URISA’s Exemplary Systems in Government (ESIG) Awards recognize exceptional achievements in the application of information technology that have improved the delivery and quality of government services. URISA is pleased to announce the winners of this year’s ESIG Awards.

ENTERPRISE SYSTEMS CATEGORY

Systems in this category are outstanding and working examples of using information systems technology in a multi-department environment as part of an integrated process. These systems exemplify effective use of technology yielding widespread improvements in the process(es) and/or service(s) involved and/or cost savings to the organization.

2010 ESIG Winner:

• OneMap – A Multi-Agency Window for Geospatial Information and Service Delivery – Singapore Land Authority
  Submitted by: Lim Ming Khai, Head, GeoSpatial Operations & Development, GeoSpatial Division, Singapore Land Authority

One of the core functions of the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) is to promote and proliferate the sharing and use of geospatial data among government agencies so as to support better decision making and the creation of new business opportunities. OneMap is a common map platform for public agencies to publish information and deliver map-based e-services to the public. OneMap is also available to businesses, who can leverage a free API to create useful and value-added location-based services that will benefit the public.

The motivating factor for this system was not to create a web mapping application for any specific department or agency, but the desire to create a common platform that could then be used by ANY department or agency to display their geospatial data. This is a country wide initiative with very granular local data. System development relied on multi-agency collaboration and effective use of agency resources. A unique aspect of the system is its inclusion of non-government partners and the provision of APIs to allow the public to not just consume the data, but to allow private enterprise to use the system as a platform for creating their own web map applications by using their own data and allowing these to be embedded in non-SLA websites. It is a major step forward for any national government to try and share non-sensitive data with its citizens.  It is another major step to develop systems that can be freely consumed by private and public agencies to provide value added service delivery.

Distinguished System in this Category:

• City IQ – City of Bellingham, WA
  Submitted by: Don Burdick, GIS & Technical Services Manager, City of Bellingham, WA

SINGLE PROCESS SYSTEMS CATEGORY

Systems in this category are outstanding and working examples of applying information system technology to automate a specific SINGLE process or operation involving one department or sub-unit of an agency. The system application results in extended and/or improved government services that are more efficient and/or save money.

2010 ESIG Winner:

• Situational Awareness for Field Operations Support System – New York City Office of Emergency Management
  Submitted by: Hassan Adekoya, GISP, GIS Application Development Project Manager, NYC Office of Emergency Management

The primary objective of the NYC Office of Emergency Management (OEM) is to plan and prepare the city for emergencies, coordinate emergency response and recovery, and educate the public in order to better prepare for emergencies. The Situational Awareness for Field Response System (SAFRS) was developed to assist the agency’s Operations Division in acquiring immediate situational awareness as an incident is reported as well as to provide citywide tracking on all OEM monitored incidents. The system allows watch commanders and citywide interagency coordinators/field responders to access and query the agency’s GIS data sets from their desks or vehicles. In addition, SAFRS integrates with other systems to provide more comprehensive information to first responders; these system integrations did not require modifications to existing workflows.

The system is unique in being able to both create a spatial “dashboard” map of situations on the go, and being able to output a package of materials for use by field personnel. An important impact was the dramatic reduction in time required to produce situational awareness materials – from a former response time of 60 minutes to a current response time of 60 seconds – critical in the time-sensitive domain of emergency response. This system’s human resource efficiencies are also commendable.  The entire project was designed and developed using only in-house staff, and following launch, the need for after-hours GIS staff was eliminated, saving $174k/yr.

Distinguished System in this Category:

• Pierce County GIS Online Budget System – County of Pierce, WA
  Submitted by: Art Seeley, GISP, Interim GIS Manager, County of Pierce

URISA congratulates all of the participants in the 2010 Exemplary Systems in Government Award program. The winners in each category and those systems recognized as Distinguished Systems will be celebrated during the Awards Breakfast at GIS-Pro 2010: URISA’s 48th Annual Conference in Orlando. Systems will also present their accomplishments within the ESIG Award Showcase Sessions at the conference on Thursday, September 30, 2010.

The winning and distinguished system submissions are posted online: http://www.urisa.org/awards/2010esig

[Source: URISA press release]