{"id":1527822,"date":"2022-04-25T08:00:41","date_gmt":"2022-04-25T15:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=1527822"},"modified":"2025-07-22T16:33:20","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T23:33:20","slug":"starting-your-utility-network-journey","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/electric-gas\/starting-your-utility-network-journey","title":{"rendered":"Journey to the Utility Network: First Steps"},"author":304562,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":""},"categories":[25741,25841,23051],"tags":[565442,35461],"industry":[],"product":[42661,515312],"class_list":["post-1527822","blog","type-blog","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-electric-gas","category-telecommunications","category-water","tag-arcgis-utility-network","tag-utility-network","product-arcgis-solutions","product-utility-network"],"acf":{"short_description":"This article is a guide for GIS Professionals to the first five key steps to every successful Utility Network implementation.","flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Edit 4\/26: Added an additional resources<\/a> section to help with next steps.<\/p>\n

The First Steps<\/h1>\n

Often, the hardest part of every journey is taking the first step.\u00a0 This article will show you how you can take your first tangible steps towards implementing the ArcGIS Utility Network today using these the five key steps we see in every successful implementation:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Look at how you organize your data into networks<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. Identify the fields you use to manage those networks<\/a><\/li>\n
  3. Preparing for and performing data cleanup tasks<\/a><\/li>\n
  4. Considering how you organize or classify your assets<\/a><\/li>\n
  5. Reviewing your data for unused or unreliable fields<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    This article is intended for a wide audience, and I hope that everyone from managers and stakeholders to GIS Admins and Technicians will use this guide to understand implementation of GIS systems for utilities and why we make some of the decisions that we do.\u00a0 With that out of the way, let ‘s begin!<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

    1. Organize your data into networks<\/h1>\n

    Every utility manages some type of commodity and the way these commodities are conveyed to customers are via networks.\u00a0 Transmission networks move large volumes of the commodities from where it is being generated or stored to regional distribution hubs.\u00a0 Distribution networks deliver these commodities from distribution hubs into the residential and commercial areas that need them.\u00a0 The ArcGIS Utility Network is capable of modelling systems like stations and plants that haven’t historically been modelled in a GIS.\u00a0 So, when planning you need to consider how much of your network data you want to model and ask the following questions:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Which networks you want to model?<\/li>\n
    2. Do you have the data to support these networks?<\/li>\n
    3. What are the business drivers and who are your stakeholders for these networks?<\/li>\n
    4. What existing business processes and workflows are in place to maintain this information?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Once you’ve identified which networks you will and won’t be modelling, the next step is to determine how you will store this information in your data model.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

      2. Identify the fields used to manage your network<\/h1>\n

      While its true that every network is different and that every customer does things differently, there are some things that are universal to the way that networks behave.\u00a0 Once you understand how to organize and configure the utility network dataset you can use it represent any kind network!\u00a0 The questions you need to answer to model a network are the following:<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. How do we organize and name our networks?<\/li>\n
      2. Where do resources enter the system?<\/li>\n
      3. What kind of equipment can disrupt the flow of resources?<\/li>\n
      4. How are resources measured or metered within the network?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Once you have answered these questions, you’ll then look at how your data supports these answers.<\/p>\n