GY2008
Introduction to GIS
Nick Drake
What are GIS?
The term GIS means
Geographical Information System. Their are two basic
ingredients to GIS: firstly, Geographical information relating to a particular
location, and secondly a computerised system capable of manipulation, storage
and graphical representation of geographical data. GIS is often compared to
Remote Sensing which involves collecting, storing, manipulating and displaying
raster data which displays the information in a matrix of co-ordinate based
cells. Raster information is used for spatially variable material but does not
allow specific calculation and geographical analysis. However GIS’s difference
from all other statistical manipulation techniques is the ability to analyse
spatial variable data.
Geographical Information
Systems are roughly composed of Hardware every GIS needs a platform on which to
calculate and graphically model geographical and spatial data, Software is
needed to handle huge amounts of data analyse it data then finally present it,
Data includes maps, numbers and images, Design elements to GIS relate to
modelling and mathematical simplification, People are still needed to
understand the specific application of GIS and its effectiveness in solving the
problem.
GIS is a new discipline to the
scientific community since the arrival of powerful data manipulation and
graphical processing software packages in the past 30 years.
GIS
The applications of GIS allow
us to link the mathematical modelling and calculation power of computers with
geographically variable, location specific data provided from remotely sensed
locations along with quantitative information from surveys and population
censuses. Some of the current uses of GIS are primarily government related,
town planning, local authority and public utility management, environmental,
resource management, engineering, business, marketing, and distribution. Many applications for many different industries in many
international markets.
The
are six basic elements to GIS:
¨
Cartography – The use of digital maps, created
from conventional analogue information into digital data. The
sue of the digital maps carries three specific definitions, digital
mapping, automated mapping and computer aided mapping. Maps and the use of maps
are integral to the use and production of GIS
¨
Surveying – primarily associated with the
identification of the location of resources relating to the geographical
inquiry
¨
Modelling – only possible with the calculating
power of computers, modelling allows a simplified graphical representation of a
set of values
¨
Statistics – during the quantitative revolution
of the 1950’s and 1960’s, statistics were now based around measurement and the
recording of data. With measurement came mapping, models, statistics, and
mathematics of the geographical environment
¨
Remote Sensing – Satellite’s have provided a
massive wealth of geographical spatial information.
Information produced from
GIS’s provide a layered digital map that can spatial and graphically represent
a variety of different maps with different layers showing different geocoded
information.
(505 words)
The
process of overlaying two or more different geographical variables within the
framework of a GIS map or spatial area. The resultant maps
contain the data both maps for selected variables. Although the term overlay
can be to paper based maps, more often it applies to the use of digital data
especially used in GIS where layered information about a wide variety of
different variables allows analysis and evaluation quickly, cheaply and without
further man power or expense.
A procedure to adjust the
co-ordinates all of the data points in a dataset to allow a more accurate match
between known locations and a few data points within the dataset. Rubber
sheeting, also known as rubber banding, preserves the relationships shared,
between points and objects through stretching, shrinking or drawing their
original interconnecting lines again.
A form of model that
attempts to analyse the flow or movement of people, or services between origins
and destinations in terms of accessibility, normally based upon distance, and
demand. They are also used to the optimal location of service centres taking
into account accessibility and demand. There are many variants of the general
spatial interaction model, also known as the gravity model, but they all have
the general form.
Spatial query is the process
of selecting features based on location or spatial relationship (e.g. all
features within 300 feet of certain point). Logical query is the process of
selecting features whose attributes meet specific logical criteria (e.g.,
select all polygons whose value for AREA is greater than 10,000 or select all
streets whose name is 'Main St.'). Once selected, additional
operations can be performed, such as drawing them, listing their attributes or
summarising attribute values.
(302 words)
Critical Evaluation of Unit 3
The strengths of Unit 3 are:
i.
Real world
usage of GIS for business and industry
ii.
The speed
and ease of GIS computer applications allows modelling and analysis to be
conducted at a far faster speed than conventionally, if possible at all
conventionally.
iii.
Allows
businesses and individuals a unique view of a real world problem involving
geodemographics and business data. Such graphical computer based representation
was not possible before the advent of computers and the sophisticated software
of GIS combining vast quantities of data from different sources, such as
questionnaires, polls, independent surveys, in-house questionnaires, official
statistics, satellite recorded geographical topological changes or boundaries,
etc.
iv.
Overall
saves a business time and money. The job of creating a GIS for a particular
application is done by a GIS lab leaving the business to continue business, not
tying up any staff or additional resources. The implementation of GIS and it’s subsequent costs will be covered by the expected
revenue of the loyalty card scheme if successful. Additional savings may be
made by lion’s Share in terms of variable costs to the business such as Stock
control and Store layout maximisation.
Weaknesses
i.
The
information for GIS comes from a small existing customer base, not the general
public, nor the competitors customers, or any perspective
customers. Therefore ‘Lion’s Share’ as a business is greatly limiting the populations representative view on implementing a new scheme
for customer loyalty.
ii.
MIC the consultancy
firm producing the GIS for Lion’s share is using information gathered from
existing customer loyalty card holders from other stores. A problem arises here
from brand differences, business differences in terms of the ideal customer,
geographical discrepancies of location, and customer loyalty to their store.
iii.
There are
initial and continuing costs. Lion’s Share should implement a policy of zero
budgeting whilst the GIS is being completed, to:
a)
guarantee
that money is available to finish the project
b) to ensure that no
department is spending without official approval.
iv.
Over
calculation including the use of modelling and simplification may not produce
what Lion’s Share initially hoped for in terms of identifying the need for a
customer loyalty scheme.
v.
The data
does not come from existing or perspective Lion’s Share customers. Every
customer expects a certain level of service from every store, if these
individual criterion are met by one store then it is very likely they will
return to the same store until:
a)
a better
store opens elsewhere guaranteeing them a better service or
b)
their
existing store provides a poor service
For
these two reasons, customers asked in competitors stores will not only give a
biased view of Lion’s Share stores but do not provide the correct base for initiating
a customer loyalty scheme in different geographical locations in stores managed
differently, selling different products and providing different levels of
shop-floor customer service.
Bias
MIC – Marketing
Information Consultancy is being paid by Lion’s Share to produce a GIS
interpretation of business and geographical information relating to the implementation
of a provisional scheme to increase customer loyalty and save Lion’s Shares’
market share within an increasingly competitive environment. For this reason
alone, there will be bias on the end result.
i.
Unintentional
bias comes from firstly the respondents to the questionnaires. The sample
contains a small minority of the total population, geographically biased to
store location, store preference and shopping habits.
ii.
The type of
census used, a ‘lifestyle census’ provides an operational definition or
simplified illustration of the ideal Lion’s Share customer profile.
iii.
The
calculation and modelling used throughout the GIS process, over-simplifies and
allows for specific data manipulation to show figures and statistics in a
variety of different ways according to Lion’s Share expected wishes. For
instance, the geographical area in Unit 3 is divided into boundaries, if one bordered
area produces a result showing very favourably the need for a customer loyalty
card, then catchment areas and geographical boundaries may be redrawn to
include other areas or different stores.
iv.
There is no
provision for new customers. A dangerous strategy considering due to customer
brand loyalty only a small percentage of sales will come from customers
switching store.
Weaknesses of GIS in this application
i.
No outcome
of research is 100% assured or accurate. Due to the bias placed on customer
profile attainment, Lion’s Share cannot be assured that the outcome of
surveying plus the applications offered from GIS will produce a favourable
outcome. Not only is the information from other stores but it does not include
a representative sample of the total population within the catchment areas of
Lion’s Share stores.
ii.
Attempting
to combine a real-world business decision with the modelling and analytical
capabilities of GIS means that simplification models and complex calculation
can over-complicate a situation, detracting from the original nature of whether
people will use a loyalty card within Lion’s Share stores.
iii.
Lion’s Share
must also remember that whilst introducing a scheme such as customer loyalty is
a proven way to increase sales and customer brand loyalty; customer service,
stocking shelves and providing the lowest price are also very important to the
potential customer. Alternative methods of business expansion may benefit
Lion’s Share better such as moving into eCommerce or providing smaller
localised shops for a bigger customer base.
iv.
There is
also a cost factor for Lion’s Share to remember, the actual usage of GIS
equipment is limited by MIC, and further calculations or the extrapolation of a
particular set of information combined with more modelling and GIS display may
cost more, possibly out-costing other research techniques such as
direct-customer surveys or implementing the loyalty card system in a single
store.
v.
GIS can be
used to answer Lion’s Share diminishing market share and competitions
advantage. However due to the operation of GIS including calculation
simplification and modelling, along with the limited qualitative research
conducted by MIC, exactly to what percentage the catchment area is correct in
determining customer loyalty card usage is unknown until they open two stores
with loyalty cards for customers and everyone else is happily shopping ay
Shopperama.
(1,021 words)
Q1 – 505 words
Q2 – 302 words
Q3 – 1,021 words
Total = 1,828 words
NTD.