Case Study: City of Moncton achieves automated, low‑overhead tree‑maintenance mapping with Trimble Catalyst GNSS Positioning Service

How a Canadian city automated its data acquisition to improve city- wide tree maintenance

The City of Moncton’s Parks Department faced an inefficient, analog process for locating hazardous low‑hanging tree branches—staff were driving, stopping and recording addresses by hand—while needing to keep overhead costs low and meet clearance standards (15 ft over streets, 8 ft over sidewalks). The department sought an automated, user‑friendly method to accurately identify and prioritize clearance issues across the municipality.

Working with distributor Cansel and Trimble Catalyst, Moncton deployed a low‑overhead mobile system: a small lidar unit, a Trimble Catalyst DA1 antenna and a Samsung tablet running a custom app. The portable, suction‑mounted system captures sub‑meter GNSS positions and clearance data, exports CSV files into Esri ArcGIS for risk filtering, and lets non‑specialized employees collect data efficiently. The result is faster, cheaper data collection, better prioritization of high‑risk sites, and improved scheduling and safety for city maintenance.

City of Moncton

Dan Hicks

Director of Operations of Parks Department