Sigma Seven, which specialises in mobile and mapping technology, has been appointed by electricity distributor, Northern Powergrid, to assist with a major asset management project.

The company won the contract through a competitive tender, beating a number of large UK technology companies to the job. Sigma Seven employs a team of 22.

Northern Powergrid, based in the north east of England, delivers electricity to 3.9M domestic and business customers, through a network of more than 31,000 sub-stations and around 91,000 kilometres of overhead line and underground cables.

Effective management of these assets is key to Northern Powergrid’s operations and following an in-depth review, the company has recently introduced a programme of upgrades, to further enhance its systems.

As part of the review, the electricity distributor identified a need for a software tool, which would enable around 250 field-based workers to access network and asset information, while out in the field.

Sigma Seven proposed a solution based on its highly successful product, GeoField. This coordinates data from a number of sources, allowing field workers to access, collect and manage data, organise tasks and record information directly onto digital maps, either on a tablet or laptop.

The purpose of the customised version of GeoField is to give the Northern Powergrid field team access to all network information, as well as map viewing and data capture capabilities. It will include a workflow solution, providing step-by-step instructions to ensure the field worker’s job is completed fully, with no errors and in the correct format. The £0.5M project will also incorporate training of the 250 system users and on-going support and maintenance over a three year period.

Sigma Seven managing director, Paul Reid, commented: “We are extremely pleased to have won this contract. We welcome the opportunity to work with Northern Powergrid.”

He added: “This project also represents a hat-trick of significant contract wins for us in the last few months. Our mapping technology and expertise is much in demand and we are anticipating that 2013 will be our most successful year to date.”

www.sigmaseven.co.uk

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London, 2 May 2013

Through the establishment of a Business Improvement District (BID) in Huntingdon, one of four market towns in Huntingdonshire, in addition to the investment, footfall has increased, business performance improved and the town has been made more attractive, safer, cleaner and busier.

BIDs act as business partnerships between businesses, local authorities and other organisations, and were created to develop projects and services that will benefit the trading environment within the boundary of a clearly defined geographic commercial area.

This geographical area was determined through the use of the council’s local address dataset and its synchronisation to a list of properties paying business rates. Through this work, the BID Huntingdon Manager and the council’s Economic Development and Business Rates Managers were able to precisely identify the final geographical BID area and all commercial properties within it.

It was these eligible businesses, identified through the local address dataset, that now provide five years of sustainable funding, allowing Huntingdon businesses to control a significant pot of levy income each year, spent by the businesses for the benefit of business. 

LLPG Manager at Huntingdonshire District Council, David Lloyd said, “With Huntingdon Town Centre facing increased competition as a retail and leisure destination, particularly from local towns, out-of-town retail parks and online shopping, the BIDs were recognised as a winning way to fund and manage additional projects in the town, projects that are over and above those that the public sector has to deliver.”

“This project demonstrates localism in action – businesses working to help themselves against the backdrop of a very difficult economic and financial climate.”

To find out more about local address datasets, visit www.geoplace.co.uk.

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.

This is further testament to the market leading capabilities of the InformedCONSULT solution and the success of LGBCE’s digital transformation programme, which was also a finalist for the European ICT Excellence Awards for ‘Best Government Solution’ earlier in the year.

LGBCE’s new on-line consultation service has transformed how the Commission engages with the public on vital electoral boundary reviews, delivering interactive street-level mapping and allowing users to review, support or challenge proposed changes. This has greatly facilitated the public’s ability to influence decisions in their local area, thereby directly increasing citizen representation and safeguarding the UK’s democratic process.

Alan Cogbill, Chief Executive of the LGBCE offered, “I am delighted that the work of my team and Informed Solutions has been recognised by the Big Chip Awards evaluation panel. This project has been an excellent example of how digital transformation can deliver cost savings alongside better services.”

John Alderson, Chairman of Informed Solutions, said: “Our engagement with the LGBCE is an exemplar for delivering digital transformation, delivered by an SME working in collaboration with a forward-thinking government body.  We are delighted to have made the finals of The Big Chip Awards and pleased that the value of well-executed digital transformation is being recognised.”

The Big Chip Awards are the longest running digital awards in the UK and the largest outside London.  They celebrate the North’s best digital innovation projects and technologies.  Category winners will be announced at the Awards Dinner on 27^th June at the Palace Hotel,  Manchester.

InformedCONSULT is a digital collaboration and consultation platform which manages complex workflows and transactions online, driving your digital shift strategy by transforming mailrooms, call centres and online channels into a single, integrated digital operation.  The platform is deployed using the Informed Digital Transformation Methodology, which delivers a step change in business efficiency, customer experience and stakeholder engagement.

Informed Solutions is a truly independent professional services and specialist systems integration practice.  We deliver exceptional value by providing clients with simple, high performing solutions to complex business and safety critical problems, particularly where place, location or geography is important (www.Informed.com).

For more information about our services contact us on: Tel: +44 (0)20 3042 2000 / +44 (0)161 942 2000 or email: David.Chapman@Informed.com.

For regular Informed news and event updates without the spam, please follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.

The Planning Screening Tool will allow public bodies, environmental groups and private organisations to assess potential impacts that proposals could have on local natural habitats – a key element of planning decisions.

The tool was developed as part of an European Interreg IVA-2 Seas-funded project, ARCH, that assesses regional changes in natural habitats.

The Kent County Council team behind ARCH recently won the prestigious British Cartographic Society Avenza Award for their work in electronic mapping.

William Moreno, who leads the mapping project at Kent County Council, said:

“This will help planners and environmental bodies by providing better online access to high-quality information on the county’s natural habitats. This will aid long term monitoring and conservation of important areas for wildlife, enabling planners to make informed decisions on spatial planning, and assisting the decision making process.

This has consisted of the development of an online mapping tool in Nord-Pas de Calais and of a planning and screening software solution in Kent which are available to planners and environment professionals.

The Planning Screening Tool can be used at the start of the planning application process. The improved access to information provided by this work will also allow key users to better take into account the importance of the condition and extent of our natural environment. It has been specifically designed to be as flexible as possible, and the way in which data is presented can be adapted to suit individual authorities requirements”

Kent County Council has already begun promoting use of the Planning Screening Tool to local authorities .

The device was officially launched at a conference to mark the conclusion of the three year ARCH project.

Paul Crick, Director of Planning and Environment at Kent County Council, said:

“I would urge housebuilders, developers and planners to use this very important and useful tool to inform their decision making and help to protect and enhance Kent’s natural environment.”

For more information about the Planning Application Screening tool please contact Hannah Cook at the Kent and Medway Records Centre, hannah.cook@kmbrc.org.uk.

For more information about ARCH, please visit: www.archnature.eu.

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.

1. Software as a Service (SaaS):  a fully supported suite of Open Standards Geospatial Web Services comprising the full OpenGeo Suite (PostGIS, GeoServer, OpenLayers, GeoExt, GeoWebCache) in the cloud and Envitia’s Advanced Web Services Suite. These services enable organisations to implement a fully open source solution or a mixed economy solution integrating Open Source software with commercially supported   software, to deliver maximum benefit for minimal cost.

2. Specialist Consultancy Service (SCS):  a range of Envitia consultancy activities for Government in support of existing or potential geospatial cloud-based solutions. From requirements gathering, to deployment of the solution, through to off the shelf Open Source training packages.

As the third iteration of the G-Cloud framework goes live, the Cabinet Office has announced that Government departments buying IT products and services will now be obliged to consider solutions offered by cloud providers before they can consider alternatives – ‘The Cloud First Policy’. "In future, when procuring new or existing services, public sector organisations should consider and fully evaluate potential cloud solutions first – before they consider any other option. This approach is mandated to central government and strongly recommended to the wider public sector. The formal introduction of a ‘Cloud First’ policy will drive wider adoption of cloud computing in the public sector, boosting business – and furthering savings and efficiencies – through the government CloudStore, which is a quicker, cheaper and more competitive way for the public sector to buy IT," Francis Maude, Minister for the Cabinet Office said.

Dr Matt Perrin, Director of Envitia said “We are delighted to offer our established software and service capabilities through the CloudStore. This endorsement recognises that Envitia provides open, flexible and cost effective solutions across all types of cloud service models. The inclusion of Envitia’s services on the CloudStore will make it even easier for government organisations to make use of geospatial information. As a SME we fully support the principles behind the CloudStore and look forward to contributing to its success”.

For more information visit the CloudStore or www.envitia.com.

Hartley Wintney, UK, May 13^th 2013

“Parish Online is excellent for looking into planning applications and especially useful in communicating the issues in meetings by putting the live maps up on a screen,” said John Henson from Poringland Parish Council.

Over 500 Parish Councils now regularly use the service, with over half a million maps served from Getmapping’s Data Centre. Parish Online contains a large range of mapping data, from high resolution Getmapping aerial photography and Ordnance Survey mapping (using the PSMA licence) through to other national datasets such as Natural England SSSIs and Countryside Rights of Way.

“The aerial photography from Getmapping is very useful. Switching from Ordnance Survey mapping to photography allows us to verify land uses and features on the ground” said Geoffrey Parkes from Hinton Charterhouse Parish Council.

Parish Online can also connect to Local Authority mapping datasets to feed additional important data through to the Parish Clerk. This data sharing strengthens the link between different tiers of Government to better serve the public.

Martin Laker from Bath & North East Somerset Council has long been an advocate of the software noting, “We are now able to share our up-to-date GIS information, such as listed buildings, school crossing patrols, highways inventory and Housing Association data with all our Parishes. Collaborating with Parish Councils in this way makes them more independent which promotes the Localism agenda.”

“By offering web software that is easy-to-use and sensibly priced, the barriers to using quality mapping are lowered. Parish Clerks around England and Wales have really engaged with us by providing invaluable feedback and enthusiasm so I’d attribute Parish Online’s success to them,” commented Chris Mewse, GIS Product Manager at Getmapping. 

Parish Online can be ordered through the Parish Online website by a Parish Clerk with a valid PSMA licence number www.parish-online.co.uk.

www.getmapping.com

For further information please contact: Pete Bonham

Tel: +44(0) 1252 849423

Email: peter.bonham@getmapping.com

GIS Product Manager: Chris Mewse

Email: cmewse@getmapping.com

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.

Epsom, Surrey, 13th May, 2013

The Cloud First policy is mandated to central government and ‘strongly recommended’ to the rest of the public sector. Francis Maude, Minister for the Cabinet Office, said “G-Cloud brings a step change in the way government buys IT. It’s quicker, cheaper and more competitive, open to a wider range of companies, including a majority of SMEs, and offers more choice and innovation. The Cloud First policy will embed the skills a modern civil service needs to meet the demands of 21st-century digital government and help us get ahead in the global race.”

Astun has been for two offerings in the CloudStore. The first is ‘Astun Data Services’ (ADS).  ADS is a comprehensive,  cost effective and resource free alternative to translating, storing, updating and serving base mapping data to internal and public users. Map data services include: Ordnance Survey Premium Data (MasterMap, VectorMap Local, Meridian and Strategi) Ordnance Survey OpenData (VectorMap District, Meridian and Strategi) OpenStreetMap (GB coverage in British National Grid). This is augmented by OpenData services including Edubase, NHS Choices, Local Government Boundaries, Electoral Boundaries (BoundaryLine) enhanced with data from OpenlyLocal and UKWhip Neighbourhood Crime incident data.

The second offering is ‘Get INSPIREd’, an INSPIRE compliant service for Metadata Discovery Services, View and Download Services. Get INSPIREd enables users to meet their publishing and delivery obligations under the INSPIRE regulations without having to implement any additional technology locally.

To find out more go directly to the CloudStore: http://govstore.service.gov.uk/cloudstore/search/?q=astun.

“Our CloudStore solutions have been in development for some time and will hit the spot for many public sector organisations that are looking to make savings without compromise,” said Mike Saunt Managing Director of Astun Technology. “The new CloudStore is better than ever and a great place to find and compare different vendor solutions. We are confident that the Cloud First mandate and the fact that our solutions are based on Open Source underpinnings will prove compelling,” continued Saunt.

+44 (0) 1372 744 009

www.astuntechnology.com

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.The deadline for local authorities to create and publish data in compliance with INSPIRE regulations is just six months away. Yet hard-pressed GIS managers are struggling to find a solution that meets all the set requirements. Fortunately, miso – the younger, innovative sister company of Dotted Eyes – has released a brand new service to solve this. DataPublisher automates the repetitive and complicated publishing task, leaving GIS managers to use their advanced skills and capabilities to deliver on where they add the greatest value.

The complex INSPIRE requirements are composed of two basic sets of activities. Firstly, organisations must compile appropriate datasets and create compliant metadata. This requires the knowledge, skills and experience of an accomplished GIS manager. Secondly, the datasets must be published in a variety of ways that are compliant with INSPIRE and Data.gov.uk. This is a generic task that is best delivered by using shared resources to reduce costs and increase resilience. This is DataPublisher. 

Users simply drag and drop datasets onto purchased slots then sit back as the service compliantly and automatically:

• Uploads the metadata to Data.gov.uk
• Publishes your data with a View service
• Publishes you data with a Download service

To make life even easier for users, it even tracks when the metadata goes live, when the web services become active and also when the data slot expires. Plus, with no setup costs and a simple pay-as-you-go system, DataPublisher is completely affordable. Rather than building a publishing infrastructure – which requires huge investment in equipment and IT infrastructure – users only pay for the data they need.

Ben Allan, Managing Director of miso, commented: “DataPublisher is completely synonymous with the miso philosophy of making customers’ lives easier. As well as allowing GIS managers to retain control of the metadata they create, it also saves them valuable time and effort. With a real need for this service in the marketplace, we’re expecting DataPublisher to be hugely popular.”

To find out more about DataPublisher or miso, please visit www.misoportal.com. Alternatively, contact us on info@misoportal.com or call +44 (0)121 232 8000.   

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.

Hartley Wintney, UK, May 17^th 2013

Getmapping will provide high quality orthorectified aerial imagery and product support services for use across the Scottish public sector. The data will be supplied in a number of ways to ensure it can be applied to a wide range of business applications. This includes direct supply for onsite use, in GIS compatible file formats and as both a Web Map Service (WMS) and as a Web Map Tile Service (WMTS) compliant with the INSPIRE directive’s view service standards. Users will be able to order as a complete dataset, by individual local authority boundary or specific area.

Scotland is notoriously difficult to survey from the air for a number of reasons, the main one being the variable weather. High latitudes also mean a limited flying season due to less than optimal sun angles. In the early spring and late autumn the sun angle reduces the amount of available survey time to less than 90 minutes per day. Getmapping brings over a decade of Scotland – wide survey experience to the contract to ensure maximum capture is achieved during the weather windows available every season.

“We have had a commitment to aerial data acquisition in Scotland since 2003 and we were the first commercial company to achieve full country coverage including the Shetlands, Orkneys, St Kilda and other islands in 2011,” said Dave Horner, Managing Director of Getmapping. “From day one, eligible Scottish public sector organisations will have access to our complete True Colour aerial archive, much of which has been captured in the last three years. Under this contract the Scottish public sector will continue to benefit from the comprehensive update programme, technical support and our market leading hosted services,” explained Horner.

About Getmapping Plc

Getmapping Plc is a leading provider of aerial photography, LiDAR, digital mapping and web based services. Getmapping has offices in Hartley Wintney, UK, Cape Town and Centurion, South Africa, and Nairobi, Kenya. Getmapping was the first company to have up to date nationwide coverage of Britain and pioneered online delivery of aerial photography to business and the public at large. A reseller of professional mapping, oblique photography, height data, OS maps and third party aerial photography, Getmapping services a wide variety of markets including press and media, local authorities, property and construction, mining, environmental consultants and the public. It also provides a number of value added mapping products and services tailored to specific client needs including data hosting, online data delivery and web-based GIS. A pioneer of many online products through its website, Getmapping is the only company currently re-flying the whole of the UK at enhanced 12.5cm resolution.

www.getmapping.com

For further information please contact: Pete Bonham

Tel:44(0) 1252 849423

Email: peter.bonham@getmapping.com

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.

Independent marine data management, publishing and GIS specialist, OceanWise, has moved into new larger offices in Alton, Hampshire in order to support the further expansion of its business.

In addition, OceanWise has recruited two new members into its team. Richard Farren joins from HR Wallingford, where he was SeaZone’s Marine Mapping Production Manager. He joins OceanWise as a Systems Developer and will help OceanWise deliver a growing number of Maritime Information Infrastructure projects. Janet Chaplin also joins from HR Wallingford and will transfer her previous role as SeaZone’s Customer Services Manager to OceanWise.

Dr Mike Osborne, OceanWise’s MD, explained, “I have known Richard and Janet for a long time now and am fully aware of their tremendous capabilities and how well they are liked by customers. They have a lot to give and it is fantastic to welcome them both back to the team. This is an exciting time for OceanWise. A growing number of organisations are moving their marine mapping, GIS and other system requirements to OceanWise and we have an expanding number of projects delivering maritime information infrastructure to new customers. With new offices to support these activities, the future looks very bright indeed”.

About OceanWise

OceanWise Ltd is an independent company specialising in all aspects of marine environmental data acquisition, data and knowledge management and GIS. OceanWise personnel have been pioneering the development of marine data and software products for over 15 years, including at the UK Hydrographic Office. OceanWise offers end-to-end marine and coastal data management and decision support services in the UK and internationally. OceanWise’s products and services include:

• Digital Marine Mapping: Raster Charts, Marine Themes and Digital Elevation Model
• Environmental Data Management and Publishing (Ocean Database and Port-Log.net)
• Sector Specific Productivity Tools (Maritime Toolbar and Workflow Extensions)
• GIS and Marine Data Acquisition, Management and Dissemination Advice and Training.

For more information on how OceanWise can improve your environmental and spatial data management capacity and capabilities, please contact Mr John Pepper, Marketing Director, on john.pepper@oceanwise.eu or visit the OceanWise website at www.oceanwise.eu.

The publication of AGI member press releases is a member service. The AGI neither approves or endorses the contents of member's press releases, nor makes any assurance of their factual accuracy.