In the utility industry, an enterprises Geographic Information System (GIS) is precisely that – the operational equivalent of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. While an ERP manages funds, supplies, and customers, GIS supports the management of the physical infrastructure across the utility. From the data perspective, it often acts as the “single source of truth” for the location, and feature connectivity of the system network. At the most basic level,

• ERP manages the business aspects and enables integrated, real-time collection, storage, and management of data related to key business activities such as finance, procurement, human resources, work and asset maintenance, and more.
• GIS manages the operational elements (poles, pipes, substations, regulator stations, etc.) by enabling a utility to map infrastructure and add geospatial context to assets and business processes for improved awareness and decision making.

Expanding on this a bit more, enterprise GIS solutions allow utilities to visualize, trace, and maintain their networks, and are fundamental to improving their ability to efficiently plan, design, construct and maintain the physical resources.

From an integration perspective, a modern platform like Esri’s ArcGIS Utility Network tracks and manages network connectivity while having the ability to share that data with an ERP. When combined, the GIS allows you to determine such things as where a failing asset is located, and the ERP handles the work order, and material and labor to repair or replace it.

When using GIS as a front-end to ERP, it allows work and associated business processes to be validated with spatial logic involving such things as network assets, work history, places, or workers by or within locations, proximity, and temporal – past and present.

GIS and ERP Integration Strengthens Utility Operations

Advanced connectivity and access to this network asset data have paved the way for significant improvements in how utilities more effectively operate their infrastructure efficiently, effectively, and safely. Enterprise system integration is often the cornerstone of an effective operational strategy, and as workforces and physical infrastructures age, documenting processes and automating workflows are more crucial to reducing operating costs and improving service quality than ever.

Automating manual processes and improving data quality and content continues to become increasingly central to the effective operations of nearly every utility. As a result, the business case for investing in GIS and ERP integration has become ever more compelling. Other commonly noted benefits from integrating GIS and ERP and work management systems include:

• Informed Maintenance Decisions: Combining network maps with maintenance history. You can easily cluster repairs by location to save travel time and crew and equipment coordination.
• Faster Response Times: Enabling field crews to instantly see exactly where to go. This often shortens drive time for repairs and lowers overtime costs, especially during storm and emergency events with time is of the essence.
• Increase Proximity Awareness: Understanding and evaluating the distance and spatial relationships between assets, customers, and hazards reduces mistakes and improves field operations capabilities and safety.
• Accurate Asset Tracking: Mapping every pole, transformer, meter, pipe, valve, or fitting. Knowing its exact age, value, condition, status, rating, connectivity, address/service area, etc. improves overall asset management decision making.
• Eliminate Double Entry: Removing the need to type the same asset related information into separate GIS, ERP, and work management systems. This cuts down on human error and improves overall asset data quality.
• Improve Financial Planning: Pinpointing the exact location of high-maintenance assets allows for more accurate data for budgeting and performing future repairs or upgrades on the network system infrastructure.

Giving ERP Spatial Context

ERP systems are typically built around specific functions, with each module designed to optimize a particular utility business process. GIS began in a similar way, supporting a range of operational use cases. But the similarities largely end there. ERP systems generally remain function focused—supporting areas such as customer billing, purchasing, inventory, work management, and asset management—while GIS tends to be more context focused. By adding location and spatial intelligence, GIS can extend across ERP functions making them more operationally meaningful.

In practice, this gives ERP data geographic context, makes customer records location based, helps assets be understood through networks and proximity, and maintenance work to be spatially prioritized and tracked. GIS connects ERP systems by tying those digital processes to physical locations. That is why, in many utilities, an enterprise GIS becomes an operational equivalent of an ERP.

About the author. Dave DiSera is an executive consultant with SSP and is a former CIO. He holds a BS degree in Geography with a concentration in computer mapping and an MBA with an emphasis in information technology management.