# Presentation: 772336

## Review of Unified Geospatial Segment Architecture & Pre-Select Business Case

**July 31, 2008**
**Updated for USDA Imagery Meeting**
**By Jim Heald, FSA/ITSD Geospatial Center**
**December 2008**

**Notes:**
Resources are scarce.  Each organization must fully justify their rationale for each investment through each governmental layer.  All agencies are being encouraged by the Architecture and Infrastructure Committee (AIC) of the Federal Chief Information Officers Council (CIO) to use the “Architecture Principles for the Federal Government” dated June 23, 2006to guide their transformation efforts.  The intent is to establish “clear, well-understood and sanctioned principles, combined with an executive commitment to enforce them, help drive change across disparate departments and programs, as well as within agencies”.  The principles are:

The federal government focuses on citizens (simpler, faster, better, cheaper)
The federal government is a single, unified enterprise
Federal agencies collaborate with other governments and people
The federal architecture is mission-driven
The federal architecture simplifies government operations
Security, privacy, and protecting information are core government needs
Information is a National Asset

## Summary and Background Information

**Summary of USDA Geospatial Activities**
- Geospatial data is a major component of USDA Business, it is used on a daily basis for mission critical operations by many agencies.
- USDA spent $88 million on Geospatial Line of Business in FY2008
- This is probably underestimated
- USDA currently operates 54 Geospatial Systems across 15 Agencies
- Probably more
**Geospatial Segment Architecture Initiative**
- Necessitated by the Guidelines for Enterprise Data Centers and Critical Systems published by the USDA OCIO in January 2008.
**	****    **

## As-Is Geospatial Segment Architecture

**DRAFT As-Is Segment Architecture completed for all USDA GIS activities in January 2008.**
**Complete inventory of all systems, cross reference related data to FEA Reference models, funding profile.**
-  Not really complete
**Intended to provide a complete picture of USDA geospatial activities and provide data for development of a to-be architecture.**

## To-Be Segment Architecture and Next Steps

**Pre-Select Business Case was developed by August 31.**
**Complete Alternatives Analysis due by December 31, 2008 to develop a full solution for to-be architecture.**
**Develop final to-be architecture and supporting business case by March 31, 2009.**

## Vision for the Future

**Vision for fully integrated GIS system****s**** across USDA with data shared and accessible to all agencies and external partners**
**Department-Level Geospatial management and coordination**
- By whom?  OCIO has no Geospatial staff or expertise
- Agencies fear an ITS-like solution for GIS
**Increased ability to effectively manage and store geospatial data**
**Improved data sharing capabilities and processes**
**Increased portability and dependability for field GIS users and analysts**

## Why is This Mission Critical?

**Ensure USDA compliance with OMB mandates and alignment with FEA Geospatial requirements**
**Ensure Program delivery system supports data integrity, reliability, and consistency across USDA and for all related stakeholders (USDA Program Managers, USDA field and service center staff, other Federal employees, citizens)**
**Provide real-time, on-demand querying capabilities and access to reports, maps, imagery, and data for users and stakeholders.**

## Benefits

**Improved ability to integrate GIS operations with mission critical business operations and reduced risks and costs associated with testing and deployment**
**Provides ability for users to obtain and analyze GIS data layers and imagery from a single location**
**Streamlines information sharing between agencies, outside partners, and other stakeholders**
**Improves accuracy and data integrity through centralized data management and system administration.**

## Challenges

_**USDA **_
**Information on network, hardware, and software specifications is not centrally available for cross-agency comparison.**
**Infrastructure to support enterprise-level geospatial data is not currently available.**
**Existing policies for desktop configuration, permissions and access do not recognize the unique requirements necessary to develop and share geospatial data.**
**Lack of department-level support and management for geospatial initiatives and development.**
_**Technological**_
**Service centers and field offices lack the network and telecommunications capacity necessary for geospatial data sharing.**
**Users of geospatial data often have desktop computers that are not optimally configured for geospatial tasks.**
**Agencies (particularly FAS, NRCS, and FSA) do not have adequate storage capacity.**

## Geospatial Segment Architecture Alternatives for Consideration

**October 21, 2008 **
**updated for USDA Imagery Meeting by Jim Heald, FSA**

## Current Environment

**USDA invests over $88 million geospatial activities.  These systems, partially or wholly, use geospatial data and functions to fulfill USDA’s many missions.  **
**However, geospatial activities at USDA have grown from the bottom up resulting in: **
- Compartmentalization within agencies
- Data storage in disparate systems and locations
- Numerous gatekeepers and IT environments
- Data may not be timely, uniform, or available
- Little awareness of national scale across agencies or applications
- Clearly they’ve never been to one of these meetings
- Absence of a Common Operating Picture

## Alternatives Analysis (Jim’s Summary)

** ****100,000 foot level analysis**
**Lots Missing**
- Agencies didn’t tell OCIO everything
- Agencies don’t know everything/haven’t figured it all out
- OCIO and Contractors don’t really know GIS and Remote Sensing
** ****Three Alternatives**
- Status Quo
- Fully Unified GIS Operating Environment and Architecture
- Fully Unified GIS – 99.99% Outsourced
** ****Study is designed to select Alternative 2 **

## Alternative 1Maintain Status Quo

| Area of Focus  | Alternative 1  |
| --- | --- |
| Enterprise Software  | ELA for ESRI software
 |
| Terminal Server access to Software  | Planned by FSA and NRCS  |
| Imagery  | NAIP
FAS Imagery Archive
Assorted other formats and locations |
| Master Data Sets
 | Tele Atlas (few agencies)
Common Land Unit (CLU )-limited access
Forest Service data not easily available
Base map data sets scattered across agencies and applications |
| USDA Webservices
 | Some developed but not widely utilized or shared across USDA |
| Other federal webservices | Some developed but not widely utilized or shared across agencies |

| Area of Focus  | Alternative 1  |
| --- | --- |
| Enterprise Data Centers (EDC) | Four newly designated EDCs |
| Hosting | USDA hosting at various locations
ESRI hosting for ClearView |
| Commercial Application Usage | Interest in using commercial sources for limited use and simple applications |
| Common Operating Picture | None, data for emergency preparation scattered and not integrated, ClearView is an prototype. None available for uniform analysis or background of program data |
| Integration of Program Data | Some integration but often there are legal, technology or expertise obstacles to this |

## Alternative 2Unified Geospatial Environment

| Area of Focus  | Alternative 2 |
| --- | --- |
| Enterprise Software  | ELA for ESRI software  |
| Terminal Server access to Software  | Implement terminal server access, as feasible, for all USDA agencies |
| Imagery  | Consolidate hosting of imagery with appropriate system and security  requirements for any USDA produced or acquired imagery. 
Plan for any USDA responsibilities for Imagery for the Nation. |
| Master Data Sets
 | Create a single hosting location for master standardized data sets, including imagery data, produced by or licensed by USDA. 

Continue to produce data as necessary and incorporate data acquired through interagency efforts  |

| Area of Focus  | Alternative 2 |
| --- | --- |
| USDA Webservices
 | Implement webservices of master data sets and imagery for sharing and consumption from other agencies. |
| Other federal webservices | Integrate webservices and data exchange with other federal agencies for other master data sets of common interest |
| Hosting  | Integrate EDCs to provide foundational geospatial data with business applications |
| Enterprise Data Centers | Determine the roles, responsibilities, and infrastructure needs to support geospatial and business applications |
| Commercial Application Usage | Analyze the utility of using commercial vendors and the result of the GSA Smart Buy and ArcGIS On Line |
| Common Operating Picture | Establish a common operating picture of geospatial data with interoperable environments |
| Integration of Program Data | Make USDA foundational geospatial data services available to business applications with program data |

## Alternative 3Outsource Production of Geospatial Data

| Area of Focus  | Alternative 3 |
| --- | --- |
| Enterprise Software  | ELA for ESRI software  |
| Terminal Server access to Software  | Implement terminal server access, as feasible, for all USDA agencies |
| Imagery  | Rely on commercial sources of imagery |
| Master Data Sets
 | Outsource production, hosting and distribution of all geospatial data, as consistent with information security requirements

Require contractors meet FGDC and USDA geodata standards, data management lifecycle, metadata, and business requirements |
| USDA Webservices
 | Integrate webservices from commercial sources |

| Area of Focus  | Alternative 3 |
| --- | --- |
| Other federal webservices | Consume webservices and data exchange with other federal, State, and local agencies for other master data sets of common interest |
| Hosting | Plan for primarily commercial hosting of data distribution  and applications |
| Enterprise Data Centers | Lease commercial data centers |
| Commercial Application Usage | Use commercial mapping application vendors for USDA business applications e.g. Google Earth, MS Virtual Earth, etc |
| Common Operating Picture | Adopt and Implement Common Operating Picture emergency applications from other federal agencies |
| Integration of Program Data | Limit integration of program data due  to constraints on using outside sources  |

## Some Problems and Issues – Jim’s Opinions

** ****No real assessment of Agency Needs**
-  “Vision” is an optimized status quo
- Does not account for Raw, Stereo Imagery (for example)
- Does not account for any needs that haven’t been articulated to OCIO
-  Agencies have had limited involvement and access
** ****Not clear WHAT is being outsourced or unified**
** ****Currently, we already outsource much of our data production**
-  Imagery is a prime example
-  NRCS: Can Soils be outsourced?  Does it make sense?
-  FSA: CLU Maintenance can not be outsourced
- Who builds a Wetlands Layer from what source material?
** ****We also already outsource much of our SW development and support**
** ****Outsourcing Hosting is separable from other outsourcing goals**
** ****In a SOA world, Integrated Applications can be based on external data sources**
** ****Why would we depend on Google or MS VE for our **_**Business **_**Applications?**
-  Fundamental lack of understanding of WHAT we do