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Track: Real Estate Services
Steve Lackow
RPM
17130 Devonshire Street Suite 205
Northridge, CA 91325
Telephone: 818-831-7607
Fax: 818-831-9078
E-mail: rpminfonet@earthlink.net
Using Natural World Features in Business GIS
Defining Issue: Most business GIS users would benefit from including natural world features in their GIS but are completely in the dark about benefits and implementation. Specifically, insurance companies who issue homeowner's policies need to understand much more about underlying risk factors in the areas they insure to support underwriting; and banks need to understand more about the physical character of the communities they serve for both compliance and marketing purposes. GIS Solution: RPM included natural features in both raster and vector formats to support GIS applications in financial services (one in insurance and one in banking). Methodology: The insurance application involves the addition of a forestry layer (boundaries and database) to the more common business GIS components (Zip Code boundaries, streets, and so forth), and a methodology for dynamically updating the forestry database. The banking application involves the addition of aerial photo underlays to the existing
compliance/marketing GIS in order to better understand and address lending patterns. Software: Atlas GIS Version 3.03 was the platform for both applications, which also makes use of the Raster Underlay Atlas App. The purpose of the paper is to "demystify" the addition of natural world and aerial photoquad data to business apps in general, and specifically to Atlas GIS applications, and is geared primarily to Atlas GIS users but will be of interest vertically. It is also intended as a horizontal case study in how to use the tricky and cryptic raster underlay.
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