1. Surveylab Case Study
Industry: Industrial - Utilities
User: Electra, New Zealand
Electra saves 34% of its field data
capture costs with ikeGPS205
mobile data collection solution
ikeGPS is used in the field to monitor contractor’s work performance and locate network assets. By using Surveylab’s mobile field solution, Electra’s contractors collect verifiable
data, while remaining safe at all times.
Electra is the 8th largest electricity company in New Zealand. The company owns and operates power
lines and distribution assets for 40,000 users in New Zealand. To ensure quality and reliable service is
delivered to its customers, Electra is dedicated to maintain, monitor and manage its infrastructure in a
professional manner. Electra uses ikeGPS mobile solution to record location and condition of all network
assets, verifies high quality data is captured by field contractors, record the before and after condition
of repairs to check contractors work and monitor tree growth over time to plan cost effective pruning
programs. Electra is also certain its contractors are performing their duties as expected and collecting
verifiable data, while remaining safe at all times. By using Surveylab’s mobile field solution, Electra
saved 34% percent of its data capture costs and completely eliminated back-end data entry.
Extensive fieldwork requires reliable data collection methods
Managing and monitoring power lines and related infrastructures involve considerable fieldwork.
Before using ikeGPS mobile data capture solutions, Electra used multiple devices such as a camera
and surveying equipment for contractors to record location of assets and photograph their condition.
Post-processing and data synchronization was required at the completion of fieldwork. It was very
time-consuming and a 4-month delay between data capture and population of Electra’s Geographic
Information System (GIS) database was sometimes experienced. Transcription errors due to illegible
handwriting generated mistakes and discrepancies between contractor’s assessment of an asset’s
condition and Electra’s own assessment of the same asset. Electra also estimated a 20% mismatch
between photos taken by contractors, pole numbers and related paper records. Fixing these errors
required additional fieldwork and subsequent data entry, incurring additional costs of 5-10% above
the initial NZ$180,000 annual inspection budget.
ikeGPS website - CS Electra Final Ex Comments 1|3 January 2011

2. Surveylab Case Study
Electra saved 34% percent of its data capture and survey costs using ikeGPS field capture solutions. The use of ikeGPS in the field improved contractor’s work performance,
eliminated rework and back-end data entry costs.
Furthermore, natural disasters such as floods and slips regularly affect the region where Electra works.
They can cause power cuts, damage to power lines and network, extensive flooding and road closures.
In these circumstances, access to sites for data collection can be difficult or impossible and lead to
inaccurate recording of the assets damaged.
As Electra outsources both surveying and data entry work, a device allowing verifiable, safe and efficient
field data capture was sought to replace Electra’s current field workflow. Capabilities to assess infrastructure
condition from a remote location were also desirable. ikeGPS mobile data solutions fitted the bill perfectly
and Electra chose Surveylab ikeGPS or their field data capture needs. They haven’t looked back.
Validating field contractors fieldwork data capture quality and integrity
To assist Electra with the validation of all field data captured by its outsourcing contractors, Surveylab
designed an ikeGPS user-specific ArcPad compatible application mirroring Electra’s existing paper based
methods, while allowing additional checks to be put in place.
For example, each power pole has a serial number followed by a digital verification number. In the past,
these numbers were used to verify exactly which pole had been inspected. If a mistake in the numbers’
transcription was present, it was impossible for the data entry staff to verify which pole was checked.
The new Surveylab ikeGPS application now forces contractors to enter valid pole serial and verification
numbers and ensures the infrastructure being assessed is the correct one. The application also forces
the contractor to answer a series of questions about the assets condition and up to six (6) photos can
be recorded to justify the assessment.
Georeferenced and time-stamped photographs, attribute
and location data captured in the field by ikeGPS meet
Electra’s corporate needs and can be uploaded to their
corporate ArcGIS database. All data can be cross-
checked with previous records, is verifiable and allow
close monitoring of contractors work performance.
This provides Electra a proof of pole inspection by the
contractor, and it is useful in case of legal challenge.
ikeGPS operator training is simple and facilitated by the
easy-to-use Electra’s purpose-built data capture application.
The data can subsequently, instantaneously and easily be transferred into the corporate database back at
the office, immediately eliminating data entry time lags, saving on data entry costs, potential rework and
additional surveying costs.
ikeGPS website - CS Electra Final Ex Comments 2|3 January 2011

3. Surveylab Case Study
Safety first
Electra also benefits from ikeGPS remote data collection capabilities. The laser-range finder allows
Electra’s contractors to capture asset location and condition from a remote location up to 1000 meters
away. This is very useful when the access to the asset is obstructed, dangerous or non-existent (e.g.
power pole located across a flooded river) and keeps the user safe at all times. ikeGPS real-time DGPS
processing allow for a sub-meter accuracy of the target location.
Electra saves 34% of its data capture costs with ikeGPS
Electra considerably streamlined its field data capture process by exploiting ikeGPS powerful mobile data
collection capabilities. Data capture with ikeGPS is straightforward, verifiable, comprehensive, efficient
and safe. ikeGPS significantly reduced Electra’s field surveys deployment time, shortened data capture
and post-processing time by eliminating mistakes, thus reducing overall operational timelines and cost.
Electra saved NZ$64,000 from their original NZ$193,000 data collection costs by using ikeGPS, which
equates to a 34% overall cost saving.
AT A GLANCE
Key reasons Electra selected ikeGPS
• Fast data collection system increasing efficiency, eliminating data entry errors and
enabling simple operator training
• Laser range finder ensures safe data capture from a distance, while still guaranteeing
the quality and verifiability of data collected
• Compatibility with ESRI’s ArcGIS, ArcPad and Electra’s corporate database
• Knowledgeable staff and expert support
Key benefits for Electra
• Electra saved 34% of its data collection costs using ikeGPS
• Increase efficiency of data capture process and remove errors, rework and additional costs from
field work data collection
• Verifiable data capture to quickly cross-check information and measure contractor’s performance
Technology used
• ikeGPS series GPS data collection unit from Surveylab
• ESRI ArcGIS
• ArcPad Mobile GIS software
ikeGPS website - CS Electra Final Ex Comments 3|3 January 2011