|
|
|
National Geospatial Data Framework (NGDF) – The UK Model
NGDF – The organisation
NGDF is a voluntary organisation made up of representatives from the government and commercial sectors. Initially it consisted of an Advisory Council, and Board and a Task Force to take forward the work. Ad-hoc groups were formed for various topics.
The structure was adjusted in 1998 with the demise of the Advisory Council; the AGI undertook this role by having a representative on the NGDF Board. The NGDF now consists of an NGDF Management Board, two Project Boards for the major projects (Metadata and the Standard Geographic Base), and working groups. An NGDF Central Management Team is employed to carry forward the work of NGDF.
NGDF has three streams of funding
- a NIMSA activity that funds the Central Management Team,
- Invest to Save budget that funded the two major projects until the end October 2000, and
- contributions made by NGDF Management Board members that fund ad-hoc projects.
The Management Board sets policy, commits resources, formally approves NGDF activities and deals with political and commercial issues as they arise. The Board contains some 15 varied but core organisations that are represented by their Chief Executive or an empowered representative. These organisations can be categorised under 4 broad headings
- ‘Umbrella’ groups: Association for Geographic Information (represents the public and private sectors), Improvement and Development Agency (represents local government), Intra-governmental Group on Geographic Information (represents central government)
- Private sector organisations: Property Intelligence Plc, Landmark Information Group Ltd
- Key government departments and agencies: Central Information Technology Unit, Land Registry, Ordnance Survey, British Geological Survey, Office for National Statistics, Post Office
- Representatives from Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland and from Registers of Scotland
The two Project Boards manage their programme of work appropriate to the further development and implementation of their specific project. Each has a group below it tasked with specific deliverables. The NGDF Central Management Team manages the financial affairs, promotion and co-ordination of the NGDF programme.
Remit and Strategy
The Mission of the NGDF is
to develop an over-arching framework to facilitate and encourage efficient linking, combining and widespread use of geospatial data which is fit for purpose.
And that of the Management Board to
enable the unlocking and improvement of geospatial information for the benefit of the citizen, business growth and good government
The Strategic Plan, revised last year, sets out the strategic objectives, targets and deliverables. The strategic objectives fall into 5 groups
- To improve knowledge about what GI currently exists and encourage easier access to it
- To enable easier integration of GI through the use of standards and guidelines
- To encourage more widespread use of geospatial information
- To provide users with assurance that the information is consistent and of defined quality
- To provide advice to government on geospatial information
The key deliverables in Phase 1 (between 2000 and 2001) are a Gateway for delivery of services, a metadata service, and a set of NGDF-recommended data standards and guidelines.
In contrast to some other SDI’s, NGDF is NOT a database, a set of basic data, or a government-driven initiative. It concentrates on creating an environment rather than a structure.
Projects
The majority of the work is conducted through two major projects. The first is the Metadata Project, and the second the UK Standard Geographic Base (UKSGB) Project.
The Metadata Project has concentrated on setting up the Data Locator service, and populating it with metadata. The UKSGB Project is a more ambitious project that will seek eventually to define a standard set of geographical units for the UK. The service delivered from this project is called the Data Integrator. Both services are delivered through askGIraffe and are discussed below.
|
|
|