Between the Poles

UK pilots demonstrate secure platform for sharing information about underground utility networks

In the 2017 autumn budget the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced an important initiative to increase the value of the contribution of spatial data to the UK economy. The Geospatial Commission was created in the centre of government, as an independent, expert committee. It aims to unlock the significant economic opportunities offered by geospatial data and to reinforce the UK’s geospatial expertise on the global stage.

To provide strategic oversight of the geospatial landscape in the UK, the Commission provided a  £5 million fund to support collaborative data projects across 6 Partner Bodies - Ordnance Survey, HM Land Registry, British Geological Survey, Valuation Office Agency, UK Hydrographic Office and Coal Authority who between them hold most of the governments high quality geospatial data.

Among the first projects initiated by the Geospatial Commission was a process leading to the creation of a National Underground Assets Register (NUAR).  The objective of NUAR was to create a secure means to share information about underground infrastructure mainly among local government organizations, and utility and telecom network operators.  The register is intended to show where electricity and telecom cables, and gas and water pipes are buried and is targeted on several use cases: safe digging to avoid utility strikes, on-site construction efficiency, site planning, data exchange, and improved coordination. The project started with £3.9 million allocated for two pilot projects split between Central London and North East of England.

The system for sharing underground data for both pilots was provisioned by OS on an in-country cloud platform. It is built on an OGC standard data model and supports OGC standards such as WFS for data exchange which enables most GIS products such as QGIS and ArcGIS to access it. A lot of the effort was devoted to security, privacy and protection of competitive information. For each network operator there is a terms and conditions document that defines the legal requirements for how that operator's data can be used, Queries are limited to 10,000 square meters for field user access and there are other limits to prevent multiple queries aimed at viewing an entire network. System users are network operators, local government, and contractors working for either of these.

Using an earlier prototype version of this platform in 2018 OS and Northumbrian Water undertook to create a map of underground infrastructure in Newcastle on Tyne.  The objective was to compile in collaboration with utilities, local authorities and partners a combined infrastructure map for small sample areas including water, wastewater, gas, electricity, telecoms and other underground services. The project benefited from a spirit of cooperation - all major local utilities and telecoms in Newcastle were happy to share their data and had vector data available to contribute.  The result was a database where each utility was steward of its own data which was shared through a hub. Interoperability based on OGC standards was demonstrated with three different GIS systems consuming the combined underground data through APIs. The data could be ingested into GIS systems with internet access, regardless of format and provisioned to both field engineers and planners.    As part of this experiment in creating a shared map of underground utilities, contractors were brought in to actually dig a hole so that participants could experience first hand what is involved in excavating to determine the location of buried utility assets.  OS created a web interface to enable excavation teams in the field to access the data relevant to them via a mobile device.  By the end of the week it was possible to demonstrate a working system that allowed excavators to query the map of underground utilities and use this information during excavation and construction.  At the innovation festival a data sharing agreement was developed that all parties agreed to – Northumbrian Water, Northern Gas Networks, Northern Power Grid, Openreach, Durham County Council, Newcastle and Sunderland City Councils, Cranfield Soil and Agrifood Institute, British Geological Survey and Ordnance Survey.

Following on the innovation festival the participants formed the North East Underground Infrastructure Hub (NEUIHub) consortium in order to progress the creation of a ‘Common Infrastructure Map’ implementing a dataset that contains almost full water, gas, electricity and a great deal of telco data for the city of Sunderland.

The most recent implementation of the NUAR system was deployed in late 2019 in the North East of England and as part of the pilot in Central London. When I was in Newcastle for a meeting of the NUAR Advisory Group, we went out in the field with an iPad to compare the network information available on the NUAR pilot system with above-ground visible infrastructure, manhole and handhole covers with distinctive designs allowing the below-ground network to be identified.  While the quality of the data was what I expected from utility as-builts (PAS 128 quality level D), the remarkable part of the experience was being able to see all the underground networks, water, wastewater, electric power, gas, and telecom, in the query area together on the screen - a very rare experience anywhere in the world.

The Central London pilot is covering the area of six boroughs in Central London. While the vast majority of relevant data has already been vectorized in the Northeast of England, this is not necessarily the case in London.The Greater London Authority (GLA) will provide funding to local authorities to locate data and upgrade its format for use within the pilot platform. To enable comparison of vector and raster data, for three of the boroughs all the data will be vectorized. For the remainder various formats including raster will be used.

There are two remarkable achievements of these pilots.  The first is a secure legal framework within which municipal government organizations and network operators are able to safely and securely share their data. When a user accesses data of a network operator, there is a downloadable document associated with the data that defines the terms and conditions under which the data can be used. 

The other remarkable element is that it makes it very easy to provide information about  errors that are observed by stakeholders in the field, for example, if a contractor performing road work for a town council exposes pipes or cables that are not located where utility as-builts indicate they should be. In the NUAR pilot system these are called observations and are represented by green triangles associated with the incorrectly located features. Observations enable a worker who notices an error in the field - a wrong location, incorrect type of equipment, or other problem - to enter corrected information about the location, type of equipment, and other information from a mobile device.

Damage to underground utilities represents a significant risk to the public and is a major cause of construction project delays and budget overruns. The NUAR project represents an important step forward in enabling the sharing of information about the location and other information about underground infrastructure that will contribute to reducing the risk of damage to underground utilities during construction.

National underground infrastructure map could deliver £245 million per year to UK

The Geospatial Commission’s Annual Plan 2019/20 describes the activities that it plans to undertake in 2019/2020 to develop the UK’s National Geospatial Strategy.  The first project announced for 2019/2020 is its intention to fund two pilots that would lead to a national rollout of a National Underground Asset Register.

The Geospatial Commission was created in April 2018 as an independent, expert committee in the centre of government. The objective is to create value for the national economy from geospatial data and to further develop the UK’s geospatial expertise for the global market.  The Geospatial Commission issued a Call for Evidence in August 2018 to identify opportunities relating to  geospatial data and technologies.

The Geospatial Commission has sought to identify low hanging fruit, the priority sectors and interventions that will provide value rapidly and where the need for government intervention is clearest. One of first that was identified is the significant value that could be released by accurate and reliable subsurface data by a National Underground Asset Register.  Such a register would lower risk for every construction and infrastructure project, because current practice is hugely inefficient and error prone as the gas explosion in 2004 in Flanders has shown.  Recognizing the risk of asset strikes with attendant danger to life, project delays, cost overruns and disruption to traffic and local economies, over the past year the Geospatial Commission has conducted a research exercise into the business of locating underground utilities.  As a result the Geospatial Commission has just announced that its first 2019/20 project is an investment of £3.9 million into two regional pilots; one led by the Greater London Authority (GLA) in London and the the other led by the Ordnance Survey in the North East of England. The GLA will focus on data conditioning and modelling, and the OS will provide the prototype platform and associated technical design and experience to test the use cases of safer digging and project and data-exchange efficiencies. This has a total estimated value of £245 million per annum. These pilots will be used to determine how to proceed with the tender for a regional build and national rollout of a National Underground Asset Register.  The Geospatial Commission has estimated that a national underground infrastructure map could deliver £245 million per year to the UK economy.

US 3D elevation project as a model for a national infrastructure map

A number of years ago an initiative was funded under the ARRA economic stimulus package to initiate what was then called LiDAR for the Nation.  This has resulted in a USGS initiative called 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) whose goal over an eight year period is to develop a 3D elevation map with horizontal resolution of a meter and vertical resolution of 10 cm for the entire U.S. and territories.  This entails LiDAR scanning the contiguous continental U.S. and Hawaii and interferometric synthetic radar over Alaska.  It also includes bathymetric data for the U.S. coastline.  To date 48% of the U.S. has been covered or scanning is underway.  An inventory of these projects is available.

At GIS in the Rockies this year Carol Lydic of the USGS gave an overview of this program and the most recent initiatives to broaden the partnerships that are instrumental in creating the national 3D elevation map.  The program is based on partnerships with federal, state, local, and tribal government agencies, academic institutions and the private sector.

In 2012 a study was completed that estimated the economic value to 27 different sectors of accurate 3D data.  The top five included in this study (National Enhanced Elevation Assessment) are

• Flood risk management                                  $295m to  $502m
• Infrastructure and construction management $206m to  $942m
• Natural resources conservation                     $159m to  $335m
• Agriculture and precision farming                  $122m to $2,011m
• Water supply and quality                                  $85m to  $156m

The total economic benefits for all sectors was estimated to be between $1.8B to $13B.   I find this to be a very conservative estimate. 

A number of years ago I remember hearing about an outstanding program by the state of North Carolina in cooperation with federal agencies that involved a statewide LiDAR scan and the creation of a database of all structures with a footprint of over 800 square feet that allowed estimates to be made of the economic impact of any type of flood anywhere in the state or of a rise in sea level along North Carolina's coastline.  This is of inestimable value in assessing any mitigation project.

In the infrastructure and construction sector, one of the largest contributors to the cost of a civil construction project such as a highway or a railway, is the amount of earth that has to be moved which can be derived from a 3D terrain model.  Having a reliable digital terrain model is of great value to any civil project for assessing alternative right of ways during the planning stage and could also be used during the design and construction phases especially if supplemented by information about the soil and geological structure of the subsurface and location of underground utilities.

I found the 3DEP project particularly interesting because it represents a potential model for creating a national infrastructure map including underground infrastructure.  Federal organizations that could be involved include USGS, National Map, US DOT, FERC, and NERC.  Partners might include NARUC (National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners), CGA (Common Ground Alliance), state and municipal DOTs, AGC (Associated General Contractors of America), utility and telecom network operators, general contractors, tribal government agencies, and academic institutions.

UK Mastermap to be made freely available

As part of the Prime Minister’s London Tech Week roundtable, the UK Government has announced that key parts of the OS MasterMap will be made openly available for the public and businesses to use. OS MasterMap is the definitive source of highly-detailed geographic data of Great Britain.  The government estimates that this will boost the UK economy by at least £130m each year, as innovative companies and startups use the data.  The release of OS MasterMap data is one of the first projects to be delivered by the new Geospatial Commission which I blogged about recently.

This has been a long journey.  Many have argued for years that opening Mastermap would benefit the UK economy.   A study released in February, 2008 estimated the benefits to the UK economy if spatial data were available at no cost instead of the current relatively high cost as compared to the US, for example.  The study estimated that the gross  benefits to the UK economy would be around £168 million a year while a government subsidy to the OS of something between £12 million and £85 million would be required. Overall this implied a net benefit to the UK economy of between £83 to £156 million.  There are risks associated with making the Ordnance Survey, the semi-commercial organization responsible for Mastermap a purely government agency, witness the USGS in the U.S., but there is no doubt that open data has benefited the U.S. economy and other economies.

UK's Geospatial Commission could play a role in the digital transformation of construction

Governments are consolidating the role of geospatial data and technology in central governments. I have blogged about the Geospatial Data Act of 2017 in the U.S. Studies of the value of spatial data  and technology to several national economies have suggested that wise government policy could significantly increase the contribution of spatial data and technology to the national GDP.  Earlier this year the UK government created a Geospatial Commission which is intended to consolidate ten government departments and agencies including the Ordnance Survey. At Geo Business 2018 in London, William Priest, Director of the Geospatial Commission, gave an overview of the mission of the Geospatial Commission and the role it could play in the digital transformation of construction.

‎ Geospatial data and technology has disrupted things like nothing else. In the hands of Google, Uber, Tesla, Apple, Amazon, Twitter, and others geospatial data and technology have touched just about everyone's lives.  And the UK has been a leader in the application geospatial data and technology.  Among the countries of the world the UK ranks #1 or #2 in geospatial readiness. The Geospatial Commission has been allocated GBP 40 million‎ for year 1 and year 2 to find ways to use geospatial technology to deliver economic growth and improve productivity and drive investment to foster innovation and to protect and enhance the quality of the UK's world class geospatial data assets. If this money is spent money wisely, it could unlock tremendous value in the UK economy, primarily by removing removing barriers, for example, in making the Ordnance Survey's Mastermap more open and accessible.

Of the potential use cases where geospatial data and technology could unlock value - healthcare and social welfare, housing, land and planning, optimizing end-to-end supply chains, infrastructure and construction, forecasting demand for public services, data quality and standards, flood prevention and protection, earth observation, and critical national infrastructure - the one that could have the largest impact on the economy is construction which represents roughly 10 % of GDP.  In a recent report, McKinsey & Company suggests that the construction industry is ripe for disruption and one of the five technologies that it identified as key in the anticipated transformation is geospatial.

Studies find geospatial proliferating across the world economy

The latest estimate of the annual contribution of the geospatial industry to the world economy of US$400 billion represents a substantial increase over a previous estimate of US$150-270 billion released in 2013.  Both reports agree that the total contribution of geospatial data and technology annually to the world's economy is to be calculated in trillions of US dollars.  There is evidence that geospatial's contribution is increasing.

 AlphaBeta used consumer surveys from 22 countries, big data analysis of online job postings and other analytics to determine the impact of geospatial data, technology and services on the world economy. The study (The Economic Impact of Geospatial Services, AlphaBeta, September 2017) estimates that geospatial services generated annual revenue of US$400 billion per year in 2016 - this directly contributed to increasing the world's GDP. In addition geospatial data, technology and services save time and fuel for the travelling public - this contributes to increasing labour productivity. The study estimates that these efficiency benefits save the public over US$550 billion per year. Together the contribution in efficiency gains and direct revenue are estimated to reach almost a trillion US dollars. This is viewed as a conservative estimate of the contribution of geospatial to the world economy since the study was able to quantify only a few of the ways that geospatial data, technology and services benefit the economy.  The ways that AlphaBeta was able to quantify in which geospatial contributes to the world economy include productivity gains for the travelling public, direct revenue generated by the geospatial industry, and revenue gains and cost savings in other industries from using geospatial data and technology.

Productivity - digital map data and technology shorten traveling time by 12% (estimated to be worth US$ 264 billion). It also saves US$ 20 billion in fuel. Geospatial also enables consumers to make buying decisions faster, saving more than 21 billion hours (estimated to be worth US$283 billion).

Direct revenue - the geospatial industry generates US$400 billion in revenue per year.

Indirect revenue and savings - the study suggests that the increased revenue from geospatial-enabled services is several times higher that direct revenue to the geospatial industry. For example, the study estimates that digital maps drives US$1.2 trillion of sales worldwide. Furthermore the study estimates that geospatial technology improves revenues and costs by at least 5 percent in sectors contributing more than 70 percent to global GDP, for example, retail and mining. This has an estimated value of about US$2.7 trillion.

Other non-quantified benefits - other benefits that are difficult to put a price tag on include creating 4 million jobs, reducing automobile emissions by 1,686 million metric tons, reducing emergency response time by up to to 20% in some countries, and improving emergency preparedness.

To put this in context, according to a report prepared by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in June 2012 the geospatial services industry in the United States generated annual revenues of $75 billion. The BCG report estimated the economic impact of the geospatial services industry on government, business, and consumers to be $1.6 trillion in revenues (greater efficacy) and $1.4 trillion (about 8.7% of the U.S. GDP) in cost savings (greater efficiency).  In 2013 Google released a report What is the economic impact of Geo services ? prepared by Oxera Consulting Ltd. Global revenues from geospatial products and services as defined by Oxera was estimated to be $150-$270 billion per year. The $270 billion estimate was computed by scaling up the BCG estimate for the United States to the world economy.  The latest report considerably increases the estimated direct revenue to the geospatial industry, but is inline with the 2013 report in estimating that the total benefits of geospatial to the economy lies in the range of several trillions of US dollars.  The improvements in revenue and costs in all industries which use geospatial data and technology is estimated to amount to roughly 3% of the world's GDP.

For comparison the most quoted estimate of geospatial data an technology to a national economy is a 2008 a report prepared for the CRCSI & ANZLIC by ACIL Tasman estimated that the spatial information sector contributed between 0.6% and 1.2% of the Australian GDP in in 2006-2007.  The recent Google results suggest that the proliferation of geospatial data and services has increased the penetration of geospatial in the world's economy.

There is other evidence that geospatial is proliferating in the world's economy.  McKinsey has estimated that by 2020 the benefits (difference between willingness to pay and the cost of applications) that customers, consumers and businesses, will enjoy from location-based applications will reach as much as US$700 billion/year. Most of this, about 70 %, will be the consumer benefit from time and fuel saved by using GNSS navigation systems including those with real-time traffic information and mobile LBS applications. The remaining 30 % of the benefits will be through location-enabled applications such as geo-targeted mobile advertising.  Smart navigation applications are estimated to provide $500 billion in value to global consumers in time and fuel saved by 2020. Geo-targeted advertising could represent more than 5 percent of total global advertising spending by 2020.

A major industry where geospatial is already having a significant impact which may accelerate is construction.  Globally construction is expected to grow by almost 70% from $7.2 trillion today to $12 trillion by 2020.   Construction productivity has been stagnant in many advanced economies for decades.  It has been slow to adopt process and technological innovations and its R&D spending has lagged other industries. In a recent report, Imagining construction’s digital future, McKinsey suggests compelling reasons why the construction industry is ripe for disruption and how digitization might contribute to its transformation.  Two of the technologies that McKinsey identifies that will be key in the anticipated transformation are geospatial and BIM. 

Geospatial contributes $21 billion to the Canadian GDP

Prashant Shukle, Director General of Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation (CCMEO) at Natural Resources Canada, invited the Canadian geospatial community to a pre-release discussion of the just released Canadian Geomatics Environmental Scan and Economic Value Study of the contribution of the geospatial sector to the Canadian economy.  The Canadian study was conducted by Hickling Arthurs Low Corporation with partners ACIL Allen Consulting, Fujitsu Canada and ConsultingWhere.  According to Prashant

"For the first time, we have quantified not only the contributions of Canada’s geomatics sector to the economy in terms of GDP and employment, but we have captured the significant economic and non-economic benefits to Canada’s economy, society and environment that the adoption and use of geospatial information (GI) makes possible.

The productivity benefits that accompany the use of GI in a variety of applications are of particular significance, not only for innovation within Canada’s vertical industries, but for federal or provincial governments – who tend to have silos of geomatics expertise and have been slower to fully use and integrate GI into operations, planning and policy-making."

The study found that in 2013 the traditionally defined Canadian geospatial industry (2,450 private sector geomatics firms) generated revenue of $2.3 billion. This includes revenue generated by surveying, geodesy and positioning, mapping, remote sensing, geospatial data management, geospatial consulting, and mass market geospatial.

The total contribution of geospatial to the Canadian GDP through productivity improvement was estimated at $20.7 billion or 1.1% of the Canadian GDP in 2013.  The sectors most impacted by productivity improvements resulting from the application of geospatial data and technology are

• mining, quarrying, oil and gas extraction (4.54%)
• transportation and warehousing (1.64%)
• utilities (1.58%)
• public administration (1.51%)
• construction (1.23%)
• agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting (1.22%)
• management of companies and enterprises (1.08%).

The study also estimated the impact of open geospatial data to the Canadian economy.  It found that open data contributed $ 695 million in productivity improvement to the GDP in 2013.   McKinsey Global Institute estimated that the value of all types of open data to the global economy was $3 trillion.

Several countries have done similar studies in the past. 

Australia

In 2008 a report prepared for the CRCSI & ANZLIC by ACIL Tasman estimated that the spatial information sector contributed between $6.4 billion and $12.6 billion to the Australian gross domestic product (GDP) or  between 0.6% and 1.2% of the Australian GDP in in 2006-2007.  Secondly, it was estimated that restrictions on access to spatial data reduced productivity in some economic  sectors by between 5% and 15%. With open access to spatial data the Australian GDP could have been about 7% higher in 2006-2007.  Thirdly, it was estimated that with the right policies the contribution of the geospatial sector to the national economy in the medium term had the potential to be up to 50% higher than in 2006-2007.

New Zealand

In 2009 a study  sponsored by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), the Department of Conservation (DOC) and the Ministry for Economic Development (MED) estimated that spatial information added at least $1.2 billion, or about 0.6% of GDP, to the New Zealand economy through productivity gains. ACIL Tasman conducted both the Australian and the New Zealand studies. 

Ireland

A study commissioned by Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSi) and carried out by Indecon International Economic Consultants estimates that the geospatial information industry directly contributed €69.3-million (Gross Added Value) to the Irish economy in 2012.  The estimated economic value of annual time savings through the use of geospatial information is € 279 million or about 0.6 % of the Irish GDP. 

United States

According to a report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) published in June 2012 the geospatial services industry in the United States generates annual revenues of $75 billion.  The BCG report estimates the economic impact of the geospatial services industry on government, business, and consumers is estimated to be $1.6 trillion in revenues (greater efficacy) and $1.4 trillion (about 8.7% of the U.S. GDP) in cost savings (greater efficiency).

World

In 2013 Google released a report What is the economic impact of Geo services ? prepared by Oxera Consulting Ltd. Global revenues from geospatial products and services as defined by Oxera was estimated to be $150-$270 billion per year.  The $270 billion estimate was computed by scaling up the BCG estimate for the United States to the world economy.  Sanjay Kumar quotes an estimate by JP Morgan that the professional geospatial market is worth $100 billion.

The Canadian value study (in which the descendant of ACIL Tasman participated) found that the impact of geospatial technology on the Canadian economy is already significant and that there are opportunities for increasing the contribution of geospatial to the economy.  Although revenue from the traditionally defined geospatial industry is projected to be flat,  the study concluded that there is major growth potential in integrated geospatial - integrating location services into vertical industries. 

Prashant emphasized that to enable the geospatial sector to grow, the geospatial community needs to act collaboratively.  A new organization GeoAlliance Canada is being established to encourage this to happen.  It was launched April 20 in Ottawa.  You can express interest in participating in GeoAlliance Canada here.

Geospatial contributed €69.3-million directly to the Irish economy in 2012

A report commissioned by Ordnance Survey Ireland (OSi) and carried out by Indecon International Economic Consultants estimates that the geospatial information industry directly contributed €69.3-million (Gross Added Value) to the Irish economy in 2012.   

According to the report, the industry generated sales valued at €117.5 million in 2012, and spent a total of € 84.4 million on salaries of 1,677 full-time equivalent persons who were directly employed by the industry.  The industry supports the employment of 3087 people.

The geospatial sector had an economy-wide impact of € 126.4 million.  Furthemore, the estimated economic value of annual time savings through the use of geospatial information is € 279 million.

The report also found the use of geospatial information saved the public sector €82 million per year in administrative costs in both local and national government.

Australian Government sponsors report on the economic benefits of global positioning systems

The Australian Government has prepared reports on the economic benefits of global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) including specific sectors of the Australian economy.  The studies were conducted by ACIL Allen.  

To provide some context for this two countries, Australia and New Zealand, have commissioned studies to estimate the contribution of geospatial data and technology to the national economy.  In 2008 a report prepared for the CRCSI & ANZLIC by ACIL Tasman estimated that the spatial information sector contributed between $6.4 billion and $12.6 billion to the Australian gross domestic product (GDP).  That represents between 0.6% and 1.2% of the Australian GDP in in 2006-2007.  In 2009 a study  sponsored by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), the Department of Conservation (DOC) and the Ministry for Economic Development (MED) estimated that spatial information added at least $1.2 billion, or about 0.6% of GDP, to the New Zealand economy through productivity gains.  Canada has announced the award of a similar project to a team that includes ACIL Tasman, who conducted the Australian and New Zealand studies.

Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) is the generic term for constellations of satellites that provide a signal that enables users to determine their position anywhere outdoors. The first GNSS system was the U.S. global positioining system or GPS.  Since then Russia, Europe and China have launched their own satellite systems GLONASS, Galileo and Beidou.

Augmented GNSS provide greater accuracy and reliability to end user by bringing in additional  external information.  These systems are composed of multiple ground stations, located at accurately-surveyed points. The ground stations take measurements of the signal from the GNSS satellites and estimate the errors which impact the signal received by the users.  This information is transmitted to end users by satellite or by terrestrial radio.

The report finds that  augmented GNSS services have delivered economic benefits to Australian industry through improvements in productivity and more efficient use of resources. It estimates that: in 2012 augmented GNSS added between $2.3 billion and A$3.7 billion to Australia’s real GDP through improved productivity. It also projected that in 2020 real GDP would be between $7.8 billion and $13.7 billion higher as a result of the ues of augmented GNSS.

The report found that the greatest economic impact from the use of augmented GNSS was found to be in the agricultural, mining, construction and surveying sectors. But the utilities and transport sectors also realised important economic benefits.

The greatest economic benefits in 2012 were derived from the use of augmented GNSS in surveying, machine guidance, automation of operations and asset mapping. The levels of accuracy required for these applications ranges between 2 cm and 10 cm.

Augmented GNSS and utilties

Augmented GNSS contributes significantly to the productivity and competitiveness of the utilities sector which in this study includes electricity, gas and water services. Utilities use augmented GNSS data with geographic information systems to construct, monitor and manage network assets, manage outages, maintain systems and forecast demand.  Augmented GNSS lowers development costs and invreases the efficient of asset management. Output from the utilities sector is estimated to have been between $50 million and $81 million higher as a result of the use of augmented GNSS in asset management and maintenance.

It is estimated that With increasing adoption of augmeneted GNSS in asset mapping and control systems, this could increase to between $173 million and $305 million by 2020. Further improvements in productivity are expected as the technology is adopted more widely across industry and as more innovative applications emerge.

Economic value of open data estimated at $3 trillion annually

Open data has been gathering momentum among governments ever since United States Federal Government data was placed in the public domain.  The principle of free and open access to government geospatial data has been adopted by many governments including US Federal, Canada, Japan, South Africa, Brazil, California state and counties, and by the City of Vancouver and other cities.  G8 leaders (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, United Kingdom, United States, and the European Union) recently signed a charter on open data.  But being able to access prepared maps and other derived material is just a first step, governments need to provide access to raw geospatial data in commonly used Web-friendly formats.  In May 2013, President Obama issued an Executive Order making open and machine readable the new default for federal government information in the United States. 

A major motivation for open data has been government transparency.  But there is also a strong belief that open data contributes to the economy.  I blogged earlier about a study by a team at Cambridge University commissioned by the Treasury that found that making all Ordnance Survey data (geospatial data)  free would cost the government £12m but bring a net gain of £156m.  Australia and New Zealand have commissioned studies of the contribution of spatial data to the national economy that have concluded that with appropriate government policies the contribution to the GDP, estimated to be on the order of 1%, could be doubled.

McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) have just published a study that seeks to quantify the value of open data by examining applications in seven fields of the global economy: education, transportation, consumer products, electricity, oil and gas, health care, and consumer finance.  Their research found that seven sectors alone would generate more than $3 trillion a year in additional value as a result of open data.

For each of the sectors they looked at, MGI identified ways that open data could create economic value and identified potential barriers to adoption.

Electricity sector

For example in the electricity sector, MGI identified five levers for using open data to improve efficiency across the electricity value chain:

1. improved generation investment
2. efficient generation operations
3. optimized investment in transmission and distribution
4. efficient transmission and distribution operations
5. optimized retail and consumption

By using publicly available data such as siting applications, resource planning documents, and regulatory filings, utilities can streamline the permitting process for new power projects.

ƒƒ By sharing benchmarking data about processes such as maintenance routines and equipment utilization, power companies can optimize the performance of generating operations.

Open data can help optimize investments in transmission and distribution.

Sharing data gathered via “smart grid” technologies can help identify efficiency opportunities in transmission and distribution operations.

Open data makes it possible to compare products and services so that residential and business users make better decisions about which appliances, equipment an electric service to use.

Electric power usage data combined with community-wide data can show customers how their energy use compares with neighbors and peer organizations.

MGI estimates that open data has the potential to add $340 billion to $580 billion of value annually across the electricity value chain.

Economic potential

MGI found that the benefits of open data has a large potential economic value including increased efficiency, new products and services, and a consumer surplus (cost savings, convenience, better products).  The concluded that it benefits consumers more than businesses, by creating price and product transparency as well as new channels to provide feedback that improves the quality of goods and services (including public ones).

But open data involves business risks, including the potential release of negative information; the potential consumer backlash from aggressive open-data use; and the inadvertent release of confidential information.

The barriers to wider use of open data include privacy issues and the need for legal and regulatory frameworks.  To address these issues MGI recommends that governments need to play a central role by developing and implementing policies to mitigate consumer and business concerns about the misuse of open data and to help set standards that will allow the potential economic and social benefits to materialize.