All Customer Stories
“We are excited to see the increased interest in GIS. VertiGIS Studio has helped us sell the concept of GIS throughout the organization.”
– Shana Lowe, GIS Supervisor
The Challenge
With GIS supporting many departments and operations within Greenville Water, they needed a technology solution that could conform to complex business processes. They did not have the development skills to build the required tools from scratch — nor was this an approach that would best position them for the future.
They considered hiring a consultant to build custom tools, but also needed the flexibility to respond to evolving business processes and didn’t want to be stuck modifying and maintaining applications and code that an outside firm had created. Greenville Water was looking for technology that would allow them to configure and deploy complex tools quickly and would be easier to maintain over time.
The Solution
VertiGIS Studio provided a way to quickly build and deploy tools to meet their complex business requirements, without writing custom code. With the support of the VertiGIS team, Greenville Water’s GIS team developed a comprehensive application that included tools to support and streamline operations across their departments.
A few of the tools included in the application are:
- Report Pipe Break Tool: This tool provides multiple departments with visibility into pipe break incidents; field operations staff can add a pipe break to the system and can update the incident when the pipe is repaired.
- Water-off Notification Tool: This tool allows staff in the field or the office to quickly add a water-off incident, which automatically sends an email to relevant Greenville Water staff and fire department personnel. The email includes a map of the affected area, and a hyperlink that opens the app and zooms to the location of the water-off incident.
- Inspection Tools: The inspection tools allow field operations staff to add and view valve, hydrant, and leak detection inspections within the app.
- Report GIS Error Tool: This tool can automatically send an email to GIS staff with information about an error in the GIS and a map of the affected location.
The Result
Since deploying VertiGIS Studio, Greenville Water has seen significant efficiency gains and an increased interest in GIS by other departments within Greenville.
The time to complete the water-off notification process has been reduced significantly. Prior to implementing VertiGIS Studio, the process took roughly seven (7) minutes to complete; with VertiGIS Studio in place, the process now takes a mere 30 seconds.
Greenville Water’s VertiGIS Studio deployment has also improved data flow and internal communication by providing visibility across multiple departments. For example, the water-off tool is primarily used by field operations staff, but it provides customer service insight into what work is being done, allowing them to keep customers informed about water service interruptions.
In the years since implementation, Greenville Water has continued developing tools to help streamline work processes. VertiGIS has helped them sell the concept of GIS throughout the organization and expand the ways in which it supports their operations.
All Customer Stories