Rate My Professor Richard Hemi

Richard Hemi is a Professional Practice Fellow in the School of Surveying within the Division of Sciences at the University of Otago. He earned his Bachelor of Surveying (BSurv) from the University of Otago in 1988. Following his graduation, he worked for three years as a graduate surveyor in private practice in Nelson, New Zealand. In 1991, he completed his professional registration and spent the next two years in the United Kingdom, engaged in surveying on large construction sites and highway design projects. Upon returning to New Zealand, Hemi joined Cato Bolam Consultants in Auckland, where he advanced to company director in 1998. In this role, he oversaw subdivision and land development projects while managing the daily operations of a large survey consultancy. Hemi joined the School of Surveying at the University of Otago at the beginning of 2008.

At the University of Otago, Hemi teaches cadastral studies and engineering surveying, including the papers SURV307 Cadastral Surveying 2, SURV457 Advanced Cadastral Studies, SURV459 Engineering Surveying, and SURV298 Introductory Field Camp. His academic interests include urban design, cadastral surveying, land development engineering, construction surveying, terrestrial laser scanning, surveying for archaeological preservation and discovery, low-impact design and sustainability, engineering construction, and mining surveying. He has contributed to several research projects utilizing laser scanning technology for heritage sites, notably the LiDARRAS project surveying the World War I tunnels complex in Arras, France; dendroglyph and petroglyph scanning projects on Rēkohu (Chatham Islands); and the scan survey of Nan Madol ruins in the Federated States of Micronesia in collaboration with the Anthropology Department. Key publications include McCoy, M., Alderson, H., Hemi, R., Cheng, H., Edwards, R. (2016) 'Earliest direct evidence of monument building at the archaeological site of Nan Madol (Pohnpei, Micronesia) identified using 230Th/U coral dating and geochemical sourcing of megalithic architectural stone' in Quaternary Research; Hemi, R. (2016) 'Cadastral surveying teaching, School of Surveying' in SurveyQuarterly; Hemi, R. (2012) 'Student urban design project review' in SurveyQuarterly; a chapter in Strack, M. (ed.) (2013) Survey Marks: 'Laser Scanning: Recording History'; and Barber, I., Maxwell, J., Hemi, R. (2012) 'Growing Images: Creating surface scans and archaeological knowledge of Moriori carved trees on the Chatham Islands'. Hemi serves as the Tertiary Representative on the S+SNZ Council, a member of the S+SNZ Cadastral Stream committee and the LINZ STEP Survey working group, Chair of the School of Surveying Marketing Committee, and leads the school's marketing and outreach program.