Historical information

Prior to the digital revolution the only medium by which cartographic information could be reproduced and distributed on mass was via printed media. The final negatives (repromat) used to produce the printed products were the culmination of a complex cartographic process and were therefore carefully preserved and stored. Preservation of the so-called final negatives enabled subsequent reprinting with minimal cartographic intervention. Since the arrival of the Land Headquarters Cartographic Company at Fortuna in 1942 the repromat for all products produced by the Australian Survey Corps were carefully stored. With the disbandment of the Army Survey Regiment in 1996 the Defence Imagery and Geospatial Organisation (DIGO) inherited that repromat archive. It was immanent that the support for film based printing was ending so on 25 October 2004 a review was required to determine the way ahead for the repromat and paper maps stored in the DIGO Map Libraries. Most of these maps were produced by the Royal Australian Survey Corps. This report is the result of that review. The report recommends the disposal of the repromat and the retention of single map copies.

Physical description

A4 plastic covered report, plastic clip bound, front page clear and rear page red. 9 x page document about the future of repromat and map printing.