Sydney, Aust., December 16, 2015 — 1Spatial, the spatial big data company, has enabled London Fire Brigade (LFB) to create faster, automated routes queries, which reduced processing time from 40 working hours to just two. Emergency services organisations face unique conditions which mean they are often reliant on their own spatial data combined with external information feeds in order to calculate fastest or safest routes and estimated arrival times, according to Martin Gregory, General Manager, 1Spatial Asia Pacific.
“Based on what London Fire Brigade has done with FME, you could easily perform similar spatial data transformations in real time,” said Gregory. “Fire services fighting bushfires, for example, could get updates on the best routes to take as new data comes in about changing conditions on the ground.” Routing is critical for fire crews. Each station must be correctly staffed and this can mean moving staff between fire stations. The right appliance must also get to the right location as quickly as possible. LFB used AA Route Planner information to determine likely travel times between each of its 102 stations. However, as a set of 12,000 individual, point-to-point manual queries, the process had previously taken 40 working hours to complete. It also, inevitably, carried a high risk of error and required detailed checking.
LFB streamlined its data management and created a single, authoritative set of geospatial data that could be shared across the organisation. It used Safe Software’s FME application to support this work. 1Spatial, a Safe Software Value Added Reseller and Platinum Partner, provided FME support and training to LFB. It suggested using FME to automate the process of updating inter-station travel times, eliminating the potential for manual errors, as well as saving time and money. As a result, travel times can be updated monthly to reflect the impact of roadworks, changed road layouts etc., ensuring that staff transfers can be managed as efficiently as possible.
John Cook, LFB’s Corporate Gazetteer and ETL Process Manager, explains, “GIS gives us a visual representation of a very complex set of data. It’s not just road layouts. We need to understand road speeds, the location of hazards and the height of buildings so that we despatch the right type of appliance to any situation.” He adds, “It was relatively simple to write an automated query in FME that could be run on demand. Having written it, we can now update the information whenever we like, without incurring a lot of time and cost. We have reduced the time required from 40 working hours every time to just a couple.”
Martin Gregory commented, “FME gives organisations the absolute flexibility to restructure, reformat and integrate data so that it is ready to use, share and base operational decisions on with confidence. As a result, in this particular emergency services scenario, travel times can be updated rapidly to reflect the impact of roadworks, changed road layouts, etc. This ensures that staff transfers can be managed as efficiently as possible”.
Click here to read the full case study. To find out more about FME and hear some other customer stories, 1Spatial is hosting free FME World Tour events in Australia, which will help users explore, discover and innovate with FME. 8th April – Brisbane 11th April – Melbourne 18th April – Sydney
Each event will include technical presentations, networking opportunities, case studies and interactive sessions. Registration will be open in the New Year. Please contact [email protected] to find out more.
