Federal Office of Topography swisstopo

As Switzerland’s geoinformation centre, the Federal Office of Topography (swisstopo) is responsible for ‘measuring’ Switzerland. It gathers and manages geodata and makes it available to a variety of audiences. swisstopo conducts surveys of Switzerland and documents landscapes both above and below ground. Thanks to their quality and precision, swisstopo’s maps are held in high regard both at home and abroad. Further important products include topographical and landscape models, aerial photos, orthoimages, geological data and online maps and applications for computers, tablets and smartphones, first and foremost the federal government’s geoportal, map.geo.admin.ch. The legal basis for its work is provided by the Geoinformation Act. In addition to its core products swisstopo coordinates geoinformation and geology activities at federal level and runs the Institute for Military Geography. swisstopo is the supervisory body for official cadastral surveying and the cadastre of public law restrictions on land ownership (PLR Cadastre) and coordinates the harmonisation of Swiss geodata in cooperation with the cantons, the communes and the private sector. swisstopo was founded in 1838 and today forms part of the armasuisse group in the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS). The modern production organisation has 320 employees and is located in Wabern near Bern.