Attachment and Spatial Data Integration Services

The use of geospatial information systems has been widely adopted by pole owner companies including electric utilities and telecommunications service providers. The more technology-aggressive of these companies have also deployed geospatial data viewing applications on web-based and mobile platforms. Nevertheless, despite its spatial component, foreign attachment data has been largely overlooked in utility and telecommunications GIS implementations. This missed opportunity is especially notable, given the relatively modest additional investment required to address this issue.

Wind Lake Solutions offers system-independent consulting services designed to help utilities and telecommunications providers increase operational efficiency, system reliability, NESC/FCC compliance levels, safety, customer service, foreign attachment revenues, and data integrity through the integration of attachment and spatial data. Wind Lake's services in this area include the following:

Opportunity Identification and Direction Definition
WLS works with customer teams in the analysis of their current pole and attachment data management systems and the identification of opportunities to more effectively manage, distribute, utilize, and maintain data related to foreign attachments. Systems involved in this process typically include attachment or shared facilities databases, facilities GIS, and web/mobile viewing applications. The most appropriate direction for the integration of data, extension of system functionality, and modification of processes are defined based on this analysis. The components of this service include the following:

• System, Process, and Data Review and Analysis

• Opportunity Identification Workshops

Requirements Analysis
Once a direction has been defined and the most appropriate opportunities have been identified, WLS provides requirements analysis services designed to result in a clearly articulated documentation of requirements for application and/or process modification and/or data integration processing. This service often includes the following:

• Detailed Data Conflict Analysis

• Data Use and Maintenance Process Analysis

• Definition and Documentation of Functional Requirements

• System, Process, and Data Review and Analysis

Solution Design and Development
Based on customer-specific requirements, WLS' team will lead or support the design and development of specific application, process, or data-centric solutions. Solutions in this area may include replacement or extension of existing applications, and design of modified processes for the utilization and/or maintenance of pole and attachment data. Given the broad use of web-based and mobile data viewing applications, the most dramatic process improvement results are often associated with relatively modest extension of functionality resident within these platforms. Design and development services may include the following:

• Limited Extension of GIS Database

• Design and Development of Viewing Application Modifications

• Design and Development of Data Interchange Mechanisms

Data Integration Processing
WLS' substantial utility data processing expertise can be called upon to assist in the processing and integration of pole and attachment data. Data processing services can usually be configured to cause no interruption in customer data utilization. Data integration processing services may include the following:

• Identification and Resolution of Data Integration Conflicts

• Seamless Migration of Data between Databases