PWX 2022 - Ready and Resilient
Hello Everyone,
I just returned from the 2022 APWA Public Works Expo in Charlotte North Carolina. I want to give a quick recap and talk about what was popular among the people that stopped by the booth...
First off it was great to connect with everyone. If you saw my previous recollection post, here is a bit of elaboration on that though... Meeting with Public Works Professionals from all over the world was awesome. I loved talking to them hearing their stories, and the problems they faced. We talked about where they were when it came to location technology and where they would like to be. Some of the people had to cope with different situations due to location and climate but they all seemed to face a lot of the same challenges.
I found it interesting that quite a few people knew they weren't using our technology to the fullest extent, and I did find that a lot of the people thought it was just because it would be too difficult to deploy or maintain... I understood that staff shortages were holding quite a few people back. However, once I showed them how easy it was to deploy and utilize some of our solutions and that they already had the software so there was no additional cost in most cases... The conversation quickly changed...
I would start by talking to them and seeing where they were with location technology. If they were advanced or even a nonstarter the conversation almost always began at...
We would scroll through the list and I would ask them...
"Do any of these topics strike a chord with you as something you find challenging or something you would like to improve or look into???"
I honestly do not believe there was one person that looked at that gallery and said "Nope, I'm all good..." They would see something and say hey tell me more about XYZ solution and point to the screen...
Here are the top demos or more information that was requested during the conference...
Number 1 most requested was Winter Weather Operations. Now was it because we were surrounded by heavy equipment salt spreaders and snow plows or was it just that every one of the people that asked didn't have an actual operations management system in place when it came to winter weather... I don't know... But this solution was received very well.
The solution consists of vehicle and events management as well as citizen request management and a public transparency hub or website... Keeping track of things like miles traveled, and materials used and providing public works departments with real-time situational awareness.
Watch the video below for more information...
This solution is one of my favorites because of its simplicity... When you deploy this solution it deploys.
You don't need any existing data you just give the Web Mapping Application to whoever is responsible for conveying that roads are closed and then publish the web map on your website. Furthermore, you can integrate with WAZE free and have that road closure data instantly transferred to Google Maps for people using WAZE or Google Maps for navigation. This happens through the WAZE Connected Citizen Program...
Those were the top two... But these all below weren't far behind. Check them out or ask me if you want more information...
Other than those I did have a good turnout at my What Every Public Works Professional Needs to Know about Artificial Intelligence. Which consists mostly of using DLPK or deep learning packets and or training models yourself to extract information from imagery and video.
Adam Carnow and Christopher Thomas pictured below also gave a few presentations that were well received...
All in all, it was a great event... Additionally, it is evident that our solutions page is a big hit with our Public Works customers and I only see this continuing to improve with time.
Big shoutout to the Esri Public Works Team Christopher Thomas , Adam Carnow , and Oscar Loza , and to the rest of the Esri Team that worked the booth... Stewart Rouse , Jeff Eisman , Dawn Caravallo , Grace Elizabeth Sammartino, MBA Blake Pierson ... As well as the Solutions Team at Esri...
& Thanks, Charlotte... and APWA... I feel very fortunate to be able to help government make intelligent data-driven decisions using location technology... I am looking forward to seeing you all again in San Diego in 2023... I am excited to see what you have done with the tools you now have...
Until Next Time...