Getmapping’s integration of its street level imagery (Getmapping Street Layer) has won Bath and North East Somerset Council the GeoPlace Exemplar Award for Services. The locationally accurate 360° high resolution street level images are seamlessly integrated into the Council’s mapping applications which are hosted by Getmapping.

Street Layer imagery is available to all staff within the Council via Getmapping’s District Online Web GIS. Functionality includes full NLPG integration with search made on an address or UPRN(unique property reference number), with multiple viewing angles displayed in up to three windows. The imagery can be viewed with OS MasterMap or other PSMA data in a split screen arrangement. It is also possible to take point and line measurements at centimetre accuracy with full CSV data export. All the data, is hosted remotely so there is no hardware overhead. The total solution helps to make staff more productive, reduces the number of site visits and car journeys and therefore cuts carbon emissions in line with Council targets. Staff in the contact centre now have an immediate view of a property when people call, all that is required is the caller’s address. This makes it easy to identify, street lights, access or highway problems.

“We are delighted to have won this award,” said Martin Laker, GIS Manager for Bath & North East Somerset Council. “Getmapping Street Layer imagery and its integration into Getmapping’s Web GIS has made it possible to reduce our staff car usage. Planning, Property and Highways are all reporting that they are reducing the number of site visits. A 3% reduction is sufficient to pay for the service and we have achieved that with ease. Elsewhere our CRM team are reporting improved response times from being able to find and visualise the property at the outset of a customer call. Being able to validate what is being reported is now much easier. All the imagery is date stamped which is a great help in determining precisely when events occur,” continued Laker.

“Getmapping Street Layer imagery represents an affordable and superior alternative to other street imagery available on the web. The savings being made will be sufficient to refresh the imagery every two years,” said Chris Mewse, GIS,Business Development Manager at Getmapping. “By integrating the imagery and tools directly into our web applications users can look at aerial photography, a full range of Ordnance Survey maps and then click straight into detailed geometrically accurate street level imagery to understand specific detail. The imagery also provides a very accurate historical record of roads and buildings within the authority much of which falls within the City of Bath, a UNESCO World Heritage Centre,” continued Mewse.