Unlocking high-precision mapping in your GIS software with Reach

Accurate field data is the foundation of any successful GIS project—whether you’re mapping utilities, monitoring environmental changes, or conducting asset inspections. While GIS apps excel at organizing and visualizing spatial data, their overall accuracy depends entirely on the quality of the GNSS data they receive. That’s where Reach receivers make the difference.

In this post, we’ll show you how to integrate Reach receivers with popular GIS software, including Esri’s ArcGIS apps, and explore real-world use cases of collecting high-precision data in the field.

Advantages of using GNSS receivers in GIS applications

GIS apps rely on location data from external sources. Smartphones or tablets typically provide 2–10 meter accuracy, which isn’t sufficient as many GIS applications go far beyond simple location tagging—they require precise, reliable field data to inform decisions, protect resources, and optimize operations. With Emlid Reach receivers, you can bring centimeter-accurate positioning to common GIS workflows like:

• Transportation & route planning: Managing transit networks, optimizing delivery routes, or mapping pedestrian access to increase efficiency, reduce costs, and support urban mobility.
  
• Water resource management: Monitoring water quality, watershed mapping, and managing irrigation or flood zones to support sustainable water use and emergency preparedness.
  
• Asset management: Cataloging and maintaining infrastructure such as signs, hydrants, manholes, or meters to enable efficient field inspections and long-term planning.
  
• Landscaping & forestry: Planning and managing green spaces, monitoring forest health, and guiding reforestation or conservation efforts using spatial data to optimize planting schemes, track vegetation changes, and support sustainable land use decisions.
  
• Environmental monitoring: Tracking shoreline changes, wetland boundaries, wildlife habitats, or pollution zones over time to help visualize spatial changes, analyze environmental impact, and support conservation efforts.
  
• Land use & land cover analysis: Classifying terrain into categories such as urban, agricultural, forested, or water bodies to support planning, policy-making, and land management.
  
• Public health & epidemiology: Mapping disease outbreaks, health service accessibility, or population risk zones to identify spatial patterns and support targeted health interventions.
  
• Cultural heritage & archaeology: Documenting historical sites, excavation points, or artifact locations to preserve data for research, tourism, and cultural preservation.
  
• etc.

Whether you’re mapping wetlands, tracing utility lines, monitoring public health risks, or managing cultural sites, centimeter-level GNSS accuracy ensures every point you collect is exactly where it should be.

Reach & Esri ArcGIS apps: seamless GNSS integration

Reach integrates seamlessly with Esri’s ArcGIS suite, including Survey123, Field Maps, and QuickCapture. With this setup, you can collect centimeter-accurate data directly within your GIS workflow—no extra tools, no complicated steps. Below, we’ve gathered use cases from Reach users who rely on this integration for high-precision data collection in the field.

Centimeter precision for coastal conservation in Florida

In Florida’s Escambia County, environmental specialist Kindall Butler uses Reach RS2+ and RX receivers with Esri ArcGIS Field Maps, ArcGIS Survey123, and ArcGIS Pro to monitor coastal changes and support local wildlife conservation efforts. Her team relies on the setup to collect data, which is crucial for tracking shoreline erosion, monitoring sea turtle nesting sites, and studying endangered beach mouse habitats.

What makes the work stand out is how critical high accuracy has become. “If a hurricane washes away sea turtle nest markers, we need precise GPS coordinates to relocate the nests. Having that really accurate point is crucial,” Kindall explains.

High-precision data collected with Reach receivers plays a vital role in coastal wildlife conservation. Accurate coordinates help teams relocate sea turtle nests lost to storms, ensuring none are forgotten. Elevation data shapes long-term strategies, guiding the creation of protected nesting zones and managing erosion risks. For endangered beach mice, precise elevation measurements reveal safe habitats during hurricanes, supporting smarter, data-driven protection plans.

From daily fieldwork to long-term environmental strategies, Emlid receivers are now an integral part of Kendall’s team GIS toolkit.

Supporting agriculture with high-precision GNSS in Nova Scotia

Chris Ross leads the Climate Change and Environmental Sustainability Division at the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture in Canada. While his team’s title might not immediately suggest a GIS focus, their work is deeply rooted in high-precision mapping, remote sensing, and data-driven decision-making. “Our goal is to modernize workflows—our government has historically been paper-based, but we’re transitioning to digital solutions like Esri software and Emlid GNSS receivers to improve efficiency,” Chris explains.

Across multiple teams, GIS is a common thread whether mapping field boundaries for insurance programs or validating elevations for land use planning. To do that, the division uses a combination of RTK GNSS, drones, and multispectral analysis to monitor vegetation health and track long-term agricultural changes. A major part of Chris’s role is coordinating province-wide projects and managing GIS expertise across departments. His team provides technical support and field validation for government cost-sharing programs, working closely with farmers to ensure data accuracy.

So why Reach?

“We’re not a team of professional surveyors, so ease of use was crucial,” says Chris. “Reach stood out for its interoperability—it works seamlessly with Esri tools and other platforms.”

Chris’s team also relies on Emlid Flow—the companion app for Reach receivers—for tasks like topographic surveys, mapping water control structures, and planning drainage projects. The app’s intuitive coding system and flexible export options help streamline their workflow from the field to the office.

Smart infrastructure mapping in Iceland with Reach receivers and GIS technology

Valdimar Kjartansson led mapping operations for one of Iceland’s largest utility companies. Under his guidance, the team transitioned from conventional GNSS workflows to a streamlined, real-time system powered by 40 Emlid Reach RS3 units. Each field crew vehicle was equipped with a receiver, enabling direct data collection, photo capture, and registration via Esri ArcGIS Field Maps—bringing significant gains in both efficiency and data quality.

Taking measurements in-house also helped cut outsourcing costs and ensured better control over data accuracy. The team trained internally on how to use Reach for both stakeouts and high-precision GNSS measurements. Real-time dashboards displayed live field data, improving communication between surveyors and the design teams.

After eight years of driving this transformation, which included systems integration and app development, Valdimar founded his own company, offering advanced geospatial services built on Emlid and Esri technologies.

Today, Valdimar’s company works with municipalities and utility providers across Iceland using the same tools—Reach receivers and Esri software. Their services range from measuring underground cables and mapping streetlight poles to building complete GIS-based infrastructure inventories. These inventories are powered by custom database systems developed on Esri platforms, with a dedicated web interface for visualizing live data pulled directly from ArcGIS.

Integrating Reach receivers with third-party GIS apps

Integrating Reach receivers with GIS apps is a quick and straightforward process. There are several options available depending on the platform of the device on which your GIS app is used:

GIS apps on iOS

For GIS apps on iOS, you have two integration options depending on the Reach receiver model:

• With Reach RX MFI, you can connect to the required app via Bluetooth and stream NTRIP corrections right away. For reference, see the guide on integrating Reach RX MFi with ArcGIS Field Maps on iOS.

• With non-MFI Reach RX and Reach RS2+/RS3, you can integrate with the GIS app via TCP. Learn more in the ArcGIS Survey123 integration guide.

GIS apps on Android or Windows Subsystem for Android

In most cases, for the R-series Reach receivers, you can configure an NTRIP correction stream directly in the Emlid Flow app and transmit the corrected position to your third-party GIS app:

1. Enable Bluetooth on your Android device or Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA) and pair it with Reach.

2. Set up the NTRIP correction stream in the Emlid Flow app to enable centimeter-level precision via real-time internet-based corrections.

3. Set up position streaming in the NMEA format in Emlid Flow.

4. Finish the setup in your GIS app. In most cases, simply selecting the Reach model as the location provider is all that’s needed.

Refer to our documentation for the full integration guide with Android.

If your app doesn’t support external GNSS receivers and only uses the phone’s built-in location, you can perform integration using mock location apps like Lefebure NTRIP client—a handy workaround that allows you to feed high-precision GNSS data into your app using mock location functionality, which is typical for Android devices.

We are also continuously expanding our support for third-party apps. If you are interested in collaborating, contact us at info@emlid.com.

Ready to add centimeter precision to your GIS workflows?

Emlid Reach receivers give you the freedom to work with the tools you already use—now with the GNSS precision you need. Whether you’re working offline, in remote areas, or on tight timelines, the Reach receiver and third-party GIS apps like the ones from Esri make a powerful team.

Explore Reach RX and Reach RS3 capabilities for GIS integrations.