AMERICAN COMMERCIAL PRACTICES IN 
LARGE SCALE TOPOGRAPHIC MAPPING 
S. JACK FRIEDMAN 
Executive Vice President 
O. M. I. Corporation of America 
512 North Pitt Street 
Alexandria, Virginia 
Abstract: This paper is an attempt to place in print information which 
although of common knowledge to a number of photogrammetrists has not been 
well publicized and may be novel and of interest to many others. The paper 
discusses generally the private commercial company aspect of photogram- 
metric mapping. Representative company equipment, personnel, client relation, 
and technical operations are covered. 
Introduction 
A great expansion of the science of photogrammetry in the Unites States in the last fifteen 
years has encouraged a release of a large amount of information which has been made available 
internationally through such publications as the ‘‘Photogrammetric Engineering," ''Photo- 
grammetria," and numerous other publications on various phases of photogrammetry and its 
associated sciences. This information has dealt principally with the activities of governmental 
bodies, universities, and other quasi-official organizations. It has concerned descriptions of 
new techniques of mapping, new applications of instrumentation and details of actual projects 
which various public agencies have undertaken. All this information has been most important 
and interesting and absolutely essential to the growth of the science of photogrammetry. How- 
ever, one aspect of photogrammetry has been described very lightly in the literature. A review 
of recent publications will indicate that a scarcity of information exists concerning the practice 
of commercial photogrammerty in the United States. This is most unfortunate for a tremendous 
amount of effort and money is now invested in the pursuance of photogrammetric engineering by 
private companies. It can be assumed that these companies, working competitively, would be 
responsible for developing new approaches, techniques, and equipment to more efficiently com- 
pete with their contemporaries. Of course it should be recognized that not much information is 
available for exactly that reason. A company which has developed an efficient technique for 
producing maps would not be too enthusiastic about revealing such information to its competitors 
unless it could be protected by legal methods such as patent or copyright. 
The author has been in the interesting position of having had during the past fifteen years 
experience both with government agencies and commercial firms in the fields of both research 
and development and actual production of maps. The comments made in this paper are derived 
from: observations limited necessarily to a small segment of the entire private commercial 
practice of photogrammerty in the United States. Although the statements herein are based on 
a limited sample, nevertheless, it is felt that this sample is quite typical and does represent 
practices which are most common. The paper is not intended to be a critique and does not 
assume the responsibility for passing opinion on practices now in use. It is hoped that the infor- 
mation given is in a purely objective spirit and will provide information to the general photo- 
grammetric community which is not too readily available in the literature at this time. 
Background 
In March 1957 Prof. Charles Miller of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology published 
in ‘‘Photogrammetric Engineering’’ a report on the status of private photogrammetric mapping 
activity in the United States. This fine and timely study revealed a very interesting situation 
existing in 1956. With Prof. Miller’s very kind permission, presented herewith is a very brief 
summation of some of the facts in the study. In 1945 there were four private companies engaged