Bluesky's Home Heat Loss Data Goes Online in Calderdale

Coalville, Leicestershire, UK, 05 November 2009 - Home owners in West Yorkshire, UK, will soon be able to go online to see the heat loss from their property. Following airborne surveys by aerial mapping firm Bluesky, the property level thermal map together with high-resolution aerial photography are to be provided online by Calderdale Council. The council's relaunched Calderdale Maps Online service will offer interactive maps together with new features such as address look ups and find my nearest.

The first phase of the relaunch will be the property level heat loss map created by Bluesky following a thermal aerial survey in March 2009. The interactive map will allow visitors to the website to check the thermal efficiency of their home or business property and then access further web pages detailing what measures can be taken to reduce heat loss. In the case of homeowners, how they can apply for free or discounted loft and cavity wall insulation. Visitors to the site can also choose to view the data in an accessible way through an address look up form that returns property specific heat loss information in a text friendly format.

The latest online evolution is designed to allow the customer greater flexibility in terms of self service and the use of good quality geographic information was seen as fundamental to its take up and success. 'The aim of the thermal survey and online map created by Bluesky is to raise awareness of energy efficiency amongst the householders and business owners of Calderdale and to encourage householders to have their property insulated,' commented Debbie Chew of the Environmental Management Team.

The thermal efficiency information is also being made available internally via the Council's intranet mapping tool giving officers across the organisation access to the data. 'In a more strategic channel the Corporate GIS Team will be working with the Private Sector Housing Team to analyse the data and target areas of the district where insulation is most required,' added Craig Moulding, Corporate GIS Manager.

The second phase of the online project will be the full transposition of information from the Council's existing mapping portal to a new web application. Utilising the latest technology, interactive maps will be embedded within pages across the site providing visitors with access to a plethora of council datasets such as conservation and heritage, public rights of way and environmental and planning issues. The chosen data can be viewed with either Ordnance Survey mapping or Bluesky's high resolution, 2009 aerial photography as a background.

Calderdale are long-term users of aerial photography pioneering in their deployment of the information rich resource by the Internet and Council Intranet. This has encouraged use of the data which in turn has established aerial photography as an essential tool in many departments, for example within the planning enforcement process. 'As well as helping to build a picture of a site, and its changes over a period of time, aerial photography has been used on countless occasions to prove or disprove the existence of a development or change of land use. This is particularly important as development becomes immune from planning enforcement action after a certain period of time,' commented Robert Rose of the Planning Enforcement Team. 

Website: www.bluesky-world.com

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Notes to Editor:

Bluesky is a UK-based specialist in aerial imaging and remote sensing data collection and processing. An internationally recognised leader with projects extending around the globe, Bluesky is proud to work with prestigious organisations such as Google, the BBC and Government Agencies.

Bluesky has unrivalled expertise in the creation of seamless, digital aerial photography, 3D landscape/cityscape visualisations and prints and also runs a national mapping centre, providing digital mapping, satellite imagery and aerial photography including ultra-high resolution imagery of cities and towns.

www.bluesky-world.com