United Utilities and BT were among nearly 40 of Britain’s leading utility and support companies at a Positional Accuracy Improvement (PAI) seminar hosted by Ordnance Survey. As part of its commitment to data quality, Ordnance Survey is re-surveying rural towns currently mapped at 1: 2500 scale to the same accuracy as urban areas, and ensuring all large-scale mapping will be compatible with GPS technology. The Southampton meeting focused on how utilities can best harmonise their map data in line with the improvements to Ordnance Survey mapping and the advances in surveying techniques. “The seminar gave electricity, gas, water and telecommunications companies the chance to share their experiences of working with digital data throughout the PAI process,” says Nick Macready, Ordnance Survey’s PAI Marketing Manager. “Delegates reviewed a variety of upgrade methodologies, and discussed business issues such as maintaining access to data while changes are being implemented. A key feature of the seminar was the chance for delegates to see software solutions and talk to service providers exhibiting on the day. It was a very valuable opportunity to exchange ideas with exhibitors and other utilities that are tackling PAI or similar problems, said Mark Wickstead, Technical Information Services Manager at Thames Water. It has helped to focus the thinking around the business change aspects of PAI, as well as the technical options for tackling it.
