Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport (BTR) has recently begun a three-year project that will integrate Esri's geographic information system (GIS) technology into its digital airport management system. The project will combine GIS and airport management to enhance many aspects of the airport's operations, such as data, asset, and workflow management. It will also benefit the airport significantly with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) guidelines that regulate the accuracy of spatial data.

A key component of the project is the implementation of a Web-based GIS that will serve as a centralized location for updated spatial information about the airport and surrounding properties. In addition to assisting the airport in generating maps for analysis, planning, and reporting purposes, Esri's ArcGIS system will assist in workflow processes such as tracking maintenance repairs and building reports.

"BTR chose ArcGIS because of its current features and long history of being at the forefront of GIS development worldwide," said Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport assistant director of aviation Ralph Hennessy. "It is the perfect system to effectively support our priority business activities with high-quality data, tools, and support. It also provides data sharing throughout our organization and easily integrates with other systems."

ArcGIS software gives organizations the ability to create, manage, and distribute GIS services over the Web to support desktop, mobile, and Web mapping applications in a way that fits well into a specific workflow. ArcGIS provides a scalable GIS server platform that can be deployed on a single computer to support small workgroups, or across multiple servers for supporting enterprise applications, such as planned by BTR.

GEO-Jobe GIS Consulting, a division of W.D. Schock Company, Inc., and an Esri partner, will assist BTR throughout the three-year project.

"Already, GEO-Jobe has worked closely with the staff of Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport using ArcGIS to develop new workflows that will accommodate the airport's changing needs and additional users of our GIS," said Hennessy. "In addition to core GIS functions, such as viewing maps, analyzing research data, and spatial data management, our staff is especially anxious for the final product, which will consolidate numerous systems into one universal system."