Geographic information system (GIS) data is foundational to Next-Generation 911 (NG911). It enables intelligent routing of 911 calls, ensuring that they arrive at the most appropriate 911 Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) using spatial analysis. GIS helps ensure—before 911 calls are ever placed—that the physical addresses of telephone service subscribers are valid and match locally authoritative address data. And GIS and location-based services provide the underpinning of NG911’s standards-based interoperability, enabling the sharing of calls and rich streams of data between PSAPs and first responders, even across jurisdictional boundaries. It is impossible to realize the benefits that NG911 brings to emergency communications without GIS.
Why Addresses Are So Important to NG911
In NG911, GIS data serves as the foundation of the location-based services and capabilities that power NG911 and deliver its benefits. Without valid civic addresses and complete, accurate address datasets, 911 calls cannot be routed to the correct PSAP, nor can they be transferred to other agencies, either local or in faraway places. Without this critical GIS data, 911 calls and incidents logged in computer-aided dispatch systems cannot be reliably analyzed over time, obscuring insights that would otherwise be easy to discover. And without standards-based address formats and the GIS data that conforms with them, interoperability between systems, agencies, and people is no better than it is today—and, today, full interoperability does not exist. Without locally authoritative addresses that meet NG911 requirements, it is simply impossible to realize the full suite of benefits that NG911 brings.
Over two decades since the inception of the NENA i3 Architecture standard for NG911, many localities still have to complete their road centerline and address point datasets and make sure they are as accurate as possible. And those that have already completed this hard work need to keep those datasets current. Having an easy way to do that is key, especially since the GIS professionals often support not only emergency communications but also other teams, departments, and projects that may be completely unrelated to public safety.
How Esri Can Help
Finding a way to spend less time maintaining address data while ensuring that it is accurate and error free is paramount for these GIS professionals. To meet these goals, Esri developed the Address Data Management solution. The Address Data Management solution delivers a set of capabilities that help you maintain an authoritative address repository, continuously improve the quality of address data, and share address information with internal and external stakeholders. The Address Data Management solution is typically implemented by addressing authorities, planning and GIS departments, dispatch centers, and other local government organizations that want to develop an address repository that supports diverse information needs and continuously improve the quality of this information. Since its introduction, the ArcGIS Pro version of the Address Data Management solution has been downloaded by thousands of users, and like all ArcGIS Solutions configurations, it is supported and maintained with each release of ArcGIS Pro. As part of ArcGIS Solutions, it makes data editing workflows more efficient and data more accurate, and users can configure it to meet their specific needs—such as NG911.
The Address Data Management Solution and NG911
Many GIS professionals use the Address Data Management solution to maintain data for public safety purposes, but sometimes when people first investigate it, they don’t believe that it can meet the needs of NG911. The NENA Standard for NG9-1-1 GIS Data Model defines attribute fields for road centerlines and site/structure address points along with business rules that govern the presence and format of certain attribute values. Some of those attributes are optional or conditional and, consequently, are not part of the Address Data Management solution’s GIS data schema by default. Because the solution is configurable, users can add fields to the solution’s layers to meet their specific needs. Once it’s configured to include those fields, the Address Data Management solution can meet a 911 authority’s specific NG911 GIS data requirements—plus, it can help save significant amounts of time when editing data and ensuring its quality. Editing workflows within the Address Data Management solution reduces the time required to create new addresses—in some cases, by 50 percent. Additionally, the solution automatically populates attribute values, which significantly reduces errors that are commonly introduced in manual editing workflows. Attributes and the way in which they are automatically populated can also be configured and extended to ensure that NG911 GIS data is of the highest quality possible.
How You Can Learn More
You can learn more about the Address Data Management solution by accessing our resources. To learn more about the benefits of GIS and how it supports emergency communications ranging from NG911 to response in the field, visit our website.
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