GPS World, September 2018

WIRELESS TIMING MOBILE RAIL MARINE DEFENSE OEM 2018 FLEETS STATE OF THE HIGH GNSS INDUSTRY P RECISION MAPPING FINANCIAL DEFENSE MOBILE RAIL MARINE DEFENSE OEM AVIATION GAMES PRECISION MAPPING FINANCIAL DEFENSE SIMULATION OEMs DEFENSE Global OTHER Economic SECURITY FREIGHT Outlook WIRELESS TIMING INFORMATION UAV SMARTPHONES KEY TO MANAGING SURVEY AMID FITNESS COMPLEX FLEETS CHANGE HIGH P SECURITY FREIGHT WIRELESS TIMING MOBILE RAIL SURVEY FITNESS FLEETS HIGH PRECISION MAPPING T heres a saying that Time stops everything from happening at once but what if it doesnt What if we are in a world in which the U S is borrowing growth from the future by increasing debt China has slowing growth and risky finances many developing and southern European countries have combinations of economic malaise recession high and rising debt and or double digit inflation the U S is in disruptive trade negotiations and Britannia waves the rules With the widespread influence of GNSS and the many technologies with which it is now associated or integrated attention is increasingly turning to the prospects for and nature of applications where the platform is the message At the same time economic political and technological developments are leading to pressing issues in the areas of spectrum management spoofing and jamming cybersecurity privacy net neutrality spectrum competition national security export controls product liability space debris and crowding and militarization of space This environment places unprecedented demands on management attention and agility The structure of industries is being transformed Mergers and acquisitions are reminiscent of the U S consolidation of the 1960s which led to increasing market power among large corporations until economic weakness and new technologies disrupted the leaders This time the changes are taking place on a much more global scale but nevertheless are becoming large enough to influence markets and competition in location based sectors and other industries Market Intelligence Executives will need good market intelligence and foresight to keep ahead of fastdeveloping technology trends in research and development and shifting markets Despite opportunities from renewed economic growth decisions regarding capital spending and research and development face not only the usual uncertainties about economic paths interest rates and markets but also an additional extraordinary range of risks across the globe These range from military and economic warfare terrorism and hostage taking to financial excesses to appropriation of intellectual property and state subsidies by competing nations In the U S where politics is highly polarized upcoming congressional and presidential elections will certainly Slightly down Flat 17 30 GPS WORLD WWW GPSWORLD COM SEPTEMBER 2018 IRV LEVESON PRINCIPAL LEVESON CONSULTING lead to large unexpected changes U S policies could be extended or reversed depending on election outcomes in the areas of taxation regulation and levels of defense spending with implications for modernization of GPS satellites ground systems and military user equipment Population Factor The workplace will have to adjust to further slow population growth With half of baby boomers yet to retire job opportunities will continue to be above normal but so will losses of some skills The availability of scientific and engineering Describe the market for GNSS products services in your industry sector as of today The U S economy is currently strong and likely to remain so for a while However risks have been building and economic and financial cycles have not been repealed Very healthy strong growth Relatively healthy moderate growth Down significantly 30 49 3 1 Continued on page 32