Geographic Information Systems (GIS) are an essential tool for all site selectors. They help us create, manage, analyze, and map all facets of data while helping users understand patterns, relationships, and geographic context. We use it to research and analyze potential markets, evaluate sites, and construct data visualization tools to provide clients with vast amounts of data in concise, actionable formats. Ever more powerful GIS platforms are core to what Dangermond calls “location intelligence,” which is the foundation of Location Economics® advisory services at Biggins Lacy Shapiro & Co.

Better Organization, More Intuitive Presentation

The variables driving a location decision include demographics; workforce migration patterns; environmental considerations; utility infrastructure; transportation networks for people and products; natural disaster risk assessments; proximity to industry clusters, customers, suppliers and vendors; time zones; weather conditions; site characteristics and conditions; zoning; area amenities and a host of other factors. These very different data have one thing in common: they are each defined by a geographic area. The real value of GIS is its ability to seamlessly organize, then graphically depict extensive information about a defined location, allowing us (and our clients) to understand more about a potential location faster and easier than with text and numbers alone.

Improved Insights

Take for example the property visualized below. While the table on the left conveys a few basic facts about the site’s assets and constraints, the GIS depiction on the right quickly reveals how much of the site may be useable and what portions are impacted by wetlands and floodplain. While the table indicates a rail spur is 1.5 miles away, the GIS depiction illustrates the orientation of the spur relative to the site and the nature of the geography to be traversed if a connecting spur were to be constructed. The map also shows us the best access point(s) to the nearby interstate highway. By overlaying other mapped elements, such as topography or zoning maps, we can quickly learn still more.

Another example of the power of GIS is its ability to aggregate and filter population, employment and worker migration data across many counties in multiple states to identify the most suitable labor markets for a project.

Not only does GIS enable us to easily generate these areas and associated charts, graphs, and statistics, it removes the need to do the analysis “by hand,” thereby removing varying levels of user error or bias. Decisions and solutions are better informed and reached faster, and with greater clarity and confidence, when assisted by GIS.

Putting it All Together - Better Decision-Making

Site Suitability Analysis within a GIS platform provides the ability to efficiently combine variables, establish minimum criteria, adjust weightings between variables, and generate results and associated charts, graphs, and statistics dramatically faster than performing the calculations “by hand.” This enables location decision makers to adhere to project schedules while also performing “what if” sensitivity tests to understand how changing priorities might alter location rankings.

Contact Us to Learn More

While leveraging GIS can help you arrive at better, faster location decisions, it is important to remember that it is only a tool, and like any tool, its effectiveness will depend on the skill and experience of the user. At BLS & Co. we combine best-in-class GIS software from ESRI with twenty-five years of site selection expertise to deliver our Location Economics® services. Contact Lisa Moody at 609-924-9775 to learn more about our capabilities and how we might support your next project.

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See other installments of the Technology in Site Selection Series here:

• Disruption is CertAIn
• "Visualizing" Site Selection