2013 Spring Edition - Tennessee Association of Professional

SPRING 2013
T H E O F F I C I A L P U B L I C AT I O N O F T H E T E N N E S S E E A S S O C I AT I O N O F P R O F E S S I O N A L S U R V E Y O R S
Highlights of
the 45th Annual
Conference &
Exhibition
Is this tool
in your
future
surveying
toolbox?
Inside This Issue
TENNESSEE ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL SURVEYORS
SPRING 2013
Tennessee Association
of Professional Surveyors
607 W. Due West Avenue, Suite 96
Madison, TN 37115
615-860-9311
Fax: 615-860-7177
E-mail tapsinc_@bellsouth.net
www.taps-inc.com
THE TENNESSEE SURVEYOR is published
four times a year: January, April, July and
October, by the Tennessee Association of
Professional Surveyors (TAPS). Opinions
expressed by individual authors are not
necessarily endorsed by the officers or Board
of TAPS or the editors of this publication. Articles may be reprinted with due credit given
to the author unless otherwise indicated at
the beginning or end of the article.
ADDRESS CHANGES AND
GENERAL BUSINESS
All notification for editorial matters, changes
of address, membership inquiries and general TAPS business correspondence should be
directed to Lori Medley, Executive Secretary,
at the above address.
CONTRIBUTIONS OF MATERIAL
The Tennessee Surveyor welcomes contributions of articles and comments for publication. The editors would appreciate submittals to be typewritten, double spaced, and
preferably only seven paragraphs long (each
paragraph should have a maximum of five or
six sentences). The editors of The Tennessee
Surveyor reserve the right to edit (after author
notification) each article.
Conference Highlights............................................................................................................................................... 3, 5
New Members..................................................................................................................................................................5
NSPS: It Pays To Belong............................................................................................................................................... 11
20 State Societies Sign MOUs for NSPS 100% Membership Effort.............................................................. 13
Advertisers
Berntsen..............................................................................................................................................................................6
Crow Friedman Group................................................................................................................................................ 12
Earl Dudley, Inc............................................................................................................................................................... 14
Hayes Instrument Co.................................................................................................................................................... 15
Niles Surveying Co., Inc..................................................................................................................................................6
Precision Products........................................................................................................................................... 7, 8, 9, 10
Trimble................................................................................................................................................................................4
Business Members
Carlson Software................................................................................................................................... 704-824-7175
Champion Instruments........................................................................................................................ 678-356-2208
Crow Friedman Group Nashville...................................................................................................... 800-595-6526
Deaton’s Geo-Tronics Service........................................................................................................... 931-703-8899
Earl Dudley Associates......................................................................................................................... 615-885-1274
Forestry Suppliers................................................................................................................................. 601-354-3565
GRW Aerial Surveys............................................................................................................................. 502-489-8484
Hayes Instrument Co., Inc................................................................................................................... 931-684-0555
Land Design Insurance Group/Klein Agency............................................................................... 877-316-4922
Leica GeoSystems.................................................................................................................................. 770-326-9500
Photo Science......................................................................................................................................... 859-277-8700
Precision Products................................................................................................................................. 502-572-7747
Smart Vent............................................................................................................................................... 877-441-8368
Trimble..................................................................................................................................................... 720-587-4967
Tuck Engineering................................................................................................................................... 276-523-4669
The Underground Detective............................................................................................................ 513-681-1227
DEADLINES
Advertising and article copy deadlines are
December 15, March 15, June 15 and September 15.
ADVERTISING POLICY
Ads should be camera-ready, black and white
POSITIVE PRINT required—ad enclosed in a
boxed line with line included in dimensions.
1/4 page - 5” x 3 1/2” - $80 per issue
2013 Executive Committee
President
President-Elect
VP/Conference Chair 2013
Secretary/Treasurer
Past President
Benny Moorman - Knoxville
Jimmy Cleveland - Brighton
Andrew Stokes - Huntingdon
Mario Forte - Chattanooga
Brennon Garrett - Gatlinburg
bmoorman@benchmark-assoc.com
tnsurveyor@bigriver.net
andrew@stokessurveying.com
bpsincorp@aol.com
thelandsurveyors@gmail.com
1/2 page - 5” x 7 1/2” - $120 per issue
Full page - 11” x 7 1/2” $200 per issue
Business Card - $25 per issue
The Tennessee Association of Professional Surveyors (TAPS) is dedicated to preserving the heritage of surveying;
promoting the profession in Tennessee as the forum for developing ideals that advance the social, professional and ethical
conduct of all surveyors; and provide opportunity for educational, scientific, and technological advancement.
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Highlights of TAPS
45th Annual Conference
Jeff Miller, TAPS Education Committee
Chair, recognizes Cody Dellinger as the
recipient of the Crouch-Fulton TAPS
Scholarship at ETSU.
Paul Weatherford receives the
Newsletter Article of the Year Award.
Lindsey Sams receives the Ernest Davis
Shining Star Award from President Benny
Moorman.
Charter Members
Tennessee Board of Examiners for Land Surveyors David Cagle (West),
Donna Moulder (Executive Director), Tim Lingerfelt (East), Sue Braly
(Public) and Galyon Northcutt (Middle)
Eugene Olmstead, Dan Saxon, Eugene Lackey and John
Dudley (Earl Dudley Associates – Business Charter Member)
Eugene Olmstead, Freddie Alley, Eugene Lackey and 41-year
member Earl Smith
35+ Year Members: Paul Jones, Sr., Max Northcutt, Jim Boyer, Rodney
Foy, Jim Webb, and Joe Connelly (not pictured David Mathews)
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
March 20-22, 2014
TAPS 46th Annual Conference & Exhibition
3
What a great turnout for TAPS 45th
Annual Conference & Exhibition!
336
TAPS had seminar attendees. Not included
in this number were
LS exam review workshop
attendees, CST exam takers,
exhibit
representatives, for a total of
. We also had rabbit that could do card tricks. 3
1
23
33
395
It was so good to see that many of the surveyors
brought their spouses and children.
Congratulations to Deon Byrd on winning a brand
new ATV, and Joe Pence who took home the .45
Henry Rifle. Gary Hamm won the TV,
Alfred Bartlett won the iPad, and Linc
Northcutt won the Garmin GPS. The
LSPAC raised approximately $6,700. Jay Caughman won the level and donated
it back to the Tennessee Surveying Education
Foundation to be won by a lucky attendee at TAPS
2014 conference. Thanks to Precision Products!
Thanks To All Our Exhibitors
Crow Friedman Group for sponsoring the Thursday evening reception
Earl Dudley Associates
Hayes Instrument Company
Smart Vent
Carlson Software
TAPS Land Surveyors PAC
East Tennessee State University
UT-Martin
Deaton’s Geo-Tronics Service
Tuck Mapping Solutions
Leica Geosystems
Precision Products
GRW Aerial Surveys
Champion Instruments
Forestry Suppliers
The Underground Detective
Plans & More
National Society of Professional Surveyors
Land Design Insurance Group
Guests
19 golfers had nice weather on Saturday afternoon.
NSPS Executive Committee
Robert Dahn, President
Lamar Evers, President-Elect
Pat Smith, Vice President
John Fenn, Secretary/Treasurer
Curt Sumner, NSPS Executive Director
Joe Baird, NSPS Area 3 Director Don Pedigo, Kentucky President and wife, Cathy
Sharon Herman, Missouri President and husband, Joe
Joel Johnson, North Carolina President
The golf tournament also benefits the Tennessee
Surveying Education Foundation. Plans are in
the making for an event at the shooting range
as part of next year’s conference. 4 Team Scrabble Golf Winners were Steve
Sanders, Bennie Wheeler, Scott
Goan and Larry New. Congratulations!
Chapter Donations Toward ATV
Middle East $1000, Middle $500, South Middle $250,Northeast $250,
West $250, Northwest $250, Southeast $250
Welcome New Members
Christopher LewisDalton, GA
Michael MartinAsheville, NC
James WatkinsSylva, NC
Jeff ArwoodMaryville, TN
Jim McNeil
Lenoir City, TN
Richard Lemay, Jr.Knoxville, TN
Scott StanleyKnoxville, TN
Jack WhitsonNashville, TN
Michael MooreMcMinnville, TN
Keith Elder
Chattanooga, TN
TAPS gave recognition to all attendees who were
TAPS members by providing them with a ribbon on
their name badge to show the number of consistent
years they have been members of TAPS. 5
Allen
Crawford,
TAPS NSPS
Governor,
receives
Certificate of
Appreciation
from NSPS
President
Dahl for
TAPS
support in
agreeing to
enter into a
Memorandum of Understanding with NSPS to establish
the 100% joint state/national membership program that
will unify surveying into a more effective advocate for the
interests of surveyors and the public they serve.
Tennessee Association
of Professional
Surveyors is
now on Facebook!
Surveyors Historical Society 2013
Rendezvous Brochure
http://www.surveyorsrendezvous.org/
2013 Membership Directory
Corrections
Bobby Claunch
252 Tn. Hwy. 140 E
Puryear, TN 38251
If your financial goals are
going to work, they must:
Be specific
Be measureable
Have a time limit
Be in writing
Be yours
A man only learns in two ways—one by reading and the
other by association with smarter people.
–will rogers
–Dave Ramsey, www.daveramsey.com
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11
20 State Societies Sign MOUs for
NSPS 100% Membership Effort
W
e’re less than six months into NSPS’s
campaign to dramatically increase its
membership, and 20 state surveying societies
have signed Memorandums of Understanding
(MOU) to have 100% of their members join the
national surveying society.
“This number far exceeds our best estimates
of where we thought we’d be by spring 2013,”
said NSPS executive director Curt Sumner.
“With full implementation of the MOUs already
signed, we automatically go from under 3,000
members to well over 10,000 members, with
many more coming. Along with having recently
engaged the well-respected government affairs
consultant, John M. Palatiello & Associates, these
numbers put clout behind our legislative affairs
program.
“These are exciting times for NSPS and the
surveyors across the country,” Sumner continued. “Only through the continued support and
direct input from the members and administration of the state societies will NSPS be able to
present to the public, and prospective surveyors of the future, the true story of the benefits
provided by surveying professionals.”
Executives from a few of the 20 states
described their decision process and what they
now expect to see from NSPS.
Maine
Members of the Maine Society of Land
Surveyors (MSLS) had the simplest decision of
any state in the union to make when they were
asked last year whether they would be a part
of NSPS’s 100% membership program. “We
already are!” they replied.
“When we heard this was being proposed
and likely to be offered by NSPS, our reaction
was ‘Well, it looks like the rest of the country is
about to join MSLS,’ ” recalled MSLS executive
director Bruce Bourgoine.
“MSLS asked this same question of its members over ten years ago and we acted back
then to have 100 percent of our membership
join NSPS. Back then it was costing each of our
members an additional $100 a year. Since we
treat this membership as a pass through [cost to
MSLS members] this action by NSPS [in 2012]
ends up saving each of our members $60 a year.
Talk about easy decisions!”
“We’ve always felt that surveyors nationwide
need to have a strong national voice, so for us
this action is exciting. We’re glad to see all the
other states seeing it the same way we’ve seen it
for the past decade,” Bourgoine added. “With
a nationwide membership of less than 3,000
[NSPS membership prior to implementation
of the 100% program], our voice can easily be
dismissed when we chime in on a national issue.
However, as we begin to approach 25,000
members that will no longer be possible. We
will be a force to be reckoned with.”
The nearly 300 members of MSLS look to
NSPS to provide the strong national voice as
well as programs designed to attract the next
generation to the surveying profession, such as
scholarships, Trig Star and other activities.
Tennessee
Volunteers, the motto and image Tennesseans like to espouse, also serves as one reason
the Tennessee Association of Professional
Surveyors (TAPS) rallied its membership to
become the first state to officially join the 100%
membership program.
“Tennessee volunteers like to be first when
called to duty,” explained Bennie Moorman,
TAPS president and owner of a nine-person
surveying company. “When the Texans called
for a certain amount of volunteers to help them
defend the Alamo, Tennessee sent ten times the
number of troops that were requested.”
In a more fundamental way, TAPS always
tries to provide its more than 500 members
with extra benefits. Moorman says strong
representation at the national level is essential.
Two issues that come to immediate attention,
Moorman explained, are keeping surveyors
from outside the U.S. from working within U.S.
borders. Moorman said he would also like
NSPS to present a strong voice in preventing
the Federal Aviation Administration from prohibiting drones to be used commercially in the
U.S. “Drones will soon become an important tool in the surveyor’s toolbox, and we
think the NSPS should be the driving force
in ensuring that the FAA doesn’t take this
tool away from us.”
Moorman also hopes the revitalized NSPS
will help surveyors to become more savvy
businessmen. “We are notorious for being
bad businessmen,” he opined. He gave one
example of a surveyor he knows in Tennessee
who invested $40,000 in a robotic total station
to make him more efficient. He could now do
a job in 70% of the time. So what did this sur-
veyor do with his increased productivity? Cut
his fees. “That’s bad business,” Moorman said.
New Jersey & Maryland
Mark Husik of the independent management company Mark Husik and Associates manages both the Maryland and New Jersey surveying societies, with some 700 and 500 members
respectively. For these two state societies,
the decision by both boards to join the 100%
effort was almost unanimous. Husik, executive
director for both state societies, indicated that
both states intend to keep a close watch on how
NSPS improves with now having the backing
of far greater numbers of surveyors and their
respective state societies.
“I think both of our boards would like to
see a focused leadership. They’d also like to
see an evaluation of all the programs that NSPS
has been operating for a number of years.
NSPS needs to see which programs need to
be retained, improved, or dropped entirely.
We are not sure if all the programs operated
by NSPS are effective in, for example, bringing
young people into our profession. We cannot afford to operate programs that are not
effective.”
Husik opined that NSPS should elevate the
profile of certification programs such as the
ones for hydrographic surveying and CST, stating, “On a whole we think NSPS is not charging
enough for these programs. Charging only a
few hundred dollars for professional certification is not nearly enough.”
Both Maryland and New Jersey boards want
NSPS to initiate a concerted national effort
to broadcast the role of surveyors in modern
society. “Legislators don’t have a clue as to what
surveyors do. If they don’t, how is the average citizen supposed to know? It’s almost like
surveying is a secret profession. Ask the guy on
the street what a surveyor does and they reply:
‘He’s the guy who stands by the side of the road
and looks through that piece of equipment.’ ”
Husik emphasized that both the Maryland
and New Jersey society state boards are not
giving NSPS an open-ended time frame to show
progress. “We expect to see change fairly rapidly. The best and the brightest should be able
to come up with some ideas to let people know
what we do. My members want to have more
input to the national organization. They want
change.” l
Reprinted from Dual Frequency, May 2013
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Tennessee Association of
Professional Surveyors
607 W. Due West Avenue, Suite 96
Madison, TN 37115-4420
615-860-9311
Fax: 615-860-7177
E-mail: tapsinc_@bellsouth.net
www.taps-inc.com
Sustaining Member – National Society of Professional Surveyors
www.nspsmo.org
Affiliate – American Congress on Surveying and Mapping
www.acsm.net
Lifetime Member – Surveyors Historical Society
www.surveyorshistoricalsociety.com
Tennessee Board of Examiners for Land Surveyors
www.state.tn/us.commerce/boards/surveyors
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Highlights
45th Annual
Conference & Exhibition
PRSRT FIRST CLASS
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