The Navigator for Enterprise Solutions GIS TECHNOLOGY SPECIAL JULY - 2014 CIOREVIEW.COM

20 Most Promising GIS Solution Providers 2014 he traditional methods of acquiring, storing, In such a situation, the capacity to innovate is generally and analyzing spatial referenced data has a perceived to be crucial to organizational survival. There is great importance in everyday work of both also an increased awareness among organization about Tpublic and private organizations. The increased critical decision-making capability of GIS. Moreover, it is understanding of the value of spatial data has led to implicit within such views that the adoption and use of a huge increase in GIS providers. Companies offering technological innovations, such as GIS, will help top-level anything from base data through spatially-enabled management to deliver the novel approaches, which will database management systems and enterprise solutions, enhance economic and administrative competitiveness. to analytical applications and providers of location-based To help CIOs and CEO’s in this endeavor, CIO Review software and services–all of these are finding their presents “20 Most Promising GIS Solution Providers advantage with GIS technologies. However, despite the 2014.” immense popularity garnered over the past few years, Our editorial team evaluated over hundreds of certain issues continue to hinder the market growth of solution providers and selected a handful to be profiled GIS technology. Integration of the technology with cloud in the GIS Special, so that you can gain a comprehensive technologies remains one of the major challenges. Other understanding of what technologies are available, which challenges include limited possibility of data evaluation and are right for you, and how do they shape up against data combination, redundant data sets, lack of actuality the competition. The solution providers featured in this and consistency, dissemination and transformation of magazine provide a look into how their products work in information, increasing government regulations and the real world. We believe this information will help you to expensive labor. Although, prices have declined in the market your company in a much more effective manner. recent past, the technology is still considered expensive We present to you CIO Review’s 20 Most Promising for smaller companies. GIS Solution Providers 2014.

Oculus Info Inc. Company: Description: Oculus Info Inc A software services consulting recognized by magazine as group that designs and develops innovative business solutions for clients

An annual listing of the top 20 companies that are in the forefront of tackling Key Person: Website: challenges in the GIS industry and impacting the marketplace Curtis Garton, Director & www.oculusinfo.com Senior Product Manager Pradeep Shankar Christo Jacob Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor

CIOReview|20 | july 2014 Oculus Info Inc. Solving Complex Geospatial Challenges through Visualization

eographical Information Oculus as a company is primarily a “Most of our GIS projects are delivered Systems (GIS) of today have research and development organization, via web services to deliver results to users grown considerably from which puts it in the unique position of being fast. This has paid big dividends in terms the once niche and technical able to devote the majority of our resources of efficiency and flexibility,” says Garton, Gofferings of the past. Holding experience towards researching new methods of solving “As for now, we are most excited about the in 3D design, Curtis Garton, Director and complex geospatial challenges through growing momentum behind WebGL and the Senior Product Manager at Oculus Info, visualization. They then take what they have performance capabilities that it will unlock, is a man who clearly understands this learned through this research and use it to as it is essential for the proliferation of 3D transformation. “Unlike early GIS systems, visualization tools across both the web and today’s GIS tools and services are designed handheld devices.” for non-specialists, giving almost anyone Most of our GIS Having worked with clients ranging the opportunity to use them,” he says. from local law enforcement entities to Along with the general IT industry, the projects are delivered federal government agencies, Oculus’ GIS space has “big data” growing pains, efficiency can be well traced from the story which represent opportunities for company via web services and of a Philadelphia homicide trial, where the such as Oculus to innovate and deliver new this has paid big company’s product GeoTime helped a small ways of helping their clients visualize and police agency in creating video evidence analyze large volumes of location rich data. dividends in terms linking several suspects to the murder of a Dealing with terabytes of geographical data Pennsylvania musician. Videos produced presents many challenges for organizations of efficiency and using GeoTime displayed animated today, many of which are visualization and flexibility graphics showing the suspects’ movement analysis related. With customers in the U.S., and proximity to the crime scene during Europe and Canada, Oculus Info answers drive their COTS products forward, which the homicide and ultimately helped jurors these challenges through designing and provide a broad set of users with powerful convict the perpetrators. “Having GeoTime developing innovative business visualiza- visualization and analysis tools. was a great benefit. It can potentially push tion solutions. Founded in 2001, Oculus One of the company’s most recognized an investigation further by exploring the Info works on big data projects ranging products, GeoTime is a software application data in greater detail and finding things from visualizing massive amounts of geo- for visual analysis and presentation of which may have been overlooked,” said located social media data geo-temporal data. The product suite of Detective Joseph Coffman, Falls Township to intuitive opera- Oculus also includes Influent, a web based Police Department who used GeoTime to tions dashboards application for visually and interactively help investigate his homicide case. with easy to following transaction flow; Aperture tiles, Going forward, Garton envisions 3D use analytical a tile-based that provides to provide users with the capabilities for browser-based interactive visualization power to instantaneously spot patterns and client-compa- of billions of data points leveraging big trends hidden within dynamic datasets. “Our ny executives. data, and nSpace, a visual analytics system products have helped users from different for document discovery and visual sense industries to not only gain insight from their making. data but also provide them with the tools to Oculus differentiates itself with their share this insight with others. Our vision for capability to solve complex geospatial the future is to create innovative tools for challenges through visualization visual analysis of geospatial data that can be by putting its resources towards used in a wide variety of markets by users Curtis Garton researching new and innovative ranging from senior executives to entry level methods for solving data problems. analysts,” he concludes.

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