Surety - Version Pro -Land and Asset Management Software
Surety® Pro takes all of the features and mapping capabilities of Surety® and adds a powerful and customizable data management system to become a complete mapping solution perfect for large and small businesses. One of the core values of this product is the ability to leverage mapping and geospatial data to how you need it to be, giving you the ultimate mapping experience. Save your boundaries and data forms in Surety® Pro then manage these by client, farm, and/or field. Aggregate all clients` saved form boundaries into a single map to informatively schedule jobs, determine optimal routes for field applications/visits, create and produce comparative sale maps.
Surety® Pro enables you to easily create and save polygons, line, and point boundaries to the map. Polygon, line and point shape files can be imported into Surety® Pro from other programs in order to be stored, displayed, and accessed geospatially on the map from anywhere with an internet connection.
One company`s needs can be immensely different than the next which makes customization so integral for software to be beneficial for your business. With Surety® Pro’s versatile Form Designer as well as the forms management system, you can create company specific form layouts to store all the information that would be necessary to fulfill your and your clients` needs. All of this customization provides the flexibility to meet all your business objectives.
Locating Property
Locating an AOI [Area of Interest] can be achieved via a means of six methods or a combination thereof, thus of which includes four [4] with the use of your mouse and five [5] using one of our advanced search methods. It is also advantageous to use the Land Reference Resource Intelligence layers, such as roads or quarter sections in combination of using the search mediums.
General Area Searches
In some cases, you may only have directions to a piece of property. You can apply that information along with using the points of reference or landmark layers that were mentioned above i.e. roads that of which will guide your navigation to your destination. Searching using your mouse for general area searches of which you can use at any map extent. The four ways to zoom with your mouse are named accordingly: Point and Click, Scroll Wheel, Controlled Zoom and a Miles Zoom. Sometimes, you may even want to use a mouse zoom for more of a specific view of the land too.
Farm land in particular will not neccessarily be accompanied with a physical address, often times it is a supplied with a description . Being able to aid in these unique searches is really favorable to arrive swiftly at the correct tract. Namely a "Legal" or legal description search is really designed for rural property searches. This is followed by a Township search and then there is Latitude and Longitude.
Naturally, an Address search, including a physical address search that will also accept entries for parishes and districts in lieu of counties and townships. Lastly, a specialty search for Texas that is called Texas Blocks.
Deeds and/or legal descriptions are a written form of property boundaries and are legal instruments. There are several types used. Lots is a type that would be used for land within city limits, a Blanket or Global deed would be a single entry of a document page(s) that would express all of the land owned and their boundaries for a single entity or owner.
Metes and Bounds
Then there is a more particular deed that is called Metes and Bounds that originates from England. Metes and bounds is a singular type, that is often used for describing the property borders for rural property. Also exclusive to this type is a selective native style of writing and it is in such a manner that can be complex. They will be delineated in feet, rods, furlongs, curves, concave curves just to name a few measurement examples.
Deed Studio for Surety® Pro
This is where the Deed Studio tool comes in to assist. Deed Studio is a add-on tool for Surety® Pro that aids in mapping metes and bounds legal descriptions commonly found in property deeds. The Deed Studio takes the language within these descriptions and converts it into a mapped boundary with nominal effort on your part. Visit our Deed Studio support site to learn more about the Deed Studio features.
Having the appropriate resources to map out property borders is great for not only verifying borders, but also for documentational purposes.
The Dossier Studio is a map packet creation tool included with all Surety® Pro subscriptions.
Main Features of the Dossier Studio:
- Use custom "Paradigms" to instantly send multiple map types to the packet interface.
- Place symbols and use the illustration tools to annotate your map pages within the dossier.
- Add maps or saved forms from multiple clients
- Batch and download Satloc jobfiles or send batched jobs wirelessly to Satloc`s HQ that are to be flown for Aerial applicators.
- Include photos, upload your own svg for your own illustrations, or use some that are provided for you.
- Save your dossiers and you can export your dossier to your local machine.
Use the Dossier Studio to quickly create a packet of maps to impress at your next presentation.
The ability to draw boundaries is the cornerstone to any great mapping program. That’s why we’ve meticulously developed a multitude of Drawing Tools to handle any unique mapping situations that may arise. Below you will find a brief description of those Drawing Tools.
AgriData, Inc.’s Surety® and Surety® Pro Online Mapping Software incorporates the Farm Service Agency’s field boundary data onto our maps. This data contains the official reported field border geometries that can be overlaid on the map as well as acreage values for each border. These boundaries can be quickly selected or used to create a modified border off of the original in order to produce print-ready maps and forms complete with an eye-catching highlighted border and acreage display.
CLU Background
The FSA field boundaries had historically been documented and referenced only on "paper maps". With the advancement of technology and digital mapping, the paper maps have been replaced by digital records. The commonly known "FSA Map" contains this digital border data overlaying aerial imagery of that particular area.
The border itself in either one of our products that we offer typically represents a producer`s field and can be assigned a farm/field id. The producer can use this border data when readying for the upcoming crop season in loans, multi-peril insurance, hail insurance, USDA communication, and communication between farm laborers and vendors. These borders and their pertaining information are also used across multiple agencies however; the FSA is considered the ultimate responsible party and maintains all CLU records. Current CLU data can be acquired from the local FSA office by either being the property owner or the operator can obtain the files if requested. These shape files are georeferenced border data that are able to be viewed in certain GIS programs such as Surety® Pro.
While CLU boundaries, the smallest unit of contiguous land, are measured in acres and can represent different types of land classifications, the CLU fields in either Surety® or Surety® Pro can represent cropland, rangeland, bodies of water, timber, CRP, buildings.
CLU Restrictions
Section 1619 of the 2008 Farm Bill has since deemed the CLU data, including the boundaries and acreages, private data and prohibited the use of any newer CLU information without the land owner`s consent. In many situations across the country, these 2008 borders remain accurate. In the cases that they no longer correctly represent a field boundary, Surety and Surety Pro offer tools that enable modification of existing boundaries or the creation of new ones. These tools provide a means to change the boundaries by moving border segments, merging 2 or more boundaries together, or splitting the boundary into separate parts. There are a few parts of the country that did not have CLU data released when the Farm Bill of 2008 was passed. In these cases, the borders must be created manually with the drawing tools or imported into Surety Pro from another source.
CLU DatasetThe FSA CLU information is used as a data layer and can be enabled or disabled from view on the map (it is enabled by default). This allows for a custom drawn boundary to be displayed with or without the CLU data enabled. This data layer (FSA Borders) in either Surety or Surety Pro can be found in the layers list as “FSA Fields (5/21/2008)”.
All Surety® and Surety® Pro subscribers have access to Hail Probability information. The Hail Layer allows you to see hail probability on the map interface and the Hail History Map form will give hail probability history for an area of interest.
Hail Probability Mapping
Using the Hail Layer, you can select and view hail history on any area in the contiguous 48 states by a selected 24 hour (12 a.m. to 11:59 p.m.) date range. Data is available back to January 1, 2017.
Hail Report
The Hail Report link, will create a report based on the current map extent and selected hail date.
Hail History Map - Annual
The Hail History Map creates a report of all hail activity for a given area of interest based on the year selected. If the current year is selected the map will reflect all activity up to the current date.
Hail Probability Alerts
Surety® Pro accounts can setup automatic hail probability alert emails for their organizations subscribers when a level of hail probability has affected their fields. You can set company-wide or location-based alerts.
Orthophoto or Raster Imagery
Acquired during the summer, the latest one [1] meter Orthophoto, or as it is mostly commonly called "raster imagery" or imagery for short, will serve as your visual backdrop by default for the U.S. The frequency of the intervals for the imagery is typically on a two [2] year cycle for many but not all states. Larger states, namely Texas, may come into a longer span of frequency for new imagery.
Historical datasets are made available for your use for that layer by choosing the desired, available year in a drop down.
The earlier, older dataset`s resolutions could be at a lower than one [1] meter. Regardless, it makes for an excellent resource if you are looking for anomalies that may be occurring or have the potential to occur. You may also want to use it as another reference for any indication of possible activity if you are managing land from afar.
There is also a Photo Date layer. This layer will label the date and year on the mapping interface. Mostly, when you are working on or near interstate boundaries [when you have land from two states in view on the mapping interface] the imagery can appear different and you may want or need to be able to enable the Photo Date layer.
Hillshading
The Hillshade is an adjustment layer to the NAIP imagery. It provides a visualization of the elevation changes by adding a shadowing effect.
Canadian Air Photo Mapping Imagery
For the two Canadian provinces, Manitoba and Saskatchewan, that we serve, the imagery will auto switch to "Air Photo". However, the imagery here is for a span of years such as 2008 - 2010. Otherwise the behavior, as far as having the latest imagery or being able to disable the imagery layer is the same as the U.S. land imagery.
Mapping Symbology
Nicely constructed, you are able to manually place a symbol and/or a label to essentially tag something on the map.
As one of the mainstays of the Surety® and Surety® Pro mapping systems, the soils maps are an excellent resource for all trades that require the value determination of the value of a particular piece of tillable land, gathering soil information for managing cropland/rangeland, or even researching potential building site subsoil features. Soil Maps provide up-to-date data for the Continental U.S.. Generally, the soils data is updated in late fall of every year. The Surety and Surety Pro Soil Maps are unique in that they allow for the inclusion of many different types of data all on one map. Access the CSR and CSR2 for Iowa, Bulletin 811 for Illinois, NCCPI for the continental US, Soil Features and classifications, and the Productivity Index for North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota. In addition to the most recent soil data, archived soil data is also available on every soil map generated within the system.
When you look at the information below you will find that the algorithms used to measure the probability of soil performance can be different from one state to another. The NCCPI, which is mentioned below, is an indicator that we could see that adopted and applied throughout the U.S. one day.
Iowa CSR/CSR2The Iowa Corn Suitability Rating (CSR) originally developed in 1971 is an index procedure to rate each different kind of soil for its potential ability to produce corn. The CSR Rating is intended to measure one soil’s yield potential against another over time. All soils start at 100 and points are deducted for land conditions such as slope, water and climate.
In addition to the CSR/CSR2 values, Iowa soil maps can also display specific potential yield value ratings from the Iowa Soil Properties and Interpretations Database (ISPAID). The yield data is available for the following crops: Corn, Soybeans, Alfalfa, Ky. Blue Grass, and Tall Grasses.
Illinois Bulletin 811The Bulletin 811 was developed by the University of Illinois to provide crop yields and productivity indices under an optimum level of management. Optimum management criterion was determineby the yields achieved by the top 16% of farmers. The optimum productivity index (PI) can be used to determine the prime agricultural class of any soil type in the state. The rating system determines an A, B, and C class of soil.
Productivity ratings of 133-147 represent Class A, 117-132 represent Class B, and ratings of 100-116 represent class C. Any soil types with a rating between 47-99 are placed in the Other Agricultural Land Class and are not considered prime agricultural land. Bulletin 811 data initially was collected and presented in the year 2000 but has been revised and updated in 2012.
Productivity Index (PI)The PI is exclusively available in North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota. The NRCS productivity index (PI) model is a derived measure of soil productivity that gives a productivity value to the soil on a 0(worst)-100(best) rating scale. The Productivity Index model assumes that crop yield is a function of root development, which in turn is controlled by the soil environment.
There are 5 assumptions made when the soils are given a rating. (Soil Survey Staff)
- Adequate management
- Natural weather conditions (no irrigation)
- Artificial drainage where required
- No frequent flooding on lower lying soils
- No land leveling or terracing.
The advantage of a Productivity index is while Crop Yield averages will increase over time, index ratings will remain consistent in relation to one another. It is worth mentioning that these PI ratings are not interchangeable between ND, SD, and MN state lines due to the fact the each values takes into account its surrounding area of values.
Nebraska Soil Rating for Plant Growth (SRPG)Previously, soils maps in Nebraska used the SRPG Rating, which was developed by USDA-NRCS staff members to rate soils suitability for plant growth at the county level. SRPG is based on twenty-five soil properties and landscape features. The system rates the major soil characteristics (physical, chemical, and biological) that are important for crop growth. SRPG is no longer supported or being updated by the Nebraska NRCS. It is recommended to use the NCCPI rating.
National Commodity Crop Productivity Index (NCCPI)The National Commodity Crop Productivity Index is a national soil productivity model that is intended to be applied across state lines. The different factors that determine the NCCPI rating consist of the soil, landscape, and climate. This rating system is currently only applied to non-irrigated/ dryland agriculture. The NRCS stresses that this is not intended to replace any current state-specific productivity rating system. However, the NE NRCS has advised to use the NCCPI in place of the outdated NE SRPG.
Irrigated and Non-Irrigated Class and SubclassLand capability classification is a system of grouping soils primarily on the basis of their capability to produce common cultivated crops and pasture plants without deteriorating over a long period of time. This system is broken down into 3 levels; Capability Class, Subclass, and Unit. Surety® Soil maps display the capability class and the subclass.
Capability Class is designated by a progressive numbering system. The higher the number the greater the limitations are and the narrower the choices for particular use.
- Classes 1-4 (I – IV) offer the least amount of limitations and are better suited for producing crops.
- Classes 5-8 (V-VIII) typically contain severe limitations and are generally designated for pasture, range land, or wildlife habitat.
- Classes 9-12 (IX-XII) While the NRCS only reports up to 8 classes, there are actually 12 classes in total. Classes 9-12 are mostly comprised of Granite and such and are mostly useful information to engineers.
Capability Subclass are soil groups within each class that define that soils main limitation. These subgroups are defined by the addition of a small letter (e, w, s, or c) to the class numeral.
- “e” indicates the main hazard is the risk of erosion unless plant cover is maintained.
- “w” indicates the hazard is water in or on the soil (potentially corrected by artificial drainage)
- “s” indicates the main limitation is shallow, drought, or stony soil.
- “c” indicates the major limitation is a climate that is very cold or very dry.
Note that Class 1 soils are thought to contain few if any limitations and thus do not include a subclass.
Class 5 soils can only have “w, “s”, or “c” subclass because class 5 soils are subject to little or no erosion. Class 5 soils do have other limitations that restrict their use to pasture, rangeland forestland, or wildlife habitat.
Crop Yield RatingsCrop yield ratings from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provide a relative ranking of soils based on their potential for intensive crop production. An index can be used to rate the potential yield of one soil against that of another over a period of time. Surety`s® Soils Map allows you the option to customize, which crop types you wish to include in your reports.
Note that with the rapid advancement of farming technology, the NRCS has determined that it is no longer possible to maintain Crop Yield values at a national level for each soil type and thus will be removing them from the database over time. However, there are certain state databases that will still include this data.
Additional Soil FeaturesSoil Features contain properties and other information about the soils that are not exclusive to the productivity of the soil.
This information includes:
- Water Table Depth
- Restrictive Layer
- Septic Limits
- Foundation Limits
- Drainage Class
- Range Production
Parcel data maps, also referred to as tax and property maps, are digital parcel boundaries that originate from deeds and surveys. These maps can contain attributes or characteristics of a piece of property such as acres, buildings, ownership, the actual property lines themselves and what the land use is classified as.
The Parcel Data add-on provides access to Parcel boundaries, acres, ownership names*, and other information right within the Surety® and Surety® Pro interface. The convenience of having this information readily on hand to pair with all of the other great services within the Surety® Mapping software will provide you with even more acuity in servicing your clients` needs as well as your own interests. As an owner, resources such as this can also be applied to building up your own dossier for your records.
Parcel ID Search: Any account that has added the Parcel Data layer can search for Parcel IDs within the map search functions.
Parcel Report TemplatesParcel Report - Used for mapping a single parcel. It integrates all of the available parcel data in an easy to read format with a large map and provides some simple value calculations.
Parcel Data Map - Used for mapping multiple parcel boundaries. All selected parcel boundaries are listed in a table and include a user-selected number of parcel attribute columns.
Customizable Parcel Templates - Contact the AgriData, Inc. Support Team to request a custom parcel report layout that is available for your specific company account.
Parcel Data is an available add-on feature for both Surety®and Surety® Pro.
Parcel Data Search Tool - Surety® Pro OnlyBy adding Parcel Data to Surety Pro you also gain access to the Parcel Search function. You can query by parcel id or ownership name and then zoom to, save, or access Parcel information quickly and easily.