A Needs-Assessment Process for Designing Geospatial Data Management Systems within Federal Agencies

Abstract

Many federal agencies face challenges with designing geospatial data management systems. This paper presents and documents a needs-assessment process that can be employed to prioritize agencies' geospatial information needs; identify agencies' capacity to manage a centralized geodatabase; determine agencies' capacity to deliver Web-mapping services to the public; and identify barriers, such as data security and limited financial resources, that constrain agencies' ability to design and manage a geospatial data management system. The paper details the needs-assessment process and documents its application to the National Park Service (NPS) Conservation and Outdoor Recreation (COR) Branch programs. The NPS COR Branch is comprised of nine disparate programs, such as the National Trails System and the Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance program, each of which has specific geospatial data management and delivery needs. The needs-assessment process, tested through its application to the NPS COR Branch programs, provides a comprehensive and logical workflow for system developers and administrators to use as they create or refine geospatial data management systems.

One store has all? - the backend story of managing geospatial information toward an easy discovery

“…The purpose of such an assessment is to help understand the program goal, geospatial data properties, existing systems, expected GIS functionalities, etc., so that the data management system could be designed around these information. Smith et al (2015) documented a needs assessment process that applied to one of the geospatial programs in National Park Service, which provided a comprehensive and logical workflow for the data system administrators and developers. In library setting, Shell Australia Technical Library has also conducted a very detailed initial assessment when designing the data management system, which includes the details about file size, data lifecycle, file formats, and management needs.…”

“…In addition to data visualization and downloading, some geoportals also offer GIS functions such as location or attribute based query within datasets, data format conversion, projection conversion, etc. (Smith et al, 2015;Trimble et al, 2015). These additional requirements indicate that web-based map service is a must-to-have function in their portal, which requires a relational database management system (DBMS) and a spatial database engine to extend the functionality of the datasets and operate geospatial industry standards.…”

A Usable Encryption Solution for File-Based Geospatial Data within a Database File System

“…Due to the multiplicity of available spatial formats, files are often scattered on different servers, namely, file, web, email, and document management servers [9]. Spatial "data silos" housing file data across multiple formats and the associated physical and virtual mediums reduce their utility and availability for critical decision-making scenarios [10][11][12]. These data silos also increase access points to sensitive or proprietary information.…”