Global Positioning Systems (GPS)
NavCert Launches a New Certification Mark for GPS Systems used for Farmland Areas Measurements of EU Subsidies
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17/10/2007.
Agricultural subsidies paid by the European Union add up to approx. 40 billion every year. How much of this amount is paid to the individual farmer depends on the size of the area cultivated, the crops and the respect of cross compliance. The EU recommends the approval of GPS surveying equipment for measuring areas of farmland in the future. Braunschweig-based NavCert GmbH, a subsidiary of TUV SUD and OECON, designed a voluntary certification mark for this type of equipment.
"To date, farmland area has been measured by interpreting satellite images and aerial photographs and physical surveying", explains Martin Grzebellus, Managing Director of NavCert GmbH. In a first step, the farmers declare the area of the land cultivated. This information is then verified on a case-by-case basis by the individual Member States - in Germany, this is the task of the individual German Lander - and the EU, which selects a sample for on-the-spot checks. "As the areas cultivated are very large, even minor non-conformities may result in high repayments," says Grzebellus
In its Regulation 972/2007/EC, the European Union generally approved various approaches to farmland area calculation, provided certain tolerances are not exceeded and the measurement methods are set forth in appropriate EU standards. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission further recommends the use of the GPS satellite navigation system for farmland measurement. "On the basis of the criteria specified by JRC experts, at NavCert we have developed a test plan and a voluntary certification mark which manufacturers can use to qualify their GPS surveying equipment for this particular application", explains Grzebellus. "As farmland surveying is extremely important, organizations providing certification must apply for accreditation. In the trial phase, NavCert succeeded in being the first organization which qualified for this type of accreditation." According to Grzebellus, such a certificate ensures that farmland area measurements will actually be approved, provided operating of the instruments is undertaken correctly. Simon Kay, project manager from JRC, stated that "we chose to trial the validation of our certification process for area measurement with NavCert as we found in addition to the depth understanding of the requirements of a certification process, a profound knowledge of the challenges in agriculture posed by using GPS and GNSS in general."
In 2006, TUV SUD AG, one of the top players on the technical services market, and OECON GmbH, a leading system architect for mobile positioning and communication technology, established NavCert GmbH, thus strengthening their positions on the navigation services market. Braunschweig-based NavCert certifies navigation and control systems. In the joint venture, the two partners have pooled their experience and know-how in product certification and in the design and development of navigation systems. TUV SUD has a 60 per cent and OECON a 40 per cent holding in NavCert.
Further information about the new quality label for GPS surveying equipment used to calculate farmland areas is available directly from
Martin Grzebellus
NavCert GmbH
Hermann-Blenk-Strabe 22
38108 Braunschweig
Tel. +49 (0)531 / 3547949-9
or at www.navcert.de
Editor: Dr Thomas Oberst
