Geological fundamentals are playing an increasingly important role with respect to the sustainable use, planning and shaping of our living space. In addition to the availability of analogue information in the form of maps, there is increasing demand today for digital data and three-dimensional (3D) models.

As the federal competence centre for the collection, analysis and provision of such data, the Swiss Geological Survey is working hard to meet this demand. Within the framework of swisstopo’s geodata infrastructure, geological data of national importance can be accessed digitally via the GIPS information system by both internal and external clients.

As before, the focus of the national geological mapping remains on completing the Geological Atlas 1:25 000 (GA25). With the GeoCover project, a new vector dataset is being compiled that will depict the entire country’s geology on the basis of the 1:25 000 map sheets.

Digital 3D geological models are an important tool for visualising complex issues and problems relating to subsurface features in a simple and comprehensible manner. Whereas maps project geological observations on two-dimensional paper surfaces, 3D models are able to record and depict observations in their full spatial extent and their situation in relation to one another. The development of best practices for 3D geological modelling is a further priority of the Swiss Geological Survey.