Re-using laser scanner data in applications for 3D topography

Once 3D information is acquired and used for their initial applications, it is likely that the original source data or its derived products can be re-used. The purpose of this paper is to show the large potential for re-using 3D geo-information. The focus is on the re-use of laser scanner data and its derived products at four major geo-organisations in The Netherlands. Reusing data is not only of interest for end-users but especially for data owners who can better justify the costs for acquisition and maintenance of the data. We analyzed the flexibility of organizations to explore what can be done with the data in their possession. We found that once a 3D data set was acquired with requirements based on initial applications, many 'new' users recognized the added value of 3D data for their own application.