{"id":191962,"date":"2018-12-13T16:21:34","date_gmt":"2018-12-14T00:21:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=arcwatch&p=191962"},"modified":"2018-12-26T09:35:48","modified_gmt":"2018-12-26T17:35:48","slug":"plowing-through-winter","status":"publish","type":"arcwatch","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcwatch\/plowing-through-winter","title":{"rendered":"Plowing through Winter"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":651,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","castos_file_data":"","podmotor_file_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[401],"tags":[160542,294722,161242,294712,170252],"arcwatch_issues":[224452],"class_list":["post-191962","arcwatch","type-arcwatch","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-government","tag-county-government","tag-michigan","tag-roads","tag-saginaw-county","tag-snow","arcwatch_issues-september-2014","arcwatch_sections-the-headlines"],"acf":{"short_description":"Snowplow operations are much more efficient thanks to an automatic vehicle location (AVL) system that uses Esri ArcGIS...","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":null,"file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":168262,"image_position":"right","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"With a fleet of 40 snowplows working to keep the roads clear in an area that sees an average of 40 inches of snowfall per year, Saginaw County, Michigan, needs to make snowplow operations as efficient as possible.\r\n\r\nThe Saginaw County Road Commission does it with CompassCom AVL, an automatic vehicle location (AVL) system that incorporates Esri ArcGIS for tracking the county's snowplow fleet.\u00a0CompassCom<\/a>, based in Centennial, Colorado, makes AVL and mobile resource management solutions and is an Esri partner. CompassCom's devices integrate GPS, Esri ArcGIS, and wireless technology into a flexible, end-to-end solution.\r\n\r\nCompassCom's AVL system gives managers in the office and supervisors in the field the ability to remotely monitor and manage the snowplows to ensure each vehicle follows an optimal route. Using the Esri ArcGIS technology in the system, they can see on a digital map where the plows are located in real time.\r\n\r\nAccording to CompassCom, the AVL system can help control fuel costs; increase safety; and reduce the amount of salt, brine, and other materials put down on roads.\r\n\r\nOver the years, winter maintenance put a big dent in Saginaw County's winter budget, which is why the road commission managers adopted the CompassCom AVL.\r\n\r\n\"This solution by no means removed the significant budgetary impact of winter maintenance,\" said Thomas Luck, information technology manager for Saginaw County Road Commission. \"But it has most definitely created efficiencies allowing us to put more money toward fighting storms and keeping equipment running.\"\r\n\r\nThat's important in a part of Michigan blasted by harsh winter weather. \"This year, we had close to 60 inches [of snow] with drifts 10 to 12 feet high in some windblown areas,\" said Paul Gohs, District 3 maintenance foreman for the county road commission. \"We really got our butts kicked between the cold, wind, and snow.\"\r\n

Successful Pilot Project Paved Way<\/h3>\r\nLuck recalled that snowplowing operations were \"pretty low-tech\" when he was hired 10 years ago. \"Snow crews, foremen, and office personnel used two-way radios and personal cell phones to track snowplowing,\" he said.\r\n\r\nIn 2002, staff began researching AVL systems to evaluate the locations and operational status of vehicles and drivers.\r\n\r\n\"CompassCom had the ability to integrate with our spreader controllers\u2014devices that regulate salt usage,\" explained Luck. Also decisive in the decision to choose CompassCom: the ability to host CompassCom software on the county's internal IT system, he said."},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":168272,"image_position":"right","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"According to Luck, CompassCom's use of Esri software was also a factor during initial discussions. \"We were already running Esri products in-house at that time,\" he said.\r\n\r\nA CompassCom pilot program, launched in 2007, involved five snowplows. Each had sensors indicating whether a spreader was being used. After several months of success, the district decided to deploy the CompassCom product fleet-wide.\r\n\r\nToday, working with business partners including Esri, Trimble Navigation, and CalAmp, CompassCom customers such as Saginaw County manage more than 100,000 mobile assets, enabling users to get the right resource to the right place at the right time, according to Brant Howard, CompassCom founder and CEO.\r\n\r\n\"Snow fighting is a $5 billion industry when you consider the equipment, materials, and man-hours,\" Howard said. \"CompassCom works hard to make sure our clients are working in the most efficient, safest way possible to keep our transportation networks open, operational, and ready for commerce.\"\r\n

\"Little Black Box\" at Heart of System<\/h3>\r\nThe state-of-the-art AVL system basically consists of two software components:\r\n