SSMC participates in Build Putt Give event

This year SSMC participated in the 6th annual Build Putt Give event at the University of North Florida, hosted by Peters and Yaffee, Inc. This competition challenges industry professionals to build a complete miniature golf course out of non-perishable food items. Donations benefit Feeding Northeast Florida, and this year’s event received a total of 12,872 pounds of donated food. That amounts to 10,726 meals! It’s not all about the food, however. Thanks to generous sponsors, Build Putt Give was able to make a $1,000 donation to the University of North Florida and another $1,000 to the Kate Amato Foundation.

SSMC was represented by a team of four consisting of Mike Brown, Ian O’Gorman, Justin Backs, and Brooks Davis. The hole was designed and built by Brooks and Justin, with final assembly by Mike and Ian at the event. In attendance were Rob Gardner and Joe Gore from the SSMC Jacksonville office. Out of the 20 companies that built putt-putt holes, SSMC’s hole won the award for Most Industry Related, and our golfers received 1st (Justin), 2nd (Brooks), and 3rd place (Ian) out of 80 golfers for the Master Putter Award. We plan to return next year with even more food to donate and to defend our Master Putter titles!

Multi-tasking in Jacksonville, FL with a UAV and an RC survey catamaran

SSMC is multi-tasking in Jacksonville, FL using a BathyCat RC ASV survey catamaran boat by Bathylogger to accurately map pond contours. At the same time, a UAV with terrestrial LiDAR scanning capability collects control photos with a mounted 360° camera, all while being tied to ground control.

Thank you to SSMC employees Mike Brown, Paul Jones, Patrick McCarthy, and Brooks Davis, CST for creating the video.

SSMC Management Announcement

Early in 2018 Southeastern Surveying and Mapping Corporation (SSMC) announced changes to its ownership structure. Previously a partnership between Gary Krick, SSMC President, and Jim Petersen, SSMC Senior Vice President, the firm was sold to its employees via stock ownership and is now a 100% employee-owned company.

Following 22+ years of dedicated leadership, Gary will be retiring from his role and moving to an advisory capacity on the SSMC Board of Directors. After succeeding Roger Lonsway, the company's founder, Gary and Jim worked tirelessly to move the company forward and help it remain competitive in the changing business landscape. Their vision and commitment grew SSMC from a single office in Orlando into the largest surveying firm in Florida, with nine offices and ever-expanding clientele. Gary and Jim were also instrumental in moving the company from a single-service surveying and mapping provider to a diversified firm providing surveying and mapping, subsurface utility engineering, and GIS services.

Gary began his career with SSMC in 1973, just one year after the company’s inception. Originally a surveying rodman, Gary moved up quickly, becoming an invaluable member of the team and helping change the future of the company. In 1996, when Roger Lonsway retired, he sold the firm to Gary and Jim, and now, SSMC moves into the next chapter of its ownership.

Acting on behalf of the employee owners are Thom Mead, Darryll DeMarsh, and Brian Garvey (30, 19, and 18 years with SSMC, respectively), who will serve as the executive leadership team. During the current transition Thom will split his time between the Chipley regional office and Orlando corporate headquarters, thereby allowing him to integrate into corporate operations while assuming director duties of the Survey division. To help with this realignment, Lee Anderson and Tony Syfrett have assumed management of the Chipley office and will start assuming more of Thom’s project management and leadership responsibilities.

Given the new company structure, SSMC will be performing a detailed review to evaluate current workflow processes and adjust organizational responsibilities, with the ultimate goal of modernizing how we do business. However, our company’s objective remains the same now as it was in 1972: To meet our clients’ needs on time and within budget while maintaining our commitment to delivering outstanding quality service.