February 23, 2009 -- MAYSVILLE, Ky., U.S.A. ― Those attending Carlson Software’s “Break New Ground” User Conference in Lexington, Ky., April 5 through 7, will learn more about how ESRI and Carlson are working together to advance surveyors’ capabilities.

Carlson recently announced that Brent Jones, PE, PLS, the Survey, Cadastre, and Engineering Industry Manager for ESRI, will be the keynote speaker at their 2nd annual conference designed specifically for surveyors, civil engineers, mining engineers, construction engineers, partner manufacturers, and dealers.

ESRI designs and develops the world's leading geographic information system (GIS) technology. Utilizing his more than 15 years experience overseeing the worldwide strategic industry planning, business development, and marketing activities for ESRI, Jones will address “Why GIS Needs Surveyors.”

“There are opportunities for surveyors in the GIS market leveraging their surveying investments and capabilities,” said Jones. Jones will also give his predictions on what the future holds in the GIS field and how surveyors can position themselves to take advantage of these rapidly changing technologies . . . and why GIS needs surveyors.”

“The GIS market is re-thinking surveying, and surveyors need to re-think GIS,” said Bruce Carlson, president and founder of Carlson Software. “There is a movement for greater accuracy in GIS, which should take the business in the direction of RTK GPS and total stations, or straight into the realm of the surveying professional.”

Learning tracks at this two-and-a-half-day event will cover the same land development aspects of Carlson Software: data collection, land surveying, civil engineering, mining and construction and machine control. Classes include the opportunity to earn Continuing Education Units (CEUs) and will be offered by the accredited staff of Carlson College® as well as from the developers of the software. In addition, hands-on labs will be held and many of the classes will be split into beginner and advanced.

The goal of the 2009 event is to help users “break new ground” and learn how to optimize the power of Carlson’s versatile software. Carlson notes that gaining this ability is more important than ever in that working with Carlson software solutions enables users to do more in less time resulting in savings for the companies or their clients.

Those who currently use Carlson Software products — including C&G and Simplicity — plan to use them in the future, or who just want to learn more about how Carlson can work for them should attend the Carlson “Break New Ground” User Conference. In addition to attending classes, attendees will be able to network and share solutions and best practices with both longtime and new Carlson users from around the world.

For more information about the 2nd Annual Carlson User Conference, or to register for the event, visit www.carlsonsw.com/conference or call 800-989-5028. Early bird registration is $695 until March 6 and $795 after that. Group discounts are available.

About Carlson Software
Carlson Software, an independent company founded in 1983, develops software solutions to bring the land development professional from concept to completion. The 25-year-old company is well known for its comprehensive civil, surveying, machine control and positioning, plus mining software solutions. Its free technical support and dedication to customer service is unique in the industry. Carlson Software is headquartered in Maysville, Ky., with branch offices in Boston, Atlanta, and Queensland, Australia.