Description and Activities
Current-Day Infrastructure Coordination is Limited
Many people wonder why there seems to be so little coordination among the different types of construction and maintenance work that affects roadways by utilities, municipalities, and highway agencies. Few realize that the task, in today’s complex and ever-changing world, is staggeringly difficult.
Complex Infrastructure Systems and Tight Interdependencies
Through most of the 20th century, water, sewer, storm drainage and gas utilities were placed below streets—the public right-of-way. Electric and communication utilities, on the other hand, were most often located above ground.
But in the building booms starting in the 1950s, as more utilities were placed in the same areas, streets were dug up more frequently. The “undergrounding” of electric and communication utilities started to happen more frequently for both aesthetic reasons and operational efficiency. And in recent decades, cable TV and newer communications utilities have also taken their place under streets. Given these demands, it’s easy to see how coordinating construction and maintenance work among many infrastructure stakeholders is a very demanding task.
Methods Insufficient for the Task of Coordination
Utilities, municipalities, and highway agencies have had to rely on very time-consuming methods of project coordination. In many cases, project owners compile a list of planned projects and share them with one entity at a time. Often, in-person meetings and telephone calls are required to more fully share the information and to resolve issues. A city or town needs to do this with each utility; a utility company with each city or town it services; and a highway agency with any city or town in its roadway system.
New Technologies Enable Infrastructure Coordination
Until recently, there have been no automated methods to address the vast needs for infrastructure coordination. But advances in several areas have made it possible for Envista to create a breakthrough technology solution. Envista has integrated three technologies to create this innovative solution: internet mapping, geospatial database capabilities, and Web 2.0 technologies.
Advances in mapping technology make it possible for Envista to provide a visual and geographic context for infrastructure planning. Newly expanded geospatial database capabilities enable Envista to provide a scalable solution to deliver spatial information for a large numbers of users simultaneously. And finally, improved web technologies have enabled Envista to design its solution as a Software as a Service making it easy, convenient, and cost effective for organizations to implement infrastructure coordination online.
