IMPLEMENTING GIS

Abstract

This paper tries to study the GIS implementation in the state of Arkansas and tries to identify the potential of using the Arkansas GeoStor implementation blueprint for similar application in other states. The paper also tries to identify the differences which may be required in the system if the blueprint is to be used for other states. The factors affecting these differences would also be identified and the expected value realizations for other states as compared to the state of Arkansas.

Expanding Business Intelligence to GISs

Governments around the world have lots of location based data which is very important for managing the state and serving the citizens. Having all this data in physical formats makes it very difficult to manage and work efficiently. GIS systems are invcreasingly being used to convery the location based data into digital formats. A lot of different government agencies require location based data which is useful to their field area. Having multiple government agencies using different sets of location based data can make colloobration very difficult and time consuming. Integrating the location based data from various government agencies into a single data warehouse can go a long way in helping not only government agencies but also other businesses to take advantage from it. "Geographic information is the key to better decision-making; just about everything a community, business, or public agency does, whether in day-to-day operations or long-term planning, is related to its geography." (Lennox, 2012).

Using Arkansas blueprint

Arkansas's GeoStar is the first statewide enterprise GIS system which is publicly assessible and supports multiple vendors which helps GIS users to request location based requests such as development requests, zoning issues and disaster response needs in an efficient manner. Arkansas had multiple agencies which were storing and using GIS data resulting in duplicate efforts. Differenr agencies were also storing spatial data in different data formats leading to higher costs and delays in identifying, obtaining and formatting spatial data. Arkansas decided to consolidate the data available with various agencies into a single integrated format and shared the same on service portal for users to connect to via database / web services. The data can not only be used by government agencies but also by businesses and individual users. Spatial data can be searched and retrieved by anyone who requires and can also be used to create web mapping applications to meet their business needs. The data has been stored in Oracle Spatial format which allows connection from multiple software applications. Arkansas also uses Safe software which allows users to download data in the format which could be used by their application. Apart from government funding Arkansas created various coperative partnerships with vendors and other business data users to fund the project. Most of the hardware and software has been provided free of cost by vendors.

If Arkansas blueprint has a great potential to be used by other states to create their own GIS data warehouse. To use this blueprint, the states will have to not only make the various government agencies cooperate with each other and agree to pass on their GIS data but will also have to make local partnerships with businesses to make sure that they effectively utilize the GIS data and also contribute to it. "The enterprise architecture is facilitating public / private sector collaboration. In one example, multiple agencies, communities, and private sector firms have collaborated to develop a single street-centerline spatial data structure that is stored, and distributed from GeoStor." (Geostor.arkansas.gov, n.d.). The focus has been on integrating the various local sources into a common format in a standardized and consistent manner rather than creating data. Arkansas's GeoStar is especially useful as it allows users to obtain whatever part of data they require rather than complete data irrespective of the requirement and also is able to convert data to more than 50 different GIS formats. The Implementation has been sucessful and has got a lot of national and international attention saving state government and other agencies a lot of tax payer's money.

Likely changes for other states

GeoStor although a sucessful example can not be one stop solution for all state governments. Arkansas was able to create partnerships for the funding of the program with external vendors which provided with the software and hardware required for the system. Any state wishing to use the Arkansas blueprint would have to ensure proper planning, assessment and understanding or the user community. Business model and functions of the state may be different from Arkansas and the same would have to be considered. Arkansas GIS model requires full stakeholder involvement and agreement on standards such as Database structure, layer structure. If the state wishing to implement the Arkansas blueprint is unable to arange funds from state budger, fedral grants and vendor partnerships then they may have to look for other sources of funds such as charging for data collection and data distribution. Before adopting the GeoStor model, states will have to look at the data available with various givernment agencies and if they would be willing to contribute the same to a common consolidated system. "Geostor houses most of its raster data in a file system, with a small number (approximately 60) of data sets housed in ArcSDE. Raster data sets include imagery, aerial photography, digital elevation models, land use/land cover, LIDAR and USGS Digital Ortho Quarter Quadrangle raster graphics." (Zekiah Technologies, 2011).

Potential value for other states

Benefits of GIS implementations will can not be equal for all states implementing it. The states will have to consider petential benefits depending upon the availability of source data with various government agencies, quality of the available data and costs associated with collecting any missing data. The requirements of the government agencies and other businesses with respect to GIS dat will also go a long way in determining the true value of implementing such solutions. "The implementation of GIS functionality varies greatly depending upon the scale of government services at the local, regional, state, and federal levels, which is a function of user needs and available financial resources." (Croswell, 2005). Although GIS data is becomg all the more important for state governments, it may not be that easy for all state governments to quantify the potential benefits. Arkansas model does give insights on how to claculate potential benefits and quantify them. If any state government already has agencies which are having individual GIS data are are not willing to share the same with the state government then things may become difficult. "GIS can bring with it a considerable amount of technical jargon. This communication strategy will take this into account and adjust communications to the particular audience. Likewise, these communications provide the opportunity to introduce the layperson to basic GIS concepts and help build the collective knowledge base within the organisation." (Lennox, 2012). States will have to consider the what kind of benefits it wants to achieve with the use of technology such as urban development, farming, identification of hazard zones and etc. With this information states would be in a better position to plan which areas of information need to be concentrated on for deriving maximum benefits of GIS technology.

Value realization

Different states will have different value realizations from GIS implementation based on the size of the state, already available resources, population, industralization, urban development and extent of farmings or natural hazards such as floods, hurricanes or wild fires. There will be a number of factors which will have to be considered when calculating potential return for a state as compared to Arkansas such as availibility of existing GIS data with various government agencies, size of state, population of the state, potential areas of application and how much amount of GIS data is required by various government agencies or other entities for various requirements. "The State of Arkansas recognized that across many of the state agencies there could be several employees searching for the same basic data to meet their business needs. The same data may be stored or created by different agencies many times." (Geostor.arkansas.gov, n.d.). It was also realized that users had to contact various agencies to obtain data which was stored in various spatial formats. Government agencies also had to pay extra to certain contractors in case of unavailibility of spatial data. Any state wishing to use the Arkansas bluepint will have to analyze the requirement and use of such data and then calculate the potential benefits in their state. States having large scale agricultural lands can benefit more using such data to further develop their agricultural facilities. Also states with hih risk of natural clamities will also get more benefits when responding to emergency situations. Factors such as hoftware and hardware expenditure, data collection efforts, data distribution costs and eliminating duplication efforts will also help states determine their potential benefits for such investments. To make the GIS solution implementation sucessful states willing will have to select broad cross-section of participants, get adequate support from government, plan for adequate and consistant funding for the project and make sure that the GIS efforts are aligned with the statewide information technology goals.

References

Croswell, P. (2005, Dec 30). OREGON GIS UTILITY PROJECT—PHASE 1 - REQUIREMENTS ASSESSMENT AND BUSINESS CASE. Retrieved Oct 30 from http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/CIO/GEO/docs/gisutility/1339.4gisutilitycasestudies-deliv4efinal123005.pdf

Geostor.arkansas.gov. (n.d.). ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE - Geostor Shared Services. Retrieved Retrieved 2015, Oct 30 from http://hw.siit.net/download.php?fileid=1333

Lennox, P. (2012, Sep). GIS is an important tool for local government. Retrieved 2015, Oct 30 from http://geospatialworld.net/Paper/Application/ArticleView.aspx?aid=30280

Zekiah Technologies. (2011, Jun 17). Arkansas GIO GeoStor Platform - Current State Overview. Retrieved Oct 30 from https://agioar.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/agio_current_state_final-modified.pdf