Abstract
Geospatial Information Technology (GIT) can help utility personnel carry out such diverse processes
as distribution design and construction, service restoration and transmission corridor management.
The power of GIT lies in much more than just knowing everything about a utility's assets and where
they are located. It can provide enabling tools and support for all levels of staff in many utility
processes, resulting in more efficient design, construction, operations and maintenance, as well as in
improved customer satisfaction. Examples are taken from the BC Hydro3 Enterprise GIS (EGIS)
project implementation including the co-development of some business applications through vendor
partnerships.
Traditional Utility GIS
Typically, more than 80% of a utility’s assets are geospatial in nature. That is to say, 80% of a
utility’s assets, asset information and work activities are related to locations on the earth (points on
the map) and points in space above the earth’s surface. Poles, transmission towers, kiosks, valves,
substations, switching stations, pipes and wires in the ground, wires overhead and their attendant data
and records either occupy or reference geospatial locations. The early application of AM/FM/GIS
technology in utilities was to help operate and maintain their geospatially distributed assets efficiently
and cost effectively. The primary focus was on “whereness awareness” using unintelligent digital
mapping to record asset locations. Later developments included basic modeling of real world
networks for analysis and planning plus a database to store and retrieve asset attributes. Some limited
integration with other legacy systems also took place.
Figure 1. Traditional mapping of a
typical utility AM/FM implementation.
Early utility GIS implementations were
typically limited to single departments or
business units. It was not unusual for
different departments within the same utility
to implement separate GIS systems on
different GIS platforms. In addition, other
parts of utilities often hired consultants to
develop map related information to serve
their specific needs. Often these data were
received in hard copy only, even though the
consultant developed their deliverables using digital mapping or GIS technology.
