NWS Digital Services 

Operations Concept 

June 2004 
ii

Preface 

Advances in information technology are changing the way Americans work and live. This 

information revolution presents challenges and opportunities for the National Weather Service 

(NWS). 

Government agencies, private-sector partners, and citizens rely on NWS information for business 

and personal decision-making. In the Internet-era, more sophisticated customers are asking us to 

deliver the same accurate information in faster and more user-friendly formats while ensuring the 

same reliability of service. 

NWS leaders agree improved services will evolve by redesigning operations oriented around 

digital services. The first step has been to create the National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD). 

Digital services provided through the NDFD will support the growing demand for weather 

information. 

This Operations Concept for NWS Digital Services begins by describing the NDFD as the starting 

point for digital services. Additional cultural and technical changes will be necessary to transform 

operations successfully. Those changes are also highlighted in this brief document. 

In order to be successful, the NWS intends to engage partners and customers more frequently. As 

such, your feedback is very important to us. For questions or comments about this document, 

please contact us at nws.ndfd@noaa.gov 

 Glenn S. Austin 

 NWS Digital Services Project Team 

 June 2004 
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii 

1. Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 

2. Transforming Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 

 2.1 Operations Philosophy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 

 2.2 Local Digital Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

 2.3 National Digital Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

 2.4 Backup. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

 2.5 Verification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

3. Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 

4. Roadmap for Achieving Success. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 

 4.1 Improving Partnerships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 

 4.2 Improving Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

. 

5 

 4.3 Achieving Organizational Excellence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

5. Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 

APPENDIX A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 
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NWS Digital Services 

Operations Concept

June 2004 

NWS Digital Services Vision 

To meet customer and partner needs for high quality, accessible, and reliable 

digital weather, water, and climate services. 

1. Introduction 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Weather Service (NWS) 

mission responsibilities focus on the provision of weather, water, and climate forecasts and 

warnings to protect life and property and enhance the national economy. The mission also states 

“NWS data and products form a national information database and infrastructure which can be 

used by other governmental agencies, the private sector, the public, and the global community.” 

In order to complete its mission, the NWS relies on partnerships (e.g., the media and commercial 

weather companies) to distribute NWS observations, forecasts, and warning information and to 

provide additional information and services of their own. 

Technology and innovation have provided new information exchange pathways, including the 

Internet. NWS partners, as well as the general public, are becoming increasingly sophisticated and 

have new requirements for NWS’ weather, water, and climate information (simply stated as 

‘weather information’ throughout the remainder of this document). Users are demanding faster 

access to information that is more accurate, easier to understand, and provided in new formats. 

The National Research Council’s (NRC) 2003 report Fair Weather: Effective Partnerships in the 

Weather and Climate Services recommended the NWS take steps to improve the effectiveness of 

the weather and climate enterprise. The report’s recommendation #5 states: 

“The NWS should make its data and products available in Internet-accessible digital form. 

Information held in digital databases should be based on widely recognized standards, 

formats, and metadata descriptions to ensure that data from different observing platforms, 

databases, and models can be integrated and used by all interested parties in the weather 

and climate enterprise.” 

The NWS has begun to meet the changing needs of its customers and partners and follow the 

recommendation of the NRC. The new business strategy is called the NWS Digital Services 

Program. New digital weather forecast information is created and stored at local offices and 

National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), and also transmitted to a centralized 

database known as the National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD). 
2

This document provides an operations concept for the initiation of official Digital Weather 

Services. It does not address digital services currently being provided by the hydrologic services 

program and digital model output currently available to the public. This document includes the 

following: 

3⁄4 Explanation of the operational philosophy for NWS in the digital era 

3⁄4 Strategy for providing weather-related products and services to users 

3⁄4 Description of the primary benefits of weather information in digital formats 

3⁄4 Steps for achieving success in providing the Nation with Digital Services 

NDFD, and the products and services derived from it, will be a starting point for Digital Services. 

The expansion of the database may include such things as historic data, observations, the addition 

of a vertical dimension, and watch/warning bulletins. Descriptions of these enhancements, as well 

as the integration of climate and hydrologic services, will be added to future iterations of this 

document. 

2. Transforming Operations 

2.1 Operations Philosophy 

The NWS operational philosophy for local Weather Forecast Offices (WFO) (See Appendix A) 

embraces three basic themes. The first identifies the WFO forecaster as the local expert, decision 

maker, and information source for hazardous and high-impact events. The WFO team focuses 

resources when and where needed and redistributes routine tasks to other offices when necessary 

to meet this primary role. 

The second core function is to ensure the information flow with partners and customers is 

optimized. Feedback is gathered and used to identify service changes necessary to meet new 

customer requirements. The value of innovation is measured and course adjustments are made to 

ensure information technologies are implemented effectively. Customer education requirements 

are also addressed to maintain customer satisfaction. 

Third, collaboration maximizes sharing of hydrometeorological expertise and helps produce the 

most accurate forecasts and warnings. Forecasters at local NWS offices and regional/national 

centers work together to construct a national digital database of weather information. The 

combined expertise ensures situational awareness of developing significant weather events. This 

enables forecast offices to meet mission goals in continuing to deliver accurate and timely watches 

and warnings. 
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2.2 Local Digital Services

Digital forecast information will be derived from the local digital database maintained at each 

office. The following requirements are satisfied by the creation of the local database: 

3⁄4 Ability for rapid updates based upon the changing weather situation 

3⁄4 Very high temporal and spatial detail which is then used to populate the NDFD 

3⁄4 Interpretive and/or supplemental information to meet local customers needs 

2.3 National Digital Services

National digital forecast information will be derived from the national database. Requirements for 

the NDFD and derived products include: 

3⁄4 Database currency will be maintained through coordinated local updates 

3⁄4 Standard formats of grids and derived graphical products will be used 

3⁄4 Standard time and space conventions will be followed 

2.4 Backup

The NDFD will have multiple points of entry, with backup capabilities in place in case of system 

or office outages. This will guarantee a full database is available and current at all times. Quality 

assurance checks at multiple levels in the organization will ensure data completeness and 

reliability. 

2.5 Verification

Verification of forecast elements in the NDFD will assure the scientific integrity of the data. 

Feedback from verification will be provided to developers and forecasters so that they may work 

toward continuous improvement in accuracy. Consistency and availability metrics will also be 

used to ensure dependable digital services exist. 

3. Benefits 

The NWS will create coalitions and build stronger partnerships to meet the demands for weather 

information. The system architecture will be designed to provide the commercial sector with 

direct access to the digital database to support their business processes. Academia’s need to access 

the digital database will also be satisfied. Ultimately, this new business strategy will streamline 

data exchange and optimize the weather enterprise for the Nation. 

The following is a list of the primary benefits to be realized by the NWS’ move to Digital 

Services: 
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3⁄4 More Timely and Consistent Weather Information - Information that is up-to-date, 

available on demand, and provided with spatial and temporal consistency to help users 

make more informed decisions. 

3⁄4 Information Delivered in a Variety of Formats - Product formats (e.g., grids, graphics, 

and text) meet the needs of a diverse customer base. 

3⁄4 Higher Temporal and Spatial Resolution - More detailed forecast information taking 

into consideration rapidly changing weather scenarios and geographic features that 

influence the weather. 

3⁄4 Support for Weather Enterprise - Furnish commercial weather providers with digital 

data in standard formats to allow creation of a wide range of products to meet their 

customers’ needs. 

3⁄4 Easier Access - To reach as many businesses and households as possible, digital data 

will be made available over the Internet and traditional dissemination systems in 

standard formats accessible to a variety of devices. 

 

4. Roadmap for Achieving Success 

The NWS is aligning its business processes to produce and deliver services that satisfy the 

Nation’s need for digital climate, water, and weather information. The business strategy includes a 

commitment to customers and partners and a goal to achieve operational and organizational 

excellence. 

4.1 Improving Partnerships

The following are steps to improving partnerships and creating better informed 

 customers:

3⁄4 Building Coalitions - Unprecedented levels of cooperation must be achieved 

between the NWS and the private sector to meet America’s growing need for 

weather information. 

3⁄4 Exploiting Communication Technology - New methods of digital data exchange 

need to be developed and tested with academia and business partners to transition 

services using state of the art science.

3⁄4 Increasing Data Resolution - Higher resolution data will meet diverse customer 

needs for site specific and time critical weather information.

3⁄4 Maximizing Value of Data - Emphasis on education will ensure customers 

understand how to access, interpret, and use digital information. 
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4.2 Improving Services 

Improved services will evolve as the following procedures are implemented: 

3⁄4 Database Centric Operations - Second to the protection of life and property 

(through the issuance of watches and warnings), priorities must be organized 

around the availability, accuracy, timeliness, and consistency of the local digital 

database. 

3⁄4 Automated Generation of Products - Efficiencies are reached by the automation of 

a variety of products generated from a single digital data set. 

3⁄4 Infused New Science - Improved access to observations, forecast models and local 

techniques will result in more accurate weather, water, and climate predictions. 

3⁄4 Performance Assessment - A robust verification scheme will be used to determine 

when and where human expertise adds improvement over model guidance. 

3⁄4 Heightened Collaboration - Internal collaboration is necessary to tap expertise at 

all levels of the agency and enhance forecast accuracy and consistency. 

4.3 Achieving Organizational Excellence 

 Organizational excellence will be achieved through the following best practices: 

3⁄4 Agency Commitment - All levels of the organization will continually reassess 

priorities and redirect appropriate resources to support and meet the growing 

demand for digital services. 

3⁄4 Building Trust - Frequent dialogue between senior management, employees, 

customers, and other stakeholders will ensure alignment with business strategies 

and goals for digital services. 

3⁄4 Building Constituencies - Program updates will be shared with customers and 

partners. Feedback will be collected to make certain the most effective business 

plans exist for creating optimized interoperable information systems. 

3⁄4 Emphasis on Training - Improve proficiency by training forecasters how to create 

and manage high resolution weather information. Customer relations management 

training will also help create better communication and responsiveness to users’ 

needs. 

3⁄4 Decentralized Control - Local and regional oversight will maximize daily 

operational efficiency and consistency, and ensure compliance with national 

standards. 
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5. Summary

Digital services provided through the NDFD will support the Nation’s growing demand for 

reliable weather information. The initial digital services will be supported through the 

implementation of new technology and science, enhancing collaboration between local, regional, 

and national weather experts, and adjusting current business processes. 

To achieve organizational excellence and program success, the NWS must follow a prescribed set 

of best practices, and improve partnerships to create better informed customers. NWS leaders 

agree improved services will evolve by redesigning operations oriented around digital services. 

Increased access to, and use of this detailed, accurate, and consistent source of weather 

information will help decision makers in all sectors of society. The resulting benefits will 

ultimately enhance public health and safety, protect the environment, support the economy, and 

minimize the impacts of hazardous weather throughout our Nation. 
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APPENDIX A 

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE 

Weather Forecast Office 

Operations Vision and Philosophy 

National Weather Service Corporate Board 

August, 2003 
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National Weather Service

Vision

Weather Forecast Office Operations

A flexible, agile operation, founded on distributed, local expertise, 

which: 

 optimizes modern technology, 

 emphasizes situational awareness, 

 focuses resources when and where needed, 

 in weather, water and climate services, in order to 

provide timely and accurate forecasts, warnings, and 

 information: 

 using a collaborative process, and with 

 emphasis on hazardous and high-impact events, 

 to protect life and property and enhance the national economy. 
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National Weather Service 

Philosophy 

Weather Forecast Office Operations 

Priority Event Driven 

- Primary role is to serve as local expert, decision maker, and 

 information source for hazardous and high-impact events 

- Resources focused when and where needed 

- Adjusts to meet event demands by augmenting staff and/or 

 redistributing routine tasks to other National Weather 

 Service offices/centers 

Focus on Service and Information Flow 

- Primary provider of critical local weather and water 

 warnings and forecasts, climate services, and other 

 weather and water information 

- Communication and coordination 

- Partnership building and outreach 

- Providing local customer input to national requirements 

- Adapting to new service delivery requirements 

- Data collection, quality control, maintenance 

Relies on Collaboration 

- “Our” National Weather Service forecast, produced through 

 collaboration (e.g. with other Weather Forecast Offices, 

 National Centers, River Forecast Centers, Center Weather 

 Service Units) 

- Provides local expertise and input to forecast process and 

 database