For a multi-sector company, an integrating mapping, warning and decision-making system enables safety and cost reduction. Prashun K Dutta describes how his infra company takes advantage of GIS.
Because of the dispersed and widespread nature of our company’s assets, managing them becomes a huge challenge. A basic Geographic InforÂmaÂtion System (GIS) architecture (consisting of compuÂter hardÂware, software and sub systems) supports field opeÂrations well because it reflects ground reality in a user-friendly form.
Additionally GIS can be integrated with other IT systems to avoid duplication of data entry. Also, financial data of assets stored in other IT systems can be related to an asset in GIS and viewed on a map by way of integrating the existing system with GIS.
Enabling safe transport
Safety is integral to transport management, and GIS is the right platform to assess and predict various types of calamities, both natural and manmade, using various topoÂgraphic, demographic, seismic data for risk assessÂment and speedier response.
So, we have used GIS to map the land base data for the city of Mumbai: Metro tracks, piers, bridges, roads, distribution transformers, underground utilities, trees, hospitals, fire stations, nearby buildings and other metro systems. Metro GIS integrates with Google Maps and helps leverage both these technologies for improvised analysis and productivity. Mumbai Metro will also have GIS to map the exact location of neighbouring emerÂgency services, including fire stations, police stations and hospitals along the route. In case there is an emerÂgency, the exact location of the nearest fire or police station along with the shortest route can be identified with the help of the GIS maps to ensure speedy response or evacuation. During operations, in case of any fault or breakdown, the exact fault location can be determined.
In the case of roads, we use GIS for carrying out the survey. Say, we want to find out how many buildings and utilities are present within a buffer of 10 m along the centre of the road. With a few clicks, this information can be viewed on a map and the attribute date exported to any spreadsheet for further analysis. This helps in more accurate planning of our projects and effective decision making.
Vehicles mounted with GPS can give the exact location information of the patrolling vehicle and can reach the location faster in case of emergency. GIS system helps in identifying the blind spots or better known as accident zones where repeated accidents hapÂpens. The system can visually identify and display the accident location and alert the authorities and the people. This would help in future to effectively place sigÂnÂages and aid in reducing accident incidences.
GIS facilitates safety analysis and identifies the accident prone zones at the design stage itself. The Accident Monitoring System is also GIS based. As soon as any accident occurs on the stretch, the data is reflected through GIS to our headquarters and the concerned ambulance attendant at the respective toll plazas. Over a period of time, with this data history, accident prone zones can be identified and suitable measures taken. Also while travelling on our corridors, GIS is well equipped to handle queries such nearest police stations, hospitals, hotels and garages from the current location.
The environment monitoring van is an initiative from RInfra to monitor the environment parameters along the corridor. We are in process of linking the environment management van to GIS. By doing so, the Pollution Index of the location will be directly available on the maps and the position of our vehicles can be traced. Using GIS helps in obtaining the localised environment parameters which can be remedied with ameliorating steps. Additionally, GIS also houses attriÂbute data which is crucial in monitoring sensitive infrastructure instaÂllaÂtions.
Making informed decisions
Municipal Corporations dread particularly polluted areas in a city. With GIS, they can identify such areas with ease and take remedial steps to resolve the situation through more awareness and planting more trees. Similarly, when an additional building comes up along a water supply pipeline, the load increases. GIS exhibits the spatial elements which helps Corporations make a decision on any additional infrastructural requirement, such as installation of an additional booster pump. GIS can even suggest the location of such installations.
GIS is also the quickest response technology for taking better decisions pertaining to location specific requirements. For example, in case of an accident, GIS can help you select the quickest route to the nearest hospital and police station. In the toll road sector, we are using GIS for our pre-bidding technical route queries. We can instantly get details like the route length, soil details along the route, any alternate route to our targeted road through our database and GIS based analytical tool.
GIS mapping can help in taking proactive decisions while doing feasibility studies for the setting of the alignment/corridor by considering the different paraÂmeters like demography, topology, socio-economic facÂtors etc. This helps in providing an accurate quote while bidding for a project.
We have 11 road projects spread across the country. With GIS, we are able to centrally monitor all our road projects and all equipment on our roads. As part of Operation & Maintenance (O&M), GIS can be used to monitor the route patrolling vehicles, locate areas for maintenance and track road maintenance work.
Integrating segments through GIS
Enterprise-wide GIS implementation has proven to be a great advantage for RInfra. All the service providers in distribution business have a single window to view their assets in the field right from the generation plant to the consumer. The entire electrical network is mapped and configured in the GIS. This helps a service provider to trace the network either downwards or upwards from any location. No other IT system has this unique capability. Apart from this, with the implementation of Outage Management System, GIS helps in locating the probable location of fault when the consumer calls.
After the Mumbai floods in 2005, RInfra identified low lying areas using GIS and raised over 200 substations in those areas to ensure that even in flooded condition, damage of equipment is minimal and continuous supply is ensured to the consumers.
GIS has been very useful in case of infrastructure projects like Metro. Various analyses like ROW (Right of Way) availability, identifying location for placing CCTV, Map Book (application for Traffic Movement Analysis and Traffic Diversion) creation and Google powÂeÂred website enabled the user to get accurate inforÂmation faster and most importantly as and when requiÂred. It would have taken a lot of time to extract the data without GIS and accuracy would always be a concern.
Example, when we have to install cable, we take perÂmission from the government to excavate certain portion of the road for which we pay some amount of money. Suppose further work was required to be done at the same area. In the past due to lack of availability of related data, we may have ended up paying double the money for working at the same location in the same period of time. With GIS, the excavation areas along with the related permission were marked out thus saving costs.
Maintenance of road is also monitored through GIS. Road maintenance defects such as potholes, uneven settlements etc are exactly mapped on the GIS with reference to its location. In cities like Mumbai, highway potholes are a major problem area. GIS helps us analyse frequency of spots undergoing maintenance and take corrective and suitable timely action.
We are also in the phase of integrating Construction Phase Monitoring on GIS, wherein all the road structure building activities will be directly reflected on GIS. With our in-house developed analytical tool we will have visual representation of the project status on GIS. This would help in reducing pilferages during consÂtruction and introduce greater transparency. We are also in a position to control our day to day O&M activities and take new challenges head on as GIS gives us a distinct advantage to plan new project exeÂcuÂtion by visualising and analysing past project execution details.
With increasing customer demand, competitiveness and cost efficiency, GIS has become a necessary tool. This is reflective in the fact that the telecom sector has been the quickest in terms of leveraging the power of GIS followed by the electric utility sector. As more and more infrastructure projects start looking at sustainability in future, GIS would emerge as the solution. Business benefits will be manifold once full potential of GIS is realised.
The author is Senior Executive Vice President, IT and Quality at Reliance Infrastructure
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