According to Mike Keister, a consultant who is helping to head up efforts to refine the Bureau’s TIGER/MAF (Master Address File) update program, GlobeXplorer plays a vital role in the collection and verification of Census data and GPS points.

Census Data
The Census Bureau uses GlobeXplorer’s “ImageConnect ” for ESRI’s ArcView and ArcGIS to verify the accuracy of vector data delivered to the Census by a wide range of sources. “By overlaying existing government data with GlobeXplorer’s online earth imagery, we can ensure that the Census data we have is accurate.”

Working with vector data sets from various Federal, State, Indian, and other public sources, the Census is aggregating thousands of data sets typically delivered in ESRI format county by county. Every time an area is reviewed for accuracy, this vector data is placed over a geo-referenced image that has been downloaded through the GlobeXplorer’s ImageConnect service. From this, judgments can be easily made regarding the accuracy of all data sets before final assimilation into Census’s master database.

Scalability
GlobeXplorer’s service runs with minimal disruption 24/7. Serving millions of images a day, organizations can put mission critical application on ImageConnect. Mr. Keister estimates that in their current contract alone, the bureau and its subcontractors have about 75 employees using the product every day.

Simplicity
For Mike and the Bureau, ease of use was the key factor. “Simplicity on the front end is vital for us. With GlobeXplorer’s ImageConnect service, we can just pull up the data, push a button and we’ve got the imagery we need.”

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