Between the Poles

MEST 2009: Spatial Data, Convergence, Intelligent Models, Collaboration, Open Source Geospatial, GeoWeb, and Fusion

One of the distinguishing characteristics of the MEST conferences, is the daily wrap up where one of the organizers briefly reviews and summarizes the day's presentations.  I find the exercise very worthwhile because it gives you a chance to review and digest what you've heard during the day's proceedings.  There is also a session at the end of the conference, where the entire conference is reviewed by several of the speakers and organizers. 

By way of a little background, MEST is organized by the Bahrain Society of Engineers, so I find it more akin to the infrastructure conferences I attend than a traditional GIS conference.   Although it has commercial sponsors, it is non-denominational and this is reflected in most of the presentations.  It also tends to attract government people from many of the Gulf states, Bahrain, Yemen, Oman, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia.

This year I was one of the panelists for the final wrap up, and I mentally did my own review which I presented as a personal precis of the conference.

Spatial Data

One of the themes that came up repeatedly was the importance of data, and especially of accurate, real-time data. Spatial data now includes not just traditional geospatial data sources but other sources such as architectural and engineering design, laser scanning, high resolution photogrammetry with multiple cameras, and ground penetrating radar.  Some of the newer technologies for acquiring spatial date were the subject of several talks including laser-scanning and LiDAR, high resolution photogrammetry, and earth observation satellites.  Dominic McPolin of the Central Planning Unit (CPU) in Bahrain and others emphasized the importance of reliable data in infrastructure planning.

Intelligent Models

Increasingly people want to do more than simply prepare maps.  They want to analyze and and simulate which requires more intelligent data.  For years utilities and telecommunications companies have maintained information about their outside facilities including location, properties such as maintenance records, and connectivity, because outage management, asset management and other utility applications require this information.  For example, outage management (OMS) is the primary user of connectivity because OMS typically needs to perform traces to identify controlling devices which may be the source of network traces and to identify customers affected by the failure of a device such as a transformer or pump. The increasing adoption of model-based design for structures such as buildings (building information modeling or BIM), roads and highways, electric power substations, nuclear power stations, hydroelectric plants, and renewable energy generation facilities, means that intelligent models are becoming available for many more types of infrastructure. Government permitting organizations are seeing the advantage of model-based design and are mandating (US GSA) or recommending (Singapore BCA) BIM to support building permit submissions.

Convergence

Another common theme is the convergence of architectural and engineering design, traditional GIS, and 3D technologies which enable what Dominic McPolin called a more holistic view of the built world.  World trends such as population growth, global climate change, and increasing complexity of our world are seen as major drivers motivating the broader interest in convergence.  Dominic McPolin emphasized that the complexity of modern economies requires a new fusion that will allow us to respond effectively to global climate change and other world challenges and predicted that because of its small size next year Bahrain will be a world leader in developing a new fusion of information and systems or conceptual business architecture that will provide a more holistic view of the national economy.

Collaboration

An important theme throughout the conference was the importance of collaboration between different disciplines such as engineering and business, different levels of government, different government ministries and agencies, and government and the private sector.  IT in many organizations is characterized by stovepipes, or islands of information, with limited communications between the different IT systems such as ERP, CRM, GIS, engineering design and others.  For example, a large utility or telecommunications firm may have thousands of applications, each running on one of ten or more operating systems, with its own proprietary database, which may be one of nine or more independent databases containing the same information.  This problem is exacerbated in government by multiple levels of government, national, state or provincial, and municipal.  In this respect small, centralized nations such as Singapore and Bahrain often have a significant advantage, because the problems associated with multiple levels of government are minimized.

Dr Al-Tamimi outlined a vendor-neutral architecture for the integration of different spatial systems within government including infrastructure, engineering, building permitting, mapping, and environmental, that is designed to be implemented in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.  A key feature of the architecture Dr Al-Tamimi is developing is that it includes the full range of spatial information from the very detailed, engineering precision, large scale to very small scale.  He said that integrating model-based design or BIM is a priority and planned as the next step. 

Ron Lake, who has developed and has been proselytizing the concept of the GeoWeb or worldwide, web-based  integration of spatial information for several years, made what I think is a key point that the GeoWeb needs to be treated as a web of systems, rather than a web of documents.  Ron, who is the founder of the GeoWeb conferences, has been a proponent for the integration of model-based design and BIM, which was a central theme of the last GeoWeb in Vancouver, as a key component of the GeoWeb.

New Software Business Models

Several of the presentations at the conference either focussed on open source geospatial software or described projects that used open source software.  Daniel Ames, from Idaho State University, gave what I suspect was an eye-opening presentation for many in the audience, outlining some of the advantages of open source software.  He referred several times to the Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGEO) and very generously mentioned Autodesk's initial and continued support for the OSGEO.  Dan is the founder of  the MapWindow open source project, which has about 250 participants worldwide including 20 committers (developers with permission to contribute and modify code.) 

Innovation

Bahrain has announced that it intends to reduce CO2 emissions per capita by 60% by 2014. This will require the biggest infrastructure program (road, water, electricity) program the country has ever seen.  Dominic McPolin was unequivocal in identifying the key to achieving this aggressive goal as innovation and he made an impassioned plea to the private sector to provide the technology to enable this goal to be realized.

MEST 2009: Locating Underground Infrastructure in Bahrain

Today at MEST 2009, I had the opportunity to see a system for maintaining a single database containing all underground infrastructure in Bahrain.  A single repository for all underground facilities is something that is only possible in a very few places in the world such as Tokyo and other Japanese cities, Sarajevo, Calgary, and Edmonton, which are the ones I am aware of.  The system I saw is the Intelligent Decision Support System (iDSS) of the Ministry of Works and it was shown to me by Mr. Abbas Ally, Head of Central Planning Engineering in the Central Planning Office (CPO).

The Bahrain underground infrastructure system is unique for several reasons.

One Database of All Underground Infrastructure

According to Mr. Abbas the location of all underground infrastructure in Bahrain is stored in a single Oracle Spatial RDBMS.

• electricity including transmission, distribution, and street lighting,
• water including transmission and distribution,
• wastewater including storm, road, sanitary, and combined
• telecommunications

Stewardship

The source databases are maintained by the respective owners, water and electricity by the Water and Electricity Authority, telecommunications by Batelco, and wastewater by the Ministry of Works.  iDSS has several layers of security, using OS and Oracle security, that determines who can see what, and who can update what.

Frequent Updates

The intention is for each operational database to be replicated to the iDSS database, which means that the iDSS database will be as up-to-date as the source databases are, though this capability does not appear to be functional at the present time.  In the short time that I have been here I haven't been able to determine how reliable the individual source databases, electricity, water, wastewater, and telecommunications, are.

Excavation Requests

Anyone proposing to add to or make a change to undergound infrastructure is required to complete a Proposal Request, essentially a building permit.  The request is forwarded electronically to all of the participating utilities, who are required to review and respond to the request within three days.  Utilities who don't respond within three days are assumed to have approved the request.  In 2008 over 7,000 requests were processed.

Voluntary

Accordng to Mr. Abbas, participation in iDSS is voluntary, but all utilities and Batelco are participating.  Mr. Abbas explained that the primary reason that all the utility and telecommunications companies have agreed to participate is the business benefits they see resulting from participation.  Given the amount of money utilities and telcos in North America spend on locating underground facilities in response to Call-Before-You-Dig and One-Call centers requests, I expect the business benefits to the individual utilities are considerable.

Stagnating Productivity in the Electric Power Utility Industry

Productivity has become a critical issue in the utility and telecom industries as a result of the aging and shrinking workforce.  Organizations are losing experienced designers to retirement faster than they can replace them with younger inexperienced workers.  This means that they are not only facing reduced headcount, but also fewer experienced workers.

I blogged previously about the challenge of an aging workforce in Europe.  Europe’s work force will begin shrinking in the coming years and is expected to become 15% smaller within five decades, according to the OECD.

This has long been recognized as a problem in North America as well.  In the US a Conference Board study Managing the Mature Workforce predicted that by 2010, the number of workers aged 35 to 44 will decline by 19%.  A study from the American Public Power Association (APPA) called Work Force Planning for the Public Power Utilities: Ensuring Resources to Meet Projected Needs reports that the loss of critical knowledge and the inability to find replacements with utility-specific skills are the two biggest challenges facing the industry.   In the utility industry as many as 60 percent of experienced utility workers will have retired by 2010. A Booz Allen Hamilton study predicted a 20% decline in productivity in the US power industry.

I collected some statistics from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics to compare productivity in the electric power industry to non farm industrial productivity.  The results, which are shown in the attached graph, show that productivity in the electric power industry increased more rapidly than non farm industrial productivity through 1998, but that since 1998 productivity in the electric power industry has stagnated. This confirms that the electric power utility industry is facing a serious productivity problem, which could not be happening at a worse time.  Green energy and smart grid initiatives mean that utilities have more on their plate than at any other time in recent memory.  Retiring workers are leaving faster than younger replacements can be hired and trained. Workers who are retiring have many years experience and are being replaced with younger, inexperienced workers.  And utilities are having a difficult time retaining younger workers.

Practical Infrastructure Management Solutions for Utilities

I just came across an article in Electric Light and Power that describes several practical applications that utilities have deployed with little fanfare for designing new infrastructure, managing network assets, or planning improvements for grid modernization.  Some of the challenges that these solutions help address are minimizing backlogs, providing a unified view of infrastructure data, empowering the field force, improving design productivity, incorporating intelligent design data into workflows for business processes such as outage management and maintenance, and developing and maintaining digital network models, all of which are going to be essential for the coming smart grid.

FCC: Current State of Broadband in the US

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) directed the FCC to submit a National Broadband Plan to Congress by February 17, 2010 that addresses broadband deployment, adoption, affordability, and the use of broadband to advance solutions to national priorities, including health care, education, energy, public safety, job creation, investment, and others. 

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has released an initial report on the current state of broadband in the U.S.

• Actual broadband speeds lag advertised speeds by at least 50% and possibly more during the busy hours.
• About 1% of users drive 20% of traffic, while 20% of users drive up to 80% of traffic.
• Preliminary analysis indicates that approximately three to six million people are unserved by basic broadband (speeds of 768 Kbps or less).  
• Preliminary estimates showing that the total investment required for universal broadband access ranging from $20 billion for 768 Mbps-3 Mbps service to $350 billion for 100 Mbps or faster. 
• The cost of providing consumers with a choice of infrastructure providers, and/or ensuring that all consumers have access to both fixed and mobile broadband would be significantly higher than these initial estimates. 
• Universal Service Fund recipients have made progress bringing broadband to rural America, but the fund faces systemic and structural problems.
• Nearly 2/3 of Americans have adopted broadband at home, while 33% have access but have not adopted it, and another 4% say they have no access where they live. 
• Wireless is increasingly moving to broadband, with smartphone sales projected to overtake sales of standard phones by 2011. 
• Bandwidth-hungry devices, applications and users are putting pressure on existing network capacity and driving many to cite the need for additional spectrum.
• The driving force behind national broadband plans in other nations has been competitiveness, job creation and innovation. 
• Successful national plans need four or more years of continuous effort and consistent funding sources.
• Broadband can be part of the solution to many of the nation’s challenges, creating economic and social benefits.
• Electronic health records, telemedicine, and mobile monitoring result in better, more affordable health care.
• Smart grids, smart homes and smart transportation, all of which require broadband, will be a critical part of our clean energy future.
• Delivery of government services, civic engagement, transparency in public policy can all be improved by broadband access and adoption.
• Over 70 percent of all high school students use the Internet as a primary source for homework. 
• Digital textbooks, online learning, teacher support and communications, digital student records can improve weak U.S. educational outcomes. 
• Internet use usage among people with disabilities is less than half that of the general population.
• Networks, equipment, services, devices and software are not designed to be accessible to people with disabilities.
• Consumers say online purchases save time and money, yet 39% have strong worries about giving out personal or credit card information. 
• 82% of upper income users compared to only 29% of low-income users have made purchases online.
• There are no mobile, wireless broadband communications services that meet the public safety community’s specialized needs
• As of 2005, over 77 percent of Fortune 500 companies post jobs and accept applications solely online.

Moving from a Paper-based to an Integrated CAD/GIS Infrastructure Management System

One of the challenges facing utilities and telecommunications firms worldwide is an inefficient paper-based process for managing engineering design information. The challenges associated with a paper-based information flow includes poor data quality, low productivity, multiple versions of similar information, and limited access to critical engineering information within the organization.  I blogged recently about how the St Paul Department of Public Works moved from 100 years of paper-based maps to an all-electronic system for recording data on its underground infrastructure to more effectively design and manage their sewer and storm water assets.

Here's another example from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.  The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) is the US’s largest municipal utility.  It provides electricity to 4 million residents and businesses in greater Los Angeles and serves 716,000 water customers.  In this webcast with WaterWorld Greg Ammon from Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) outlines how LADWP successfully migrated from a paper-based system to an integrated CAD/GIS system. 

GITA's New Geospatial Information Center for Infrastructure

The Geospatial Information & Technology Association (GITA) opened their new Geospatial Information Center for Infrastructure web site, an interactive, on-line community oriented site for geospatial applications for infrastructure on 09/09/09.

California Bill Requires Utilities to Submit Smart Grid Deployment Plans

California Senate Bill 17 (SB 17), which has been passed by both houses, requires that the Public Utilities Commission by July 1, 2010 determine the requirements for a smart grid deployment plan. The bill would require each electrical corporation, by July 1, 2011, to develop and submit a smart grid deployment plan to

the commission for approval.  Furthermore, the bill would require local publicly owned electric utilities to develop by July 1, 2011, a smart grid deployment plan consistent with the policies set forth in federal law. By placing requirements upon local publicly owned electric utilities, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

SB17 is important because, if it is signed into law by Governor Schwarzenegger, it will be the first official smart grid legislation to be implemented at the state level. (Image US Department of Energy)

Vancouver Transportation Project Wins Autodesk BIM Experience Award

H5M, a joint design team of Hatch Mott MacDonald (HMM) and the MMM Group, has received an Autodesk BIM Experience Award for its innovative application of building information modeling (BIM) for the Port Mann/Highway 1 (PMH1) project for the Ministry of Transportation of British Columbia. The H5M team used Autodesk software for BIM, including AutoCAD Civil 3D software, to help create a sustainable solution designed to manage traffic congestion and growth through 2031 and beyond. The project is valued at C$2.46 billion and is one of the largest transportation network projects under way in North America. The project design is about 40 percent complete and involves training and implementation services from IMAGINiT Technologies and support by the Autodesk Consulting team.  In addition to the PMH1 project, there is also a Digital Cities pilot currently underway between the City of Vancouver and Autodesk which is designed to build out an intelligent city model using BIM or “model-based” projects in the future.

Dubai Metro Opens On 09/09/09

I have blogged about Dubai a number of times over the past few years because it is such an incredibly dynamic and exciting place from the point of view of engineering and built infrastructure.  

The first section of the Dubai Metro, the Red Line with about 10 of the total 29 stations planned, opens today. The Metro is driverless and entirely automated.  The speed of the trains is 45-90 kph depending on the track section.  The whole 52.1km Red Line which runs from Rashidiva to Jebel Ali is expected to take about 60 minutes to travel.  The 17.6km Green Line runs from Al Ittihad Square to Rashidiya bus station.  When it is completed it will be the longest automated rail system in the world.  Each train has five cars with separate compartments for women and children.  A ride on the new metro will cost about 50 U.S. cents, while first class (gold-class) will cost US$3.55. The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) forecasts 200 million passenger trips annually. (Image Railway-technology.com)