Stevenage, Herts. 14th October, 2009 – Digital mapping and geographic information systems (GIS) software developer Cadcorp is seeing promising success in the housing sector with the signing of three new contracts with Housing Associations.

Housing Associations are independent not-for-profit organisations offering affordable housing to their local community. Use of GIS software helps stretch valuable resources further, increases productivity and enables smarter working.

It reduces the time and effort spent on tasks such as mapping housing data for use by numerous associate organisations and in cataloguing floor plans, photographs and other inventory information.

More Housing Associations benefit from Cadcorp’s GIS software

plus dane group recently chose Cadcorp to deliver a desktop and web based GIS solution via its intranet which has empowered faster thinking, better sharing of data and ensures everyone is using the most up-to-date information at any one time.

plus dane group works in a unique and innovative way; they describe themselves as ‘neighbourhood investors’, aiming to spend less on running the business and more in the neighbourhoods they serve. Their business model is founded on the principle that only a radical shift in the use of resources will improve quality of life, choice and opportunity in our society. Using Cadcorp SIS helps plus dane group meet these objectives by improving productivity and data sharing.

Alex Hill, GIS Manager at plus dane group said, “We chose Cadcorp because they were willing to go the extra mile. They were the only vendor who was offering a package that we can develop and attune to our current and future needs; with the added bonus of flexibility, excellent support and a great rapport. Cadcorp developed a system that will grow with us as we extend our plans and integrate more uses of the software. Sharing data, such as land ownership and grounds maintenance, via our intranet is just one way Cadcorp SIS helps us streamline business processes and allows better communication with our tenants and other third parties.”

Following a comprehensive and rigorous tender process, Cadcorp is now delivering a mapping system to Greenfields Community Housing. They are using Cadcorp SIS to create dynamic links from mapping to other data repositories so that everyone in the organisation can have access via a map interface. In future, they plan to use the system for grounds and property maintenance.

Use of mobile data capture

Grand Union Housing Group (GUHG) already used Cadcorp’s desktop solution, so when a need arose to conduct surveys in the field to keep track of green features such as grassed areas and trees they turned to Cadcorp. Using a combination of Trimble’s hand-held mobile GPS hardware and Cadcorp mSIS – mobile Spatial Information System, staff collect up-to-the-minute data and photographic images, recording the state of green areas. Accurate data of the size of green areas gives a truer picture of mowing times and costs and enables better management of grass cutting contracts. GUHG have many more ideas for using Cadcorp SIS and mSIS in the future, including conducting estate condition surveys and maintaining estate improvements.

Following on from the success of their housing association seminar earlier this year, Cadcorp is exhibiting at Ordnance Survey housing events across the UK ( www.geodata.soton.ac.uk/housing_seminar/) and also at the IT in Housing event in London in November ( https://www.housing.org.uk/Default.aspx?tabid=1064).

About Cadcorp
Established in 1991, Cadcorp is a leading UK developer and supplier of digital mapping and geographic information systems (GIS) software, applications and associated services. With offices in the UK and the USA, Cadcorp's distribution and value-added reseller (VAR) network stretches worldwide. The company also plays a pivotal technical role in the Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc.® (OGC)®.

The Cadcorp SIS - Spatial Information System product family is fully integrated digital mapping and GIS software that uses OGC certified compliant interfaces. Cadcorp technical director Martin Daly is an OGC Gardels Medal holder for his contribution to the OGC, and was one of the original members of the OGC Architecture Board. Cadcorp is an ISO9001:2000 and ISO/IEC 27001:2005 certified company, an Ordnance Survey Developer Partner and Ordnance Survey Northern Ireland Licensed Partner. Cadcorp SIS applications exist in local government, central government, emergency services, insurance, oil & natural gas, mapping and surveying, commerce, utilities and many other markets. For more information please visit: http://www.cadcorp.com


Editors:
For further information contact:
Martin McGarry, Tel: +44 (0)1438 747996, e-mail: Email Contact or
Neil McLeod, Tel: +44 (0)1666 504293, e-mail: Email Contact