Company: Digital Data Technologies, Inc.
Industry: Public Safety, Location-based Services (LBS), Business GIS, GIS Software Products, Data Quality and Maintenance
Location: Columbus, Ohio, United States of America

COLUMBUS, OHIO - Digital Data Technologies, Inc., (DDTI®), became Portage County's vendor of choice to create and deliver its Location Based Response System (LBRS) dataset, and has continued to provide the tools necessary for the county's geographic information systems (GIS) officials to maintain it.

After DDTI's two-person teams of GIS experts drove every road and field verified every address in Portage County, they handed over a delivery file consisting of 1,744 miles of road centerline and 65,157 addresses. The newly created dataset also included additional information, such as one-way restrictions, traffic control devices, railroad crossings, speed limits, school zones, and visible bridge and culvert locations, all features which can enhance emergency response vehicle routing.

An extra incentive not included in all vendors' mapping solutions, DDTI field teams mapped the Kent State University campus, which previously followed an unconventional addressing scheme and had recently reassigned all addresses. Now, campus public safety has a field-verified location of each building and dormitory, as well as each student suite located within the on-campus housing. The university's parking lots with associated identifiers and blue safety phones were also mapped.

"We're pleased to have this accurate map of all our county's assets. Considering just our public safety services alone, this field-verified LBRS dataset has increased our ability to find 9-1-1 callers, and helped us decrease response times," said Portage County Auditor Janet Esposito. "But the benefits of our completed LBRS project extend through many of our county agencies, and the end product provides countless ways to create a more efficient county government and better serve our residents."

As county growth and development is inevitable, so are new roadways and addresses not included in Portage County's current LBRS delivery dataset. Making sure all county agencies - including, and especially, 9-1-1 - receive new roads and addressable structures is of critical importance.

Ordinarily a daunting task, DDTI's new AccuGlobe® Data Maintenance™ solution lets anyone at the local level easily update, add and otherwise manage any newly developed addressable structures and roadways. Other methods of maintaining and disseminating the data across government agencies and departments can introduce versioning and data synchronization errors, and most often, duplication of efforts.

DDTI's solution, introduced to national audiences at the Urban Regional Information Systems Association (URISA) and National Emergency Number Association (NENA) Addressing conferences, offers a simple solution that makes address changes and modifications instantly available to addressing authorities across government entities. Other agencies, including 9-1-1, can schedule nightly tasks to automatically communicate with the central server that houses the current data so every agency has the same information.

The maintenance solution archives a history of changes, and attaches the date, time and user to each documented change in an easy-to-query log file. Addressing authorities can not only view the changes made, but they can revert any change to its previous status with a few clicks of the mouse.

The LBRS establishes partnerships between State and County government for the creation of spatially accurate street centerlines and field verified site-specific address locations, and is administered by the Ohio Geographically Referenced Information Program (OGRIP).

Upon completion of each project, OGRIP reviews the submitted datasets to ensure each meets its minimum requirements. Portage County is one of 45 Ohio counties that has completed an LBRS project, surpassing the halfway point to achieve OGRIP's goal of a statewide GIS. Digital Data Technologies, Inc., is a premier full-service vendor specializing in the creation and dissemination of Geographical Information Systems data that aid in the accurate location of wireline and wireless calls to 9-1-1. To learn more about LBRS, AccuGlobe Data Maintenance or for more information on how DDTI can assist with an LBRS project, call toll free 888.800.4003, email sales@ddti.net or visit www.ddti.net.

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DDTI (sales@ddti.net)
Phone: 888-800-4003