Introduction The Geographic Information Systems Support Center(GISSC) is housed in the Ohio Office of Information Technology’s (OIT) Enterprise Shared Services/Infrastructure Services Division. Our broad mission includes the following functions:

• To assume a lead technical advisory role in OIT projects that require an in-depth understanding of geographic information systems (GIS) data and/or technology
• To provide technical expertise in GIS databases and software on behalf of OIT
• To help state agencies develop GIS applications through technology transfer
• To provide operational support for the Ohio Geographically Referenced Information Program (OGRIP)
• To offer production support to state agencies that have limited capabilities in GIS technology
• To develop enterprise applications and services (such as Enterprise Geocoding) that benefit multiple state agencies
• To manage projects and programs that require a partnership between state, local, and regional GIS data users, such as the Location Based Response System (LBRS)
• To offer data delivery services through GIServOhio, a GIS data portal
• To promote GIS education and training. 

Services Our services range from planning to operations. Our clients are generally other state agencies, although ourprogram management responsibilities require interaction with the entire GIS community within the state, including the 88 county governments. In addition, we regularly work with representatives from federal agencies, regional planning groups, and the public at large.

Consulting We offer a wide range of consulting services to organizations that have need for assistance in system planning, design, and development. Many times, an agency might need some, but not all, of these services.

Planning We help our clients create a vision of how they might deploy GIS technology, and what sorts of applications they might consider developing. Assistance might take one of the following forms: 

• Providing an introductory, “GIS101” presentation to agency representatives
• Defining and estimating costs for systems, applications, and staff
• Preparation of feasibility studies
• Applications definition
• Implementation Planning

Design Business processes drive the requirements for system design. GIS development always benefits from the careful creation of effective designs and specifications for system components. Support Center staff can help develop specifications for:

• Data
• Software
• Hardware

Development Several members of our staff have been involved with system development projects. They advise organizations in the important areas of: 

• System procurement and installation
• Data acquisition and development
• Data quality control/quality assurance
• Application design and development
• Web enabling and web interfaces
• Project management
• Training

Operational Services The Support Center provides operational support for online spatial services & solutions including:

• Enterprise Geocoding
• Internet Mapping Services
• Spatial Data Storage and Retrieval
• Geodatabase Administration

We work in tandem with other OIT service areas to provide a complete solution including spatial data development and management, software and server administration, network connectivity, and storage solutions. 

Enterprise Data Licensing The Support Center maintains enterprise and site licenses for commercial data sets that are supportive of the Ohio Enterprise.  The Support Center provides access via Open GIS Consortium (OGC) standards as well as vendor supported interfaces to:

• TeleAtlas data – municipal boundaries
• SPOT Image satellite imagery

Help Desk The Support Center staffs a GIS Help Desk to answer questions from the GIS community, general public, state, local and federal government agencies and the private sector.Software Environment and Tools

• Complete ESRI software suite, including ArcGIS Desktop, ArcIMS, ArcSDE, and ArcGIS Server
• LizardTech ExpressServer - raster hosting for map services
• Pitney Bowes AddressBroker and Spatial - geocoding engine & spatial analysis
• Software packages utilized within the Support Center are Open GIS Consortium (OGC) compliant

GIS Support Center Staff
Engaging the GIS Support Center Agencies wishing to procure services should contact the Support Center to schedule an initial meeting. The Support Center will work mutually with the agency’s staff to develop scope of services and document requirements to provide a clear and concise understanding of the agencies needs and expectations. The scope of services will also include anticipated costs and timeframes. A memorandum of understanding to carry out the scope of services will be approved by the agency prior to the actual commencement of any GIS services.

77 S High St, Room 1982Columbus, Ohio 43215
614-466-4747   614-728-5297 (fax)
gis.support@das.ohio.gov