Utility GIS Mapping Services
Put your distribution assets in a structured GIS that stays current through engineering and construction closeout. Draftech delivers attributed data, topology QA and recurring as-built updates through one in-house team.
Utility GIS mapping services for electric distribution
Draftech provides utility GIS mapping services for electric distribution cooperatives, municipal utilities and public utilities. We deliver a structured data model for poles, conductors, transformers, services and joint use attachments, with attribution and quality checks built into production. Subsequent updates are tied to the as-built cycle.
Engineering and GIS work are 100% in-house. The team structuring your asset records works within the same firm as the engineers responsible for the design. That gives your utility a single point of accountability when a field record, engineering change or completed installation needs to become part of the distribution dataset.
This service is the electric distribution component of our GIS Mapping services. It serves utilities that need an initial asset dataset, an existing GIS brought up to date, or continuing GIS support as distribution work changes the network.
When the map stops matching the asset
A maintenance crew reaches a pole that does not match the record. A transformer replacement appears in a completed drawing but remains absent from GIS. Attachment records still describe a pole before its most recent changes. Each discrepancy forces someone to compare files, call another department or return to the field before the record can be trusted.
Those gaps cause rework and can slow outage response. They also leave pole owners with attachment records that are difficult to defend. When a regulator or grant administrator requests asset information, staff must reconstruct the answer from legacy CAD exports and paper records instead of querying an attributed dataset.
Draftech connects GIS production to the engineering and as-built work that changes those records. Existing information and field data enter the same production pipeline. Our GIS team structures and attributes the assets, checks the dataset, and delivers the result in the utility's required format. Each subsequent as-built cycle brings the affected records forward.
Asset records with usable attributes and relationships
Our electric utility mapping services organize distribution assets around your utility's data requirements. The model defines what each asset record contains and how related assets connect. Full attribution follows the agreed schema and available evidence.
Engineering, line crews and the joint use group all read the same pole record. Conductors, transformers, services and attachments each need their own relevant attributes while retaining their relationship to the distribution network.
The distribution model covers these asset classes and typical attributes, as agreed in the utility's schema:
- Poles: Pole tag or number, owner, height and class, and status.
- Conductors: Phase, conductor size and type, operating voltage, and the structures each span connects.
- Transformers: kVA rating, phase connection, unit or serial number, and the serving pole or pad.
- Services: The feeding transformer, connected pole, and meter or service point served.
- Joint use attachments: Attaching party, attachment type, height on the pole, and associated pole.
The result is a dataset your staff can search by asset characteristics and relationships. Staff can find every pole carrying a given attacher's equipment by querying the dataset instead of opening individual drawings.
Existing records and field data enter one pipeline
Most utilities already hold useful asset information. The difficulty is that it sits in different places, with uneven completeness and different dates. We use existing GIS, CAD and legacy records as inputs to the distribution model and identify where field information is needed to support the required asset record.
Draftech converts existing records into that model. If your immediate need is a backlog of drawings and historical records, As-Built & CAD-to-GIS Conversion addresses that conversion work. This engagement defines the distribution data model the converted records land in and keeps that dataset current after conversion, at each as-built cycle.
Underlying field data comes through Draftech's Pole Data Collection & OSP Fielding.
Topology and attribute QA on every delivery
A map can look orderly while its data contains broken relationships or incomplete records. Draftech checks topology and attributes on every delivered dataset against the agreed distribution model. The checks address how features relate as well as what each asset record says.
Topology QA checks that conductor segments connect to the poles or devices at each end and that every service and meter links to a transformer. It also checks for consistent phase values along a line and orphaned or unconnected features on a feeder. Attribute QA addresses required fields, permitted values and inconsistent asset information. Together, these checks help expose problems that a visual review alone can miss, such as a record that appears in the right place but lacks the information needed for a utility query.
Your team's requirements determine the acceptance criteria. We establish the required asset classes, attributes, relationships and delivery format before production, giving both teams a concrete basis for reviewing the result. Where source records leave a question unresolved, that question remains visible for resolution rather than disappearing into an apparently complete map.
Data is formatted for the receiving GIS or asset-management platform. That requirement belongs in the scope from the start: a usable distribution dataset must preserve the attributes and relationships the utility needs after delivery.
As-built updates that keep pace with completed work
A distribution GIS begins falling behind when completed work stops reaching the database. A replacement pole, changed conductor or new transformer may be documented for a project while the utility's shared asset record continues to show the earlier condition. Repeating that separation across projects creates another reconciliation backlog.
Draftech's utility as-built GIS services make distribution dataset updates part of each as-built cycle. We produce the affected GIS updates alongside construction closeout, using the completed-work information to keep asset records current. The update receives topology and attribute QA before delivery, just as the initial dataset does.
The scope includes agreement on which completed work supplies updates and which dataset receives them. Field redline capture and as-built record packages for fiber builds are covered on our As-Built Documentation page.
How joint use, work-order design and reporting use the data
Accurate attachment records give pole owners a consistent source for the information their joint use teams need. The distribution GIS holds those records and their pole relationships. Joint Use Program Engineering for Pole Owners draws on that information for the program work.
Recurring engineering also depends on current asset data. Contract Distribution Engineering & Work Order Design consumes and updates the GIS as distribution work progresses. Keeping those updates connected helps the next assignment begin with records that reflect completed work.
For utility reporting, attributed records make relevant asset information available for queries. Staff can respond to a grant or regulatory data request using the distribution dataset. The value comes from having the required information maintained before the request arrives, reducing the need to rebuild an inventory for each reporting exercise.
Utility GIS Mapping Services FAQ
Which asset classes can an engagement start with?
The starting scope follows the distribution assets your utility needs to bring into GIS or bring up to date. It can focus on poles and joint use attachments, or include conductors, transformers and services. Related asset references belong in that scope so a focused engagement still preserves the connections those records need.
Does a pole replacement affect only the pole record?
A replacement can also affect the conductor, transformer, service and attachment records associated with that pole. The as-built update scope accounts for those relationships so a changed structure does not leave connected assets pointing to the earlier pole record.
How do you decide which attributes each asset record carries?
We agree the schema with your utility's GIS and engineering teams before production. The departments using the data guide that decision: engineering needs asset specifications and connections, while the joint use group needs attaching-party information tied to each pole.
How can our GIS staff review and accept a delivery?
Your GIS staff review the delivered records against the asset classes, attributes and relationships agreed before production. For example, they can check whether a service record identifies its feeding transformer or an attachment record identifies its pole and attaching party.
Put your distribution records to work
Bring your current GIS requirements, a representative set of asset records and the distribution changes your team needs to keep current. We will use those inputs to define the dataset scope, attribution requirements, QA criteria and recurring update needs.
Contact Draftech about your distribution GIS to scope an initial dataset, address stale records or establish ongoing as-built updates.
info@draftech.com | 305-306-7407 | Miami Lakes, FL