ABSTRACT
The GIS-infrastructure, which the North Sea Directorate (Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Watermanagement of The Netherlands) wants to build, has some characteristics that are new to this part of the Ministry:
INTRODUCTION
The domain of the North Sea Directorate is large, in comparison to other Directorates of the Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Watermanagement of the Netherlands. Monitoring the Dutch part of the North Sea is the key task for the North Sea Directorate. Data are collected by a measurement network (meteorological and oceanographic conditions), soundings in the coastal zone and the approach channels to the ports of Rotterdam and Amsterdam and analysis of remote sensing data from Coastguard flights (e.g. oil spills). The monitoring programs are one of the means to evaluate and adjust policies regarding the North Sea. Also the Directorate collects all data concerning the location of pipelines, wrecks, shipping lanes etc. and publishes these data twice a year.
GIS AS AN INTEGRATOR
Mid 1995 a masterplan (Roadmap for the North Sea)was accepted to integrate the usage of data within the Directorate. In this plan the GIS-infrastructure of course had a central position. This infrastructure consists of data, functionality, hardware and organization. In the first half of 1996 a more detailed plan was made to realize a low budget implementation, allowing for a fast start in a long development scheme. In this plan the North Sea Directorate profited from the experience of other Directorates in implementing GIS. In the analysis of the current state of affairs, it was noted that:
BASIC CONCEPT
The existing applications in the North Sea Directorate are in most cases "insular". Each
application performs a large number of functions, from data entry to analysis and finally presentation of the end results. To change this rather inefficient insular structure,
a new basic concept had to be developed. In this concept the current work processes have
been divided into two stages. In the first stage the data acquisition, processing and
storage takes place. In this stage the emphasis lies on the type of data, the instruments to acquire the data, and the specific processing techniques to refine the data. The diversity
of presentations in this stage is limited, in contrast to the second stage.
The second stage of the work process consists of collection, analysis and presentation of data from different sources. Unlike the first stage, which is data-driven, the second
stage is problem-driven. It concentrates on the selection and analysis of data and the presentation of information to the end_user. The second stage is to be supported by standardized GIS-technology. Within the Directorate both producers and consumers of data are stimulated
to take the responsibilities, attached to their role.
GEO-DATAMARKET
The connection between the first and second stage work processes is of course crucial. During
the nineties the IT market have presented the datawarehouse concept as a solution to problems like these. A critical success factor in implementing a datawarehouse is a well-structured IT-environment and up-to-date applications. In view of these preconditions a more modest
approach will be made at the North Sea Directorate, using the concept of a datamarket: a subset of a datawarehouse.
In the datamarket geographical and attribute data will be stored, organized in layers.
The datamarket is meant to be a dependable system, storing data delivered by the operational systems of the first stage and distributing data to end_user applications. The producers
are responsible for the delivery of well-defined data, the end_user doesn't have to bother about the complicated aspects of the data acquisition and refinement. On the other hand the
end_user is responsible for the (correct) usage of the data. In due course a better balance
between supply and demand is expected. In some cases consumers will generate new data useful to other consumers. This data will also be added to the datamarket. Producers of
data can profit by the datamarket in using other products as background information.
META INFORMATION
Meta-information plays a very important role in connecting producers and consumers of data. A meta-information system is therefore indispensable, guiding users looking for available data, helping them to use it in their end_user application. The meta-information is not only relevant to end_users within the Directorate, but also to external users. Producers of data, inside or outside, need to specify the necessary meta-information along with the delivery of their data.
CURRENT STATUS
At this moment most elements belonging to the GIS-infrastructure have been installed and are being reviewed. For end_users ArcView 3.0 is available on their desktop PC, if necessary the Spatial Analyst extension is installed as well. The meta-information system GeoKey is installed on a Windows NT-server and will be available on all desktop PC systems within the North Sea Directorate. The geo-datamarket is currently implemented in ArcInfo on a Unix workstation configured as a data server. Standardized processes are being tuned or developed to enable the current operational systems to interface to the geo-datamarket. Amongst these are the soundings system and the cartographic information system.