membership, but we hope to do it in a way that can be sustained. Part of the updates continue to build our foundation through communication through the membership as well as to the community. Certain updates deal with online learning and how the VAS can grow with this trend. One of the large updates is building a better plan to work with workforce development. The VAS is hoping to create a better culture of learning and growing in the foundation of our profession so that our future is stronger.
I hope each of you will contribute to what this Board does. We may not always be working on something that is truly an interest to you, but we certainly will listen and try to work on what you feel is a need. Talk to your chapter board, go to your chapter meetings. These will hopefully continue in an online method if necessary. Send those of us on the VAS Board an email or call us. My email and phone number are listed below. We are here to serve for your membership. Take a look at these
documents
that help govern or grow your association. Be a part of the change.
Kevin B. Wood, LS
VAS President
kwood@pennoni.com
(757) 355-6743
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“Back to normal”. I’m sure like me you have heard this phrase a few times in the past month or so, but what is normal anymore? As things begin to open back up, have you tried getting “back to normal”? I’ve gone out to eat a few times and I guess I’m getting used to wearing a mask and sitting spaced apart. I’ve also noticed more traffic on my commute lately, so that makes me believe that more people are going back to work. Here at Fairfax County most of the workers now telework. Is this going to be a permanent option? How about your office? Is it promoting teleworking? We always talk about surveying technology advances, but what about teleworking technology? I now have five different apps on my computer and phone just for remote meetings!
We hope you find this month’s edition of the
Old Dominion Surveyor
informative and educational. We’ve included a poll (
click here
) and I’m very interested in seeing the results in next month’s edition of the
ODS
.
A big thanks to Khea Adams of the VAS staff and as always, please keep in mind that this is your
ODS
, and we are always looking for articles, ideas, and photographs you submit. And please feel free to let us know how we are doing.
Here’s to you finding your “back to normal” and please be safe and take care.
____________________
Chris Jensen, LS, is VAS Second Vice President and Editor of
ODS
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Scholarships are
still available to anyone who is in an education program in pursuit of a career in surveying. The deadline to submit your 2020 scholarship application has been extended to August 15. Click below for the application.
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APELSCIDLA Board's Centennial
by Kate Nosbisch
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The Virginia Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, Certified Interior Designers and Landscape Architects (APELSCIDLA) is pleased to announce the Board's Centennial! Like everything else this year, our Centennial Celebration hasn't gone quite as planned due to COVID-19, however we completed our Centennial Book which showcases structures in Virginia pre-licensure, and for each decade of the last century, as well as some renderings as for what is coming in the next century. We invite you to view the
APELSCIDLA Centennial Book
. In addition to the Book, the Board received a proclamation from the Governor as well as congratulatory messages from the Secretary of the Commonwealth and the Secretary of Commerce and Trade.
The Board has been dependent on our volunteer board members since the very beginning. If it were not for the dedication of our board members, it would be impossible to conduct the business of the Board - most importantly, protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the public. Board service involves attending board meetings, serving on special committees, representing the Board nationally, presiding over informal fact-finding conferences, developing regulations, providing technical expertise, and reviewing applications.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the board members I have had the great pleasure to personally work with over the past dozen years. Your dedication, professionalism, and expertise are inspiring!
Board members are appointed by the Governor for a term of four years. If you have an interest in serving on the Board, please visit the
Secretary of the Commonwealth's website
for further information and to complete an application.
In closing, congratulations to all of our licensed professionals as the Board reaches this historic milestone!
_________
Kate Nosbisch is Executive Director of the APELSCIDLA Board.
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APELSCIDLA Board's Proclamation from Governor Northam
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Creating Your Firm's Business Plan
by John Palatiello
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Last month, I wrote about business planning in general. This column is specifically about a business plan.
Whether you are the principal, owner, or partner of an existing survey practice, or you're about to start a new business, taking the time to write a business plan is a worthwhile investment of your time.
In 2016, VAS member and past president David Gardy was the instructor of a seminar for the Maryland Society of Surveyors fall conference on “
Starting Your Own Surveying Practice
". He noted, “there are numerous resources available to help in developing a business plan. Your business plan will be an invaluable tool in developing your thoughts, and presenting your ideas for the business to potential business partners”.
In a
blog
on the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) website, Allen Gutierrez, Associate Administrator of SBA’s Office of Entrepreneurial Development, provides reasons for a business plan, including to help steer the business; set milestones, benchmarks, and metrics to monitor growth and goal attainment; and obtain funding from banks or other investors. The blog also includes links to numerous SBA resources.
A business plan need not be voluminous. It should not fill a three-ring binder or be so cumbersome that upon completion it sits on a shelf never to be seen or used again. There are some advisers who advocate a
one-page
business plan, with one simple sentence for each category or using a “GPS” method of stating an overall goal, three priorities to reaching the goal, and five strategies items for each priority. But a more thorough plan can easily be less than 10 pages in length. Some of the sections of a business plan could include:
1. Mission statement or value proposition
2. Market need
3. Your solution
4. Competition
5. Target market
6. Sales and marketing
7. Budget and sales goals
8. Milestones
9. Staffing
10. Capital investment (equipment, software, etc.)
11. Key partners
12. Funding needs
In an existing firm, the development of the business plan should be a team effort, including all employees or, at a minimum, senior staff. It can be compiled by in-house staff or with an outside consultant and facilitator. Assistance is available from several SBA programs, such as the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) or a Women’s Business Center. There are several SBDC offices throughout
Virginia
.
There is also online SBA assistance on
writing a business plan
.
Upon completion, it should be shared with all employees. Most importantly, it should be reviewed on a periodic basis with an analysis of how well the firm is doing in meeting the plan.
The 12 elements of a business plan need not go into great detail. Next month, we’ll discuss creating a strategic plan, which is a supplement, not a duplicate, of a business plan.
________________
John Palatiello is Executive Director of Virginia Association of Surveyors and President of John M. Palatiello & Associates Inc., a public affairs consulting firm based in Fairfax, VA, providing government relations, public relations, association management, strategic planning, event planning, and management and marketing consulting services to private firms, associations, and government agencies with an emphasis on the architecture and engineering; geospatial, mapping and GIS; information technology; construction; transportation and infrastructure, and land use sectors.
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Young Surveyors Committee Update
By Clifton Rodgers
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I encourage everyone who is in the Young Surveyors Committee within VAS, or anyone who wants to know more about the young surveyors groups, to explore the following links below. All Young Surveyors Committee members should apply to the North American Young Surveyors group at the NSPS link. It is free and there are invitations to updates within the FIG organization sent out a couple times a year. (This years’ meeting was supposed to be in Netherlands, so there is opportunity to travel if you join.)
These are the current go-to resources for the FIG: North American Young Surveyors group, which is operating within the NSPS organization. I will continuously update these links as I find more or get a reference from these organizations.
_______________________
Clifton Rodgers is chair of the VAS Young Surveyors Committee.
Interested in joining a committee? All Committees and Chairs to contact can be found on the VAS
website
.
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Committee Corner - University Liaison
By Chris Pappas
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It is the duty of the University Liaison Committee to attend meetings requested by the educational entities that consist mainly of universities and be an advisor to the universities' surveying programs. The committee members encourage students and professors of the educational entities to submit articles and reports to the VAS Board of Directors and the
Old Dominion Surveyor
. The committee compiles lists of graduates and students seeking co-op positions from the educational programs and will encourage the VAS membership to hire those individuals. The committee looks for opportunities for both the VAS and the educational entities that benefit both and form a synergistic relationship. Virginia needs more licensed surveyors and the university needs more students in the surveying programs and we both have a common goal of informing the public that surveying is an exciting, dynamic profession with many fulfilling aspects. One of the goals of the liaison committee is to encourage the students that graduate to become members of the VAS, demonstrating to them the camaraderie and networking opportunities that the VAS can provide.
As the committee chair, I am tasked with performing these duties. If any VAS members have community colleges or other forms of educational entities that you feel we need to encourage and foster, please give me contact information for that program.
_____________________________________
Chris Pappas, LS, is Chair of the Univerity Liaison Committee and President of the VAS Western Chapter.
Interested in joining a committee? All Committees and Chairs to contact can be found on the VAS
website
.
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Fall Board of Directors Meeting
September 17, 2020
Fall Webinar
September 18, 2020
72nd Annual Convention & General Membership Meeting
October 22 - 24, 2020
Wyndham Oceanfront Hotel
Virginia Beach, VA
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Plat Competition Deadline Extended - Submit by September 1
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Since the VAS Convention has moved to October, the plat competition has been extended to September 1. The new dates of the convention are October 21 - 24, 2020. The categories are the same as the 2018 NSPS Map Plat Design Competition: Subdivision Plats, Topographical Maps, ALTA/NSPS Survey Maps, Miscellaneous Maps, Boundary/Cadastral Maps.
New this year:
Entries will only be accepted electronically in PDF format. Contest rules and entry forms can be found
here
.
The entry fee of $40 (for one to six plats) and completed entry form(s) are due no later than September 1, 2020. You may mail the entry fee to Virginia Association of Surveyors, 10340 Democracy Lane, Suite 300, Fairfax, VA 22030 or to pay by credit card by
click here
. Please make checks payable to Virginia Association of Surveyors and note in the memo section it is for the Plat Contest.
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New Utility Easement Law Takes Effect July 1
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During the VAS Summer Seminar held on Friday, June 12, there was a discussion of legislation passed by the General Assembly and signed by the Governor establishing new procedures and requirements for utility easements, including the location of broadband and other communications infrastructure. Here a link to a summary and the text of
HB 831
, which became effective on July 1.
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Delayed Release of the Modernized NSRS
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NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey (NGS) has announced a delay in the release of the modernized National Spatial Reference System (NSRS).
In 2007, NGS began planning for the modernized NSRS, acquiring its first airborne gravimeter, creating and initiating the Gravity for the Redefinition of the American Vertical Datum (GRAV-D) project and by 2008 had codified its modernization plans into a Ten Year Plan. At that time, the target completion date was 2018. By 2013, that date seemed unlikely, due to both the broadening of the GRAV-D coverage area and the experience of five years of operational planning and execution.
In 2013, NGS revised its 2008 Plan, and targeted 2022 as the date of the release of the modernized NSRS. This date was reinforced with a 2018 Strategic Plan revision. By 2017, confidence in hitting the 2022 target was high enough to reach final agreement with Canada and Mexico on a naming convention for certain components, to include “2022” in their names.
Since 2017, operational, workforce, and other issues have arisen and compounded, causing NGS to recently re-evaluate whether a successful roll-out by 2022 is possible. The most significant impacts have been in workforce hiring and retention, and in meeting GRAV-D data collection milestones, which underpin the NSRS modernization efforts.
NGS is currently conducting a comprehensive analysis of ongoing projects, programs, and resources required to complete NSRS modernization and will continue to provide regular updates on its progress. To get the latest news on NSRS modernization and track progress, subscribe to
NGS News
or visit our
"New Datums" web pages
.
Further details, and more answers are available on this
FAQ
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Heat Stroke
Heat stroke is the most serious heat-related illness. It occurs when the body becomes unable to control its temperature: the body’s temperature rises rapidly, the sweating mechanism fails, and the body is unable to cool down. When heat stroke occurs, the body temperature can rise to 106°F or higher within 10 to 15 minutes. Heat stroke can cause death or permanent disability if emergency treatment is not given.
Symptoms of heat stroke include:
- Confusion, altered mental status, slurred speech
- Loss of consciousness (coma)
- Hot, dry skin or profuse sweating
- Seizures
- Very high body temperature
- Fatal if treatment delayed
Symptoms of heat stroke include:
- Confusion, altered mental status, slurred speech
- Loss of consciousness (coma)
- Hot, dry skin or profuse sweating
- Seizures
- Very high body temperature
- Fatal if treatment delayed
First Aid
Take the following steps to treat a worker with heat stroke:
- Call 911 for emergency medical care.
- Stay with worker until emergency medical services arrive.
- Move the worker to a shaded, cool area and remove outer clothing.
- Cool the worker quickly with a cold water or ice bath if possible; wet the skin, place cold wet cloths on skin, or soak clothing with cool water.
- Circulate the air around the worker to speed cooling.
- Place cold wet cloths or ice on head, neck, armpits, and groin; or soak the clothing with cool water.
Source: Center for Disease Control
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"Plat Recorded Herewith" - Only to Discover it Wasn't
By Stephen Letchford
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As we all know, VAS staff and our hard-working second Vice President/Editor are always asking members to share a story from or about our survey community. So after helping ensure a fallen brother's work was not lost to the county landfill, I felt the need to put pen to paper and share both the sad news of losing another one of our Central Chapter members, but what we have accomplished to help ensure the body of work completed by Jim Lohr and his partners is not lost to our membership, hence the title of the piece. (thanks must go to Will Nash for that nugget – more on Will later)
In early May, Ms. Renee Bashaw, Edwards, Kretz, Lohr & Associates’ office manager, reached out to contacts within the greater Richmond survey community asking for a little help.
Renee let us know that the last of her companies’ partners, Mr. Jim Lohr, LS, had passed away at the end of 2019. Renee was very concerned that the records left in Jim’s office located off West Broad Street, records that represented almost 40 years of work in around Richmond, would get lost to time because no one seemed interested in preserving them.
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As many of you may already know, the preservation of survey records is a bit of passion of mine and was partly the reason I got back in touch with Renee right away. I wanted to see what we, VAS, could do to help.
Renee shared that she had many, many filing cabinets filled to the brim with records and a hard deadline placed on her to get them out before the building owner simply planned to “chuck” them all in the dumpster!
Time to mobilize the troops.
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Calls and emails went out to our membership asking for help and many answered the call. Special thanks go out to an old JSRCC survey student of mine, Mr. Ron Tanoya, his son, and our very own Mr. Will Nash for their strong backs and willingness to do whatever it took to ensure Jim’s records didn’t get lost forever.
(
As you can tell from the photos, having Will’s covered motorcycle trailer was heaven sent
). Due to one of our famous late afternoon VA thunderstorms, if we hadn’t had Will’s covered trailer we would have lost much of what we were able to recover. Many Thanks, Will.
Mr. Nash also shared with me a little more background on our fallen surveyor.
It turns out that Will and Jim’s family all grew up together out in Farmville. In fact, Will was good friends with Jim’s brother (a State Police officer who was tragically killed in the line of duty, there is even a bridge named in his honor).
Lastly, Will shared that he had actually sat for his LSIT exam with Jim. Can we say “small world”?
With many of the conversations I have had since putting the word out on needing a little help, I was reminded every week that our precious survey community is so VERY small and getting smaller every year. We need to continue to work hard to ensure we all look out for one another in both good times and bad.
Many thanks must also go out to my office manager, Mr. John Bennett, at AES Consulting Engineers, for being willing to let me store Jim’s records in one of our open office spaces at our Glen Allen shop.
Without my firm’s generosity and understanding of the importance of ensuring these historical records remain accessible to all surveyors, I don’t think I could have made this happen.
In conclusion, I am grateful for Renee not giving up on the importance of saving these records, I am grateful for those who helped make this happen but we are far from done…..
Your association and its aging membership still need YOUR help.
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I am putting a challenge out there to our members on how we ensure these and other records remain accessible and searchable. I am no database manager, but I know it can be done. I will be presenting a proposal to the VAS Board in the coming weeks to begin this effort statewide. We need to let surveyors know firstly that we care about their records if perhaps their families or business partners do not. My hope is that this effort (and others I feel sure I will be made aware of) become a resource to those who are members within the VAS.
We are all debtors to the profession so let’s see what we can do to help preserve those records that may not have a place to remain so they are never lost to the sands of time.
__________________________________
Stephen Letchford, LS, is Richmond Surveyor Manager at AES Consulting Engineers and VAS Region II Director
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The Old Dominion Surveyor
The Old Dominion Surveyor
is the official publication of the Virginia Association of Surveyors. It is published monthly and sent to members. All material must be submitted by the deadline noted for each issue.
Editor
Chris Jensen
Committee
Khea Adams - Virginia Association of Surveyors
VAS 2020 - 2021 Officers and Directors
President..................................
Kevin Wood
First Vice President..............
Alison Hanson
Second Vice President...........
Chris Jensen
Secretary/Treasurer....................Rob Mann
Past President..............
Gary M. Faulhaber
NSPS Director............................. Will Nash
Region I Director....... Yeoanny Venetsanos
Region II Director..........Stephen Letchford
Region III Director.................... Judy Beale
Region IV Director................ Troy Willams
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Advertise
More than 400 members of the surveying profession in Virginia read
The Old Dominion
Newsletter. Advertising in the magazine is a great way to reach that audience! Our online publication allows us to link from your ad to your website.
Advertising Rates
Full Page
(7.5" wide x 10" high)
One Issue - $400
Annual - $3,000
Half Page
(7.5" wide x 4.74" high)
One Issue - $250
Annual - $1,500
Half Page
(3.5" wide x 10" high)
One Issue - $250
Annual - $1,500
Quarter Page
(3.5" wide x 4.75" high)
One Issue - $150
Annual - $800
Business Card
(3.5" wide x 2.0" high)
One Issue - $75
Annual -$400
Banner Ad
(1000px wide x 320 high)
One month - $500
Subpage Ad
(75 px High)
One month -$200
- Submission Deadlines: The first day of the month of the issue(s) selected
- Preferred Formats: Ads may be provided in black/white or color; please send layout-ready copy (compatible electronic files include .eps or .pdf files with all fonts and graphics embedded). All ads must be digital. Please send ads via email to Khea Adams at Khea@vasurveyors.org
- All advertisements are non-refundable
- If purchasing an Annual ad, you can change your ad monthly.
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