Capstone Project Proposal: Increasing the Efficiency of and Adding Value to the CH2M Hill Enterprise by Improving Access

1. Capstone Project Proposal: Increasing the Efficiency of and Adding Value to the CH2M Hill Enterprise by Improving Access to Publicly Available Geospatial Data Jessica Gould Hello everyone. My name is Jessica Gould, thanks for attending my capstone project proposal presentation: Increasing the Efficiency of and Adding Value to the CH2M Hill Enterprise by Improving Access to Publicly Available Geospatial DataHello everyone. My name is Jessica Gould, thanks for attending my capstone project proposal presentation: Increasing the Efficiency of and Adding Value to the CH2M Hill Enterprise by Improving Access to Publicly Available Geospatial Data

2. Overview Background Problem Objectives Approach Proposed Solution Implementation Methodology Potential Challenges and Risks Desired Benefits Questions/Comments/Suggestions My presentation is outlined as follows: First I�ll give a little Background on myself and my employer Then I will Present the problem that I am attempting to solve, along with some background on the problem Followed by The objectives of my proposed solution, i.e. my Capstone Project The approach that I took to arrive at this proposed solution What the proposed solution is The methodology I plan to follow in order to implement this solution Some potential challenges or obstacles and risks that I may encounter The desired benefits of the project And finally feedback from you allMy presentation is outlined as follows: First I�ll give a little Background on myself and my employer Then I will Present the problem that I am attempting to solve, along with some background on the problem Followed by The objectives of my proposed solution, i.e. my Capstone Project The approach that I took to arrive at this proposed solution What the proposed solution is The methodology I plan to follow in order to implement this solution Some potential challenges or obstacles and risks that I may encounter The desired benefits of the project And finally feedback from you all

3. Background - me GIS Analyst 7+ years of GIS experience CH2M Hill Philadelphia office (Go Phillies!) 3+ years Enterprise GIS Water and wastewater data conversion for Municipalities Often leads to City-wide Enterprise GIS implementations A bit about me. I am a GIS analyst with roughly 7 years of hands-on GIS experience. I have worked for CH2M Hill in their Philadelphia office for just over 3 years. My area of interest with respect to GIS is Enterprise GIS implementations, mostly with Municipalities. Most of the work that I do is focused on water and wastewater data conversion to GIS and many times, this work is an impetus for Enterprise GIS implementations at the municipal level.A bit about me. I am a GIS analyst with roughly 7 years of hands-on GIS experience. I have worked for CH2M Hill in their Philadelphia office for just over 3 years. My area of interest with respect to GIS is Enterprise GIS implementations, mostly with Municipalities. Most of the work that I do is focused on water and wastewater data conversion to GIS and many times, this work is an impetus for Enterprise GIS implementations at the municipal level.

4. Background - CH2M Hill is an $5.8 billion global consulting firm. It is employee owned and was founded in 1938. It is focused on engineering, construction and operations solutions for public and private clients Currently, there are 25000 employees around the world, 17000 of which are in the United States in 135 officesCH2M Hill is an $5.8 billion global consulting firm. It is employee owned and was founded in 1938. It is focused on engineering, construction and operations solutions for public and private clients Currently, there are 25000 employees around the world, 17000 of which are in the United States in 135 offices

5. 11 business groups GIS Professionals Enterprise Management Solutions business group GIS Practice (150+) GIS users ~500 (e.g. ArcGIS, Google Earth, etc.) varying skill level, background and business group Each office has dedicated file server(s) CH employees and services are broken down into 11 business groups, one of which is the Enterprise Management solutions business group. Within EMS is the GIS Practice to which, I and 150 other GIS professionals belong. If you look at the US portion of the company, there are approx. 500 gis users. These include folks in all business groups who use products such as ArcGIS, Google Earth on projects. Each office has a dedicated file server or servers CH employees and services are broken down into 11 business groups, one of which is the Enterprise Management solutions business group. Within EMS is the GIS Practice to which, I and 150 other GIS professionals belong. If you look at the US portion of the company, there are approx. 500 gis users. These include folks in all business groups who use products such as ArcGIS, Google Earth on projects. Each office has a dedicated file server or servers

6. Problem Currently no internal data management best practices in place Data is stored on local server or personal computer Obtaining publicly available data On an ad hoc and as-needed basis directly from the source (i.e. the internet) by each individual user So what�s the problem I am attempting to solve? Well, the problem stems from the fact that there is no internal data management practices, centralized geoLibrary or enterprise gis in place at CH. While the EMS business group prides itself on Enterprise GIS implementations to clients, we just haven�t implemented anything internally yet. Before I go any further, I need to make a distinction between 2 different types of geospatial data that we generally use. The first is project specific data that we generate or are obtained from the client or another subcontractor. So, say monitoring well locations for a specific site. And then there is free, publicly available data that are traditionally obtained via download from the internet. So, say hydrology or major roads. Currently, both types of geospatial data are stored on each user�s local office file servers or worse, their personal computers. They are normally stored in project specific folders and almost always in their native format. And until recently, there was no standard folder structure in place for organizing file based geospatial data. In addition to the organization issues of the data, there are no best practices in place for obtaining or sharing publicly available data. Publicly available data is more likely to be used on several different projects by several different users than project specific data. These data are traditionally obtained on a as-needed and project specific purpose and each individual user is making their own judgment about the accuracy of their individually obtained data. You can see from the screen shot on this slide that the lack of all of these best practices leads to a real mess of data. Although everyone has access to all servers on the CH network, with respect to publicly available data, if I need aquifers data and Susie in Seattle downloaded it last week, I�m going to have no way of knowing that. So, what am I going to do? I�m most likely going to google �aquifers gis� and then spend the time looking for it, downloading it, and then save it on my office�s file server in my project�s folder.So what�s the problem I am attempting to solve? Well, the problem stems from the fact that there is no internal data management practices, centralized geoLibrary or enterprise gis in place at CH. While the EMS business group prides itself on Enterprise GIS implementations to clients, we just haven�t implemented anything internally yet. Before I go any further, I need to make a distinction between 2 different types of geospatial data that we generally use. The first is project specific data that we generate or are obtained from the client or another subcontractor. So, say monitoring well locations for a specific site. And then there is free, publicly available data that are traditionally obtained via download from the internet. So, say hydrology or major roads. Currently, both types of geospatial data are stored on each user�s local office file servers or worse, their personal computers. They are normally stored in project specific folders and almost always in their native format. And until recently, there was no standard folder structure in place for organizing file based geospatial data. In addition to the organization issues of the data, there are no best practices in place for obtaining or sharing publicly available data. Publicly available data is more likely to be used on several different projects by several different users than project specific data. These data are traditionally obtained on a as-needed and project specific purpose and each individual user is making their own judgment about the accuracy of their individually obtained data. You can see from the screen shot on this slide that the lack of all of these best practices leads to a real mess of data. Although everyone has access to all servers on the CH network, with respect to publicly available data, if I need aquifers data and Susie in Seattle downloaded it last week, I�m going to have no way of knowing that. So, what am I going to do? I�m most likely going to google �aquifers gis� and then spend the time looking for it, downloading it, and then save it on my office�s file server in my project�s folder.

7. Problem, cont. Stored data Data is stored redundantly in multiple files on multiple servers Data is not well organized Data is not accessible to others (other users are not aware that it has already been downloaded to a server in a remote location) Stored data is not accurate (out-dated) Data is file based Efficiency People waste time Data is redundantly copied (users download same data from the same source but it is stored on different servers) Effort required for tasks is excessive and duplicated Consistency Different versions of data are used So the current practices that I shared in the last slide, lead to, as you may have guessed, some issues. I mentioned many of these issues on the previous slide, but wanted to present them here in a more orderly fashion. These issues can be grouped into 3 main categories: Storage, Efficiency, and Consistency. I�ll start with the storage group. The scenario that I mentioned at the end of the last slide leads to data being redundantly stored, and this has a large impact on our Servers, wasted space. The next two issues I talked about previously, so I will skip to the last 2. A lot of times stored data is not accurate, and this applies to both types of data, especially if someone has made of copy of something to another server or another folder. And finally, the data is file based. there are many advantages to storing data in geodatabase as opposed to shapefiles. Some of these are annotation, relationshipclas ses, geometric networks, subtypes, domains, topology. And there is even more advantage to storing the data in an enterprise geodatabase within ArcSDE such as High performance Extremely large data volumes Spatial data integrity to ensure data fidelity Versioning and replication And overall a Reduced cost of ownership The second group of issues is Efficiency. We have a significant issue of wasted time and therefore a lack of efficiency. This mostly applies to publicly available data with respect to search for, downloading, and processing publicly available data. And finally Consistency. Different versions of data are being used on different projects. So again, Susie in Seattle and I may be both working on projects located in Baltimore, but may be using different Hydrology layers to make our maps or perform our analyses. Or with respect to project level data, Susie may have updated her copy of the a site�s monitoring wells in August, while I was making different updates to my copy in September. This isn�t as common of a problem, but it happens.So the current practices that I shared in the last slide, lead to, as you may have guessed, some issues. I mentioned many of these issues on the previous slide, but wanted to present them here in a more orderly fashion. These issues can be grouped into 3 main categories: Storage, Efficiency, and Consistency. I�ll start with the storage group. The scenario that I mentioned at the end of the last slide leads to data being redundantly stored, and this has a large impact on our Servers, wasted space. The next two issues I talked about previously, so I will skip to the last 2. A lot of times stored data is not accurate, and this applies to both types of data, especially if someone has made of copy of something to another server or another folder. And finally, the data is file based. there are many advantages to storing data in geodatabase as opposed to shapefiles. Some of these are annotation, relationshipclas ses, geometric networks, subtypes, domains, topology. And there is even more advantage to storing the data in an enterprise geodatabase within ArcSDE such as High performance Extremely large data volumes Spatial data integrity to ensure data fidelity Versioning and replication And overall a Reduced cost of ownership The second group of issues is Efficiency. We have a significant issue of wasted time and therefore a lack of efficiency. This mostly applies to publicly available data with respect to search for, downloading, and processing publicly available data. And finally Consistency. Different versions of data are being used on different projects. So again, Susie in Seattle and I may be both working on projects located in Baltimore, but may be using different Hydrology layers to make our maps or perform our analyses. Or with respect to project level data, Susie may have updated her copy of the a site�s monitoring wells in August, while I was making different updates to my copy in September. This isn�t as common of a problem, but it happens.

8. Objectives Provide users with geospatial data they require Increase efficiency of user Reduce impact on IT resources caused by redundantly downloading and storing data Establish standards and best practices for obtaining, storing, accessing, using and maintaining data Use this project as model for future projects Ok, so now that the problems are clearly identified and defined, it�s time to come up with a solution. So, the next step in developing a solution is to define what the objectives are. I could simply state that the objective is to save time and to save money. Isn�t that what everyone wants? Yes, and ultimately, that is our driver, but more specifically the objectives are: To Provide users with the geospatial data that they require. Users shouldn�t have to waste time searching for the data that they need either online or in a mess of a folder structure. Or they might not even know that a certain data exists. Increase the efficiency of the user Reduce the impact on servers and bandwidth caused by redundantly downloading and storing data Establish standards and best practices for obtaining, storing, accessing, using and maintaining data And to create standards and best practices for implementing future projects that are simiilar in nature. There are going to be a lot of lessons learned from this project and they will be documented, distributed, and implemented on future internal and external projects. Ok, so now that the problems are clearly identified and defined, it�s time to come up with a solution. So, the next step in developing a solution is to define what the objectives are. I could simply state that the objective is to save time and to save money. Isn�t that what everyone wants? Yes, and ultimately, that is our driver, but more specifically the objectives are: To Provide users with the geospatial data that they require. Users shouldn�t have to waste time searching for the data that they need either online or in a mess of a folder structure. Or they might not even know that a certain data exists. Increase the efficiency of the user Reduce the impact on servers and bandwidth caused by redundantly downloading and storing data Establish standards and best practices for obtaining, storing, accessing, using and maintaining data And to create standards and best practices for implementing future projects that are simiilar in nature. There are going to be a lot of lessons learned from this project and they will be documented, distributed, and implemented on future internal and external projects.

9. Root of the Problem 1987 - First GIS software purchased 2002 - EMS business group formed GIS Professionals belonged to various business groups 2006 - GIS practice formed EMS and GIS practice were organized by region (NE, SE, SW, NW) 2007 � Regional structure dissolves Global Delivery Center of Excellence is formed Drivers Best practices Work load leveling Ok, so now it�s time to begin to develop a solution. So the first step was to understand � why are we in the mess we are in and why hasn�t something been doen about it sooner?! So, a bit of history here, in 1987 CH purchased their first GIS software after relying on CAD for many years. At this time, GIS professionals belonged to various business groups according to application. So, because I focus on Water and Wastewater utility data conversion, I would most likely have belonged to the Water business group. But in 2002, EMS was born and then in 2006, practices were created within EMS, so all GIS professionals now belong to the GIS practice with EMS. However, we were all organized by region. In 2007, regions were dissolved and the Global Delivery Center of Excellence was formed. As part of this new structure, came a desire for global best practices and work load leveling across the practice.Ok, so now it�s time to begin to develop a solution. So the first step was to understand � why are we in the mess we are in and why hasn�t something been doen about it sooner?! So, a bit of history here, in 1987 CH purchased their first GIS software after relying on CAD for many years. At this time, GIS professionals belonged to various business groups according to application. So, because I focus on Water and Wastewater utility data conversion, I would most likely have belonged to the Water business group. But in 2002, EMS was born and then in 2006, practices were created within EMS, so all GIS professionals now belong to the GIS practice with EMS. However, we were all organized by region. In 2007, regions were dissolved and the Global Delivery Center of Excellence was formed. As part of this new structure, came a desire for global best practices and work load leveling across the practice.

10. Root of the Problem, cont. Prior to 2007 data sharing and organization was non existent 2007 - talk of best practices aimed at managing and storing geospatial data begin So, prior to 2007, not only was a business group�s data in one office not shared with other GIS staff in different business groups, there was no desire or need to. However, in 2007, with all of the organizational changes, the need arose and talk began about establishing best practices for managing and storing geospatial data.So, prior to 2007, not only was a business group�s data in one office not shared with other GIS staff in different business groups, there was no desire or need to. However, in 2007, with all of the organizational changes, the need arose and talk began about establishing best practices for managing and storing geospatial data.

11. Previous Solution Attempts Some offices have servers designated for geospatial data, but still file based (ArcSDE not installed) Standard folder structure recently instituted for geospatial data, but objective is only to organize file based geospatial data And two steps were taken to try to improve the current situation. Some offices with high numbers of GIS professionals and large amounts of geospatial data were sent GIS devoted file servers. However, these were strictly file servers, ArcSDE was not installed on these machines. Also, and standard folder structure was established for file based geospatial data as seen here. And two steps were taken to try to improve the current situation. Some offices with high numbers of GIS professionals and large amounts of geospatial data were sent GIS devoted file servers. However, these were strictly file servers, ArcSDE was not installed on these machines. Also, and standard folder structure was established for file based geospatial data as seen here.

12. Finding a Solution Proposed idea of a GeoLibrary; internal geospatial data warehouse increase staff�s efficiency less cost to our customers Need for GeoLibrary is there, but hard to find time/money Around this same time, the idea of a centralized GeoLibrary or libraries was proposed. But in consulting this is considered overhead and therefore budget for this kind of a project is hard to come by, so although the need was there where would the time (labor) and money come from to plan and implement this???? Around this same time, the idea of a centralized GeoLibrary or libraries was proposed. But in consulting this is considered overhead and therefore budget for this kind of a project is hard to come by, so although the need was there where would the time (labor) and money come from to plan and implement this????

13. Finding a Solution, cont. Not a unique problem Many have solved this problem in their organization CH has solved this problem for many organizations Pieces of puzzle in place Hardware Software Skill set Access to remote servers Access to ESRI software Sharepoint portal for GIS practice So here�s where I come in with my capstone project. First off, the issues that are at the root of this project, are not unique, many an organization has these issues, some have addressed them and CH has even solved this issue for many clients. Because I have been involved in some of these implementations, I have been to enough conferences to hear folks testimonies about their solutions, along with what I have learned in the MGIS program, I knew I was a good candidate to take on this task and I knew it was a perfect fit for my capstone. So I called up my practice director and I said �Hey, you may not really know me, but I am currently pursuing my masters degree and I am in need of a capstone project idea, I want to do something to benefit CH, this is right up my alley, I�ve been aware of the need for a long time, and I can see that most, if not all, of the pieces of the puzzle are already in place� I also added that I would be doing this project on my own time, And, not surprisingly, it didn�t take long for my practice director to give me the reigns. like I said, I was able to recognize that many of the pieces to a �solution� appeared to be in place. Many GIS devoted servers are already up and in running in many offices We already have the necessary software and licenses (ArcSDE bundled with ArcGIS Server), as well as additional servers because we need them on projects With 150 folks in the practice, the skill set is already in place to implement. I will be carrying out the majority of the technological aspects of this project, however, I�m not an expert. I�ll be relying a bit on my co-workers to answer my technology questions. As I mentioned earlier, the CH network is configured so all employees have access to all servers on the CH network All users have access to ArcGIS Desktop or Google Earth software And we already have a Sharepoint portal in place for the GIS practice. So here�s where I come in with my capstone project. First off, the issues that are at the root of this project, are not unique, many an organization has these issues, some have addressed them and CH has even solved this issue for many clients. Because I have been involved in some of these implementations, I have been to enough conferences to hear folks testimonies about their solutions, along with what I have learned in the MGIS program, I knew I was a good candidate to take on this task and I knew it was a perfect fit for my capstone. So I called up my practice director and I said �Hey, you may not really know me, but I am currently pursuing my masters degree and I am in need of a capstone project idea, I want to do something to benefit CH, this is right up my alley, I�ve been aware of the need for a long time, and I can see that most, if not all, of the pieces of the puzzle are already in place� I also added that I would be doing this project on my own time, And, not surprisingly, it didn�t take long for my practice director to give me the reigns. like I said, I was able to recognize that many of the pieces to a �solution� appeared to be in place. Many GIS devoted servers are already up and in running in many offices We already have the necessary software and licenses (ArcSDE bundled with ArcGIS Server), as well as additional servers because we need them on projects With 150 folks in the practice, the skill set is already in place to implement. I will be carrying out the majority of the technological aspects of this project, however, I�m not an expert. I�ll be relying a bit on my co-workers to answer my technology questions. As I mentioned earlier, the CH network is configured so all employees have access to all servers on the CH network All users have access to ArcGIS Desktop or Google Earth software And we already have a Sharepoint portal in place for the GIS practice.

14. Finding a Solution, cont. Pieces missing Labor (time & money) Plan and implement User need/involvement??? Technology component in place Need to consider human component (i.e. are users on board?) Scaled-down Approach Pilot Publicly available (free) data National Level So what is missing? Well again, the budget for the labor time to plan and implement this project, but I will be covering that So the big unknown is � what about the users, are they on board? Do they agree there is a need? And will they be involved and help make this project successful. So I will need to put a lot of consideration into the human component of this project. You can have the best technological solution, but what good is it if no one uses it? I quickly identified the need to approach this project as a pilot project. I identified 4 different types of data that eventually will need to be pulled into a centralized GeoLibrary. These are National level publicly available data, State level publicly available data, Local (municipal or county) level publicly available data and final project level data. I proposed to tackle national level data for this project because it has the smallest scale of the four data types. It also has the smallest need which makes it suitable for a pilot and has the least number of feature classes. So what is missing? Well again, the budget for the labor time to plan and implement this project, but I will be covering that So the big unknown is � what about the users, are they on board? Do they agree there is a need? And will they be involved and help make this project successful. So I will need to put a lot of consideration into the human component of this project. You can have the best technological solution, but what good is it if no one uses it? I quickly identified the need to approach this project as a pilot project. I identified 4 different types of data that eventually will need to be pulled into a centralized GeoLibrary. These are National level publicly available data, State level publicly available data, Local (municipal or county) level publicly available data and final project level data. I proposed to tackle national level data for this project because it has the smallest scale of the four data types. It also has the smallest need which makes it suitable for a pilot and has the least number of feature classes.

15. Proposed Solution Enterprise GIS for national-level geospatial data Centralized GeoLibrary ArcGIS Server intranet application Standards and best practices Sharepoint portal page devoted to project As a result of objectives, pieces of the puzzle and scaled down approach, here is my proposed solution. To create a centralized geolibrary in the form of Enterprise Geodatabase, stored in ArcSDE of user identified feature classes and their respective metadata. So here we are moving not only moving from, in some cases shapefile to geodatabase, but to enterprise geodatabase An ArcGIS Server application for viewing serving and extracting the data. ArcGIS server intranet application would stream data to a web browser, to ArcGIS desktop, as well as Google Earth. The user can also extract data from the ArcGIS server web application to a postage stamp of just their area of interest. Standards and best practices for accessing the data and maintaining the data And using the Sharepoint portal as a tool to capture user feedback including bugs and requested new layers, along with storing documentation on the project such as how to access the data or announcements about the data. As a result of objectives, pieces of the puzzle and scaled down approach, here is my proposed solution. To create a centralized geolibrary in the form of Enterprise Geodatabase, stored in ArcSDE of user identified feature classes and their respective metadata. So here we are moving not only moving from, in some cases shapefile to geodatabase, but to enterprise geodatabase An ArcGIS Server application for viewing serving and extracting the data. ArcGIS server intranet application would stream data to a web browser, to ArcGIS desktop, as well as Google Earth. The user can also extract data from the ArcGIS server web application to a postage stamp of just their area of interest. Standards and best practices for accessing the data and maintaining the data And using the Sharepoint portal as a tool to capture user feedback including bugs and requested new layers, along with storing documentation on the project such as how to access the data or announcements about the data.

16. Methodology Initiation Planning Design Integration Further Development So what is my proposed methodology for the project? I envision a 5 step process Initiation, Planning, Design, Integration, and Further Development, each of which I will go into further detail in the following slides.So what is my proposed methodology for the project? I envision a 5 step process Initiation, Planning, Design, Integration, and Further Development, each of which I will go into further detail in the following slides.

17. Methodology - Initiation Scope Definition Objectives Problem analysis Proposed solution Process Constraints and assumptions Risk analysis Much of the initiation has been started or completed as part of this proposal including objectives, problem analysis, proposed solution, and a rough project outline � how am I going to implement the proposed solution. I have also begun to define the project constraints, assumptions and risks. Much of the initiation has been started or completed as part of this proposal including objectives, problem analysis, proposed solution, and a rough project outline � how am I going to implement the proposed solution. I have also begun to define the project constraints, assumptions and risks.

18. Methodology - Planning Requirements Analysis Survey users Product Requirements Success Criteria Project Deliverables The next step will be planning. This includes Requirements analysis and Logical design. In order to carry out the requirements analysis, I plan on creating a survey on our Portal for folks in the practice to take. This survey will help to identify the data they require, whether they will use this product, whether will they help to maintain it and offer feedback, and whether they see this as a benefit to them, their projects and the firm, along with any other feedback that they have? Technology component in place Need to consider human component (i.e. are users on board?) I anticipate a very positive response The logical design will take place after the results of the survey are analyzed and will include Use cases Collecting, organizing, and Documenting the data required by the user As I mentioned, the hardware and software is already in place, but some logistics will need to be determined, along with defining the maintance procedures and defining a team of testers.The next step will be planning. This includes Requirements analysis and Logical design. In order to carry out the requirements analysis, I plan on creating a survey on our Portal for folks in the practice to take. This survey will help to identify the data they require, whether they will use this product, whether will they help to maintain it and offer feedback, and whether they see this as a benefit to them, their projects and the firm, along with any other feedback that they have? Technology component in place Need to consider human component (i.e. are users on board?) I anticipate a very positive response The logical design will take place after the results of the survey are analyzed and will include Use cases Collecting, organizing, and Documenting the data required by the user As I mentioned, the hardware and software is already in place, but some logistics will need to be determined, along with defining the maintance procedures and defining a team of testers.

19. Methodology - Design Physical Design Depends on analysis of collected data Data is independent of each other Data will most likely be imported �as-is� Document any necessary geoprocessing of data Construction + Testing Servers and software are already in place Create Geodatabase Process and Import data Build ArcGIS Server application Test and Improve Testing team will be comprised of users nation-wide Incorporate feedback The next step will be the physical design of the database. Because of the nature of the data, I don�t anticipate this being a highly involved task. Then the construction and testing phase begins. The Geodatabase will be created and then the collected and processed data will be imported. The arcGIS Server application will be built And then testing will begin. Handful of testers from varying offices around the countryThe next step will be the physical design of the database. Because of the nature of the data, I don�t anticipate this being a highly involved task. Then the construction and testing phase begins. The Geodatabase will be created and then the collected and processed data will be imported. The arcGIS Server application will be built And then testing will begin. Handful of testers from varying offices around the country

20. Methodology - Integration Delivery/Training Reference/best practices/standards documents Announce the rollout Demo GIS Practice Portal Ongoing capture of users feedback Document maintenance So after the initial testing phase has been completed, I will finalize reference and training documents for the project, announce that the product is ready for use via email and the portal. At this time, I will hold a demo on the products via Live Meeting during one of our monthly practice calls. A page on the portal will be devoted to the project in order to capture constant user feedback and to store any documentation on the project. So after the initial testing phase has been completed, I will finalize reference and training documents for the project, announce that the product is ready for use via email and the portal. At this time, I will hold a demo on the products via Live Meeting during one of our monthly practice calls. A page on the portal will be devoted to the project in order to capture constant user feedback and to store any documentation on the project.

21. Methodology � Further Development Rapid Application Development �Living� project, continuously evolving Lessons Learned Prototype for State, Local, Project specific data Project Documentation The process that I am proposing here can be labeled as Rapid Application Development, Based upon the lessons I have learned from similar implementations, the objectives, and the initial user feedback from the survey, I will develop a solution, do some intitial testing, and then rollout to the users to have at it and constantly capture and incoporate their feedback into the project. A quasi build and it and they will come strategy. This database and project are to be considered living and dynamic. This isn�t a one time shot, but rather a prototype that will be constantly improved upon. And then looking beyond this project, there is the need to provide documentation on this pilot project to apply toward future projects of differing scale. There will be a lot of lessons learned, along with best practices and standards established, and all of this should be documented and provided to others.The process that I am proposing here can be labeled as Rapid Application Development, Based upon the lessons I have learned from similar implementations, the objectives, and the initial user feedback from the survey, I will develop a solution, do some intitial testing, and then rollout to the users to have at it and constantly capture and incoporate their feedback into the project. A quasi build and it and they will come strategy. This database and project are to be considered living and dynamic. This isn�t a one time shot, but rather a prototype that will be constantly improved upon. And then looking beyond this project, there is the need to provide documentation on this pilot project to apply toward future projects of differing scale. There will be a lot of lessons learned, along with best practices and standards established, and all of this should be documented and provided to others.

22. Potential Challenges and Risks Bandwidth Little to no user input/interest No one uses the ArcGIS Server application No one uses the enterprise geodatabase Maintenance Legal issues Lack of metadata So after analyzing the problem and proposing a solution and a methodology to implement that solution, I have thought of some potential challenges, some of which can also be defined as risks. Bandwidth prevents remote users from efficiently accessing data So what if the server and data are located in Seattle and when I try to use the data in Philadelphia, It is slow as molasses in January? Then there is the chance that the user community thinks this project is not practical, and they don�t see a need for it. They won�t use it and they won�t be involved in improving or maintaining it. We may have legal issues with some of the data, this is something that I need to be very aware of when collecting this data and in the future, setting user permssions to data. And of course, lack of metadata. I don�t forsee this being a huge problem on this project, because a lot of the time, publicly available data has metadata provided, however, this could be a real problem when we drill down to project level data. You may notice that there is no mention of financial costs in this list. There is very little risk with respect to this, because of the fact that so many of the pieces of the puzzle are already in place. The worst that could happen is that all of my labor is wasted if the project is a failure. But in a financial sense, this doesn�t really matter?So after analyzing the problem and proposing a solution and a methodology to implement that solution, I have thought of some potential challenges, some of which can also be defined as risks. Bandwidth prevents remote users from efficiently accessing data So what if the server and data are located in Seattle and when I try to use the data in Philadelphia, It is slow as molasses in January? Then there is the chance that the user community thinks this project is not practical, and they don�t see a need for it. They won�t use it and they won�t be involved in improving or maintaining it. We may have legal issues with some of the data, this is something that I need to be very aware of when collecting this data and in the future, setting user permssions to data. And of course, lack of metadata. I don�t forsee this being a huge problem on this project, because a lot of the time, publicly available data has metadata provided, however, this could be a real problem when we drill down to project level data. You may notice that there is no mention of financial costs in this list. There is very little risk with respect to this, because of the fact that so many of the pieces of the puzzle are already in place. The worst that could happen is that all of my labor is wasted if the project is a failure. But in a financial sense, this doesn�t really matter?

23. Desired Benefits Decreased LOE Increased productivity Exposure to new technologies Established standards and best practices Consistent Products No more shapefiles! Decreased impact on file servers So, after a slide with negatives, what better way to wrap up the presentation but with a slide of positives. In the future, the estimated LOE for GIS tasks will be lowered with less time spent on obtaining and processing data And with this comes an increase in productivity This one�s big. There is a huge variance in skill level amongst the GIS professionals at CH. Some entry level folks don�t know what a geodatabase is, let alone ArcSDE. Having the data stored in this format will potentially expose these users to this technology, especially as we drill down to project level data and get into Versioning. Again, standards and best practices will be set for future projects Products (i.e. maps and analyses results) will be more consistent with each other Data will be migrated from it�s native format of shapefile, stand alone raster, or personal geodatabase to Enterprise. Less geospatial files stored on IT servers will result in increased storage space So, after a slide with negatives, what better way to wrap up the presentation but with a slide of positives. In the future, the estimated LOE for GIS tasks will be lowered with less time spent on obtaining and processing data And with this comes an increase in productivity This one�s big. There is a huge variance in skill level amongst the GIS professionals at CH. Some entry level folks don�t know what a geodatabase is, let alone ArcSDE. Having the data stored in this format will potentially expose these users to this technology, especially as we drill down to project level data and get into Versioning. Again, standards and best practices will be set for future projects Products (i.e. maps and analyses results) will be more consistent with each other Data will be migrated from it�s native format of shapefile, stand alone raster, or personal geodatabase to Enterprise. Less geospatial files stored on IT servers will result in increased storage space

24. Thank you Todd Bacastow � advisor Tim Hill - GIS Practice Director, CH2M Hill Thanks to Todd for his invaluable advice and wisdom, for encouraging me to think, and helping me to tell the story of my capstone project thus far to you more effectively And thanks to Tim Hill, my gracious Practice director, for his time and patience, his guidance, and his allowing me to tackle this project. It was a win win for both of us. Thanks for attending this peer review session, I look forward to your feedback. Thanks to Todd for his invaluable advice and wisdom, for encouraging me to think, and helping me to tell the story of my capstone project thus far to you more effectively And thanks to Tim Hill, my gracious Practice director, for his time and patience, his guidance, and his allowing me to tackle this project. It was a win win for both of us. Thanks for attending this peer review session, I look forward to your feedback.

25. Questions/Comments/Suggestions