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Maxar Technologies' DigitalGlobe and Ecopia Tech Corporation produce first high-precision U.S. building footprints dataset created with machine learning
[October 10, 2018]

Maxar Technologies' DigitalGlobe and Ecopia Tech Corporation produce first high-precision U.S. building footprints dataset created with machine learning


WESTMINSTER, CO, Oct. 10, 2018 /CNW/ - DigitalGlobe, a Maxar Technologies company (NYSE: MAXR) (TSX: MAXR), today announced that they produced the first precision, GIS-ready building footprints dataset of the entire United States in partnership with Ecopia Tech Corporation ("Ecopia.ai"). Ecopia U.S. Building Footprints powered by DigitalGlobe, available for order today, includes more than 169 million building footprints created by proprietary artificial intelligence algorithms in combination with DigitalGlobe's high-resolution, high-accuracy satellite imagery. The detailed dataset helps customers save time and money by knowing exactly what the built environment looks like in their area of interest, allowing them to make decisions with confidence.

Ecopia U.S. Building Footprints powered by DigitalGlobe is a semi-automated solution produced with a speed, consistency and scale that no other commercial or open data product on the market can match. The 2D vector polygon dataset has a greater than 95% accuracy rating, a uniquely high percentage in the industry, and will be refreshed every six months based on new DigitalGlobe imagery received through the company's Geospatial Big Data platform (GBDX), ensuring the most current foundational information is available to inform customer decisions on projects like mapping, insurance risk assessment, disaster management and land administration.

Ecopia U.S. Building Footprints powered by DigitalGlobe have already enabled a number of projects:

  1. Natural gas pipeline operators are federally required to annually locate, count and classify every building within a specific distance of their pipeline. One of the largest pipeline operators in the U.S. streamlined a traditionally manual and time-consuming workflow for locating and digitizing building footprints by using more than 700,000 building footprints, which were produced in a matter of days instead of the traditional months-long timeframe.
  2. One of the largest global development organizations commissioned DigitalGlobe and Ecopia.ai to use their innovative process to create building footprints for the entire country of Tanzania for use in settlement mapping analysis because a current map did not exist for much of this country. The partnership created 18 million building footprints in three weeks, supporting public health campaigns, sustainability initiatives, and risk reduction.

"The combination of Ecopia.ai's algorithms and DigitalGlobe's high-resolution satellite imagery accessed through GBDX creates reliable, game-changing solutions for many industries. Ecopia U.S. Building Footprints powered by DigitalGlobe puts readily available data in customers' hands to make timely business decisions and eliminates the need for manual, slow and expensive on-the-ground surveys," said Bill Singleton, Ecopia Tech Corporation Vice President. "We are proud to bring a product to market that has the potential to transform many applications, such as reducing the time between census data collection from once per decade to once per year for civil governments."

"DigitalGlobe is proud to offer a product of unmatched quality, accuracy and compleeness that is quickly produced and easy to access," said Amy Minnick, DigitalGlobe Senior Vice President and General Manager of Commercial. "We see great potential for Ecopia Building Footprints powered by DigitalGlobe to be used as a foundational data source in a wide variety of commercial and global development applications. Creating high-quality building footprints with Ecopia.ai will help Build A Better World."



DigitalGlobe and Ecopia.ai will extract building footprints for major international locations by the beginning of 2019. Additionally, the partnership is ready to produce building footprints anywhere in the world based on customer request. To learn more, please visit our website.

About DigitalGlobe


DigitalGlobe is the global leader in commercial high-resolution satellite imagery used by decision makersto better understand our changing planet in order to save lives, resources and time. Sourced from the world's leading constellation, our imagery solutions deliver unmatched coverage and capacity to meet our customers' most demanding mission requirements. Each day customers in defense and intelligence, public safety, civil agencies, map making and analysis, environmental monitoring, oil and gas exploration, infrastructure management, navigation technology, and providers of location-based services depend on DigitalGlobe data, information, technology and expertise to gain actionable insight. DigitalGlobe is a Maxar Technologies company (NYSE: MAXR; TSX: MAXR). For more information visit www.DigitalGlobe.com.

About Maxar Technologies

As a global leader of advanced space technology solutions, Maxar Technologies is at the nexus of the new space economy, developing and sustaining the infrastructure and delivering the information, services, systems that unlock the promise of space for commercial and government markets. As a trusted partner, Maxar Technologies provides vertically integrated capabilities and expertise including satellites, Earth imagery, robotics, geospatial data and analytics to help customers anticipate and address their most complex mission-critical challenges with confidence. With more than 6,500 employees in over 30 global locations, the Maxar Technologies portfolio of commercial space brands includes MDA, SSL, DigitalGlobe and Radiant Solutions. Every day, billions of people rely on Maxar to communicate, share information and data, and deliver insights that Build a Better World. Maxar trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange as MAXR. For more information, visit www.maxar.com.

About Ecopia Tech Corporation

Ecopia Tech Corporation ("Ecopia.ai") is an international supplier of high definition (HD) mapping products that enable high-fidelity global scale insights. Ecopia.ai uses proprietary intelligent systems that leverage groundbreaking advancements in machine learning to convert high-resolution imagery of our Earth into HD maps. The technology can utilize multiple sources of imagery ensuring accurate, up-to-date and reliable specifications that you can trust. For information visit www.ecopia.ai.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements and other information included in this release constitute "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking statements") under applicable securities laws. Statements including words such as "may", "will", "could", "should", "would", "plan", "potential", "intend", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate" or "expect" and other words, terms and phrases of similar meaning are often intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Forward-looking statements involve estimates, expectations, projections, goals, forecasts, assumptions, risks and uncertainties, as well as other statements referring to or including forward-looking information included in this release.

Forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from the anticipated results or expectations expressed in this release. As a result, although management of the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. The risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to, the risk factors and other disclosures about the Company and its business included in the Company's continuous disclosure materials filed from time to time with Canadian and U.S. securities regulatory authorities, which are available online under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com, under the Company's EDGAR profile at www.sec.gov or on the Company's website at www.maxar.com

The forward-looking statements contained in this release are expressly qualified in their entirety by the foregoing cautionary statements. All such forward-looking statements are based upon data available as of the date of this release or other specified date and speak only as of such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements in this release as a result of new information or future events, except as may be required under applicable securities legislation.

Investor Relations Contact
Jason Gursky
Maxar Technologies
1-303-684-2207
[email protected]

DigitalGlobe Media Contact
Kristin Carringer
1-303-684-4352
[email protected]

Ecopia.ai Media Contact
Emily Jackson
1-647-271-4284
[email protected]

Cision View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/maxar-technologies-digitalglobe-and-ecopia-tech-corporation-produce-first-high-precision-us-building-footprints-dataset-created-with-machine-learning-300728304.html

SOURCE Maxar Technologies Ltd.


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