The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC), one of the largest rail network managers in Australia, oversees and maintains a sprawling rail network that spans approximately 8,500 kilometers across the country. ARTC efficiently manages the daily operation of about 430 freight and passenger services, intricately navigating across five states.
ARTC’s Rail Network
ARTC relies on an Enterprise Esri GIS system for mapping and Hitachi Ellipse Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) for effective asset management. The initial absence of integration between these systems presented a wide array of obstacles for ARTC. Initially, ARTC employed a process that relied on scripts to extract data from Ellipse into Excel, then subsequently utilized join tables to incorporate that data into GIS. These data joins were performed on an ad hoc basis whenever a need arose and there was no repeatable integration process in place. This approach introduced numerous inefficiencies into their workflow. Beyond the time and effort that writing these scripts took, the biggest obstacle for ARTC with this approach was whenever this process was completed, it was a point in time snapshot which quickly became out of date with the day-to-day changes of their live asset system. The lack of timely access to their data meant that stakeholders often had to contend with outdated or inconsistent asset information, adversely impacting decision-making processes. Additionally, there was no mechanism to spatially represent, visualize, or analyze work orders and defects across the network. This impeded the organization’s capacity to make informed decisions on infrastructure planning, maintenance scheduling, and more. Finally, the manual extraction and reconciliation process proved labor-intensive and time-consuming, exacerbating the operational bottlenecks that arose from the lack of integration. These challenges underscored the critical need for a robust integration solution to optimize data management, improve operational efficiency, and enhance overall decision-making within the complex rail network ecosystem.
Utilizing off-the-shelf software over custom coded solutions has always been ARTC’s business preference, so they began to search for a comprehensive integration solution to bridge the gap between Hitachi Ellipse EAM and Esri Enterprise GIS, fostering a more streamlined and synchronized approach to managing their extensive rail network and associated assets. The primary criterion for selection was finding a pre-built, easy-to-maintain option adaptable to ARTC’s specific integration needs, minimizing the need for extensive custom development and ongoing management. This mitigated the risks associated with using SQL and custom-scripts, where even minor changes could necessitate rebuilding scripts. Additionally, areas where expertise was lacking would result in reliance on contractors and incur additional costs for troubleshooting and modifications. The ongoing costs of custom-code solutions, intertwined with restructuring efforts each time there is a change in either system, further emphasized the appeal of a pre-built, easy-to-maintain solution. Automation emerged as the second key criteria, reflecting the necessity for a streamlined and efficient process to replace the manual data entry / re-entry and ongoing maintenance associated with consistently re-building or restructuring integrations within a custom-code solution any time a system update is made. Lastly, ARTC emphasized the importance of reporting capabilities to provide visibility into the synchronization process, ensuring transparency and facilitating ongoing improvements.
ARTC Geoworx Sync Asset Integration Summary Report (Sample)
When considering alternatives such as in-house custom development or exploring other solutions in the market, the implementation, maintenance, and management of each feature class proved to be significantly more resource-intensive than opting for a Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) system like Geonexus. For instance, a detailed business case analysis conducted by ARTC revealed that the cost of setting up an integration for a single feature class with another ETL tool that required custom-code could range from $20,000 to $40,000 AUD. They found that the cumulative expense for establishing their initial desired feature classes, could amount to over $120,000 AUD, excluding necessary ongoing maintenance costs. Despite the substantial estimated cost, this approach still failed to meet some of ARTC’s essential requirements, such as the capability to synchronize data back into Ellipse from GIS. Additionally, it would lock them into their existing versions of both GIS and Ellipse software, necessitating significant rework for any upgrades.
Upon consultation with Esri Australia, Geonexus emerged as a recommended solution for ARTC. Subsequent assessments of Geonexus’ capabilities and deeper conversations with current Geonexus customers solidified the decision. ARTC chose to implement Geonexus for bi-directional integration between Ellipse EAM and ArcGIS Enterprise.
The decision was driven by Geonexus’ notable features, including the ability for automation and bi-directional synchronization with no code required, making it a low-maintenance solution. Additionally, the platform’s incorporation of productized connectors, designed to comprehend the business logic of each system, eliminated concerns around software version lock or downtime, facilitating seamless modifications and upgrades to existing data workflows. The robust reporting capabilities from Geonexus were also particularly appealing, offering robust change tracking with comprehensive insights into the synchronization process. Beyond the immediate integration needs, the solution was chosen for its ability to accommodate the scale and evolution of ARTC’s rail network, addressing both current and future operational requirements down to the feature class level. This adaptability is facilitated by features such as productized connectors that understand each system-specific business logic, a user-friendly interface with drop-down menu configuration for easy adjustments to the data workflow, and preview mode functionality for additional review of new processes before committing the data within the synchronization. These innovations not only streamlined current integration processes but also laid a solid foundation for future modifications and additions.
ARTC Geoworx Sync Integration Bridge Assets Configuration
The implementation of Geonexus at ARTC has yielded substantial results, currently synchronizing over a dozen asset classes, totaling approximately 1.68 million records. The primary focus has been on integrating asset information between Hitachi ABB Ellipse and Esri GIS. This process ensures that accurate coordinate information is updated and exchanged seamlessly between the two systems.
To date, ARTC has successfully integrated a wide range of asset data across its extensive 8,500-kilometer rail network. This includes approximately:
The most significant benefit of Geonexus is its ability to provide a sustainable solution that demands minimal maintenance effort to keep both enterprise systems consistently up to date. This places near-real time information in the hands of ARTC staff, especially those in the field with limited access to Ellipse. This enhanced accessibility ensures that staff can make informed decisions based on the latest data, contributing to improved operational efficiency and asset management.
ARTC Asset Viewer Esri Web Map showing integrated Assets from Ellipse Via Geoworx Sync
Notably, the implementation of Geonexus has not only automated the synchronization process but also serves as a valuable tool for identifying and improving data errors or omissions within the Ellipse database, contributing to the ongoing enhancement of asset system data quality.
“…the automated, almost set and forget nature of [Geonexus] was one of the most appealing features of the package combined with the quality of reporting sync offers is probably it’s best feature, the added benefit of this process is it provided a useful tool to flush out and improve any data errors or omissions on the Ellipse side of our database too, this tool has gradually and continues to help us improve our asset system data quality.” – Matthew Brodie, GIS System Lead – Asset Management System Services Section at ARTC
Geonexus has empowered ARTC to ensure data quality during their synchronization every time it runs. The reports generated by Geonexus enable the team to easily monitor daily data changes and maintain a permanent record of this information.
The platform’s initial success has prompted ARTC to explore further use cases, including a groundbreaking project to integrate an ArcGIS portal Web service for updating track data within the Esri Linear Referencing System. This forward-looking initiative marks a promising milestone for ARTC, highlighting the ongoing impact of Geonexus in driving efficiency and innovation within their rail network management.
Geonexus’ platform was built with business logic in mind and allows utilities to connect systems like ArcGIS, Maximo, SAP, and more. The Geonexus Integration Platform opens the door to new possibilities for data integration and asset management, so schedule a demo today and learn how Geonexus can help make the most of your data.
