Summary

USFS requested support with precision digital cartographic methods and print media. This includes updating existing public Forest Service map products with experience in Adobe Creative Cloud suite, USFS Map Standards and USDA Visual Guideline Standards, USFS Avenza, and ArcGIS to create professional cartographic products optimized for full color printing and production. 

Problem and Solution

Xentity provides support for Product Generation for the production of map products in the USFS Secondary Base Map Series. Xentity provided data and workflow preparation that:

• Support the Regional Cartographer and the COR in developing a workflow to support the product update process and product enhancements
• Support staff and program areas to assess product and data needs
• Create findings from data gathering activities to be used as requirements for production and enhancement activities as approved
• Incorporate feedback and input from agency staff to identify requirements for supply side needs
• Work with data administrators to understand schemas, needed or missing attributes, data dictionaries, storage, and quality controls to ensure authoritative data is utilized by applications and available to end users 
• Support the collection of data for using new and existing solutions and workflows. For gathering and creating new data, across a range of different agency resource and management areas, we seek to understand how data is acquired and collected.
• We also provided support in product generation including data and metadata pre-processing scripts and tools 
• Work in repeatable workflows to acquire and process data from various sources in preparation for ingestion into the Forest Service the map geospatial database
• Create new map cover, feature symbology for lithographic printing, reviewing color separations for lithographic plate creation and conversion of interpretive text to system fonts using Adobe
• Perform cartographic map edits to the overall lifecycle including Compilation, Annotation/Text Collection, Map Elements, Shaded Relief, Edit Submissions, and Data Management
• We ensure all best practices, SOPs, checklists are complete and acceptable prior to requesting acceptance review

Outcome and Benefit

Xentity provided dozens of ArcGIS/ArcPro data and map workflow experts AND also includes reachback to additional contract staff providing support for FSTopo, Secondary Base Small Scale Maps, and Thematic Maps products at GTAC by multiple staff with multiple having over 30 years experience in cartography production lifecycle, USFS Map Standards, and USDA Visual Guideline Standards (many of which supported the development of such).

All maps were updated layer by layer to the current secondary base series map specifications and color space. Also, the digital files were converted to existing USDA USFS Secondary Base Series map specifications.