
- Company: Blue Fox Technology Ltd
- Client: Powys County Council
- Year: 2022 - 2025
- Region: Wales
- Product: OpusMap
- Community engagement
- Geographical information systems (GIS) and mapping
- Plan-making, planning application and data management systems
Introduction
Powys procured OpusConsult and OpusMap (the Opus system) via competitive tender. They used the Opus system to run their Candidate Sites consultation online. Specifically, the Opus system enabled the public to submit all parts of their candidate site proposal digitally – including site plans via OpusMap – using their preferred web or mobile browser.
Challenges
Solutions
The site plan data generated was more usable both to the public (e.g. they could retain their own copy of the submitted site plan) and to the Planning Policy team. It allowed planners to start site assessments almost immediately as all site plan data submitted via OpusMap was georeferenced, editable and included area measurements (calculated automatically as part of the site drawing process) as well as the accurate locations of any proposed site access points.
Results
The previous Call for Sites had taken 3 months to input all data into a usable format because there was no dedicated constraints map with drawing tools linked to the online submission form. Previously any sites submitted had to be digitised manually in the GIS as a separate process and then joined back again with the other submission data. Powys were having to transfer data in and out of different software. This was not a practical solution, as the team don’t all work in one office.
We’ve had the Opus system for 3 years now. There’s been excellent support provided throughout that time with sound advice and knowledge being passed on so we can maximise the return on our investment in the software and make good use of it on a day to day basis.