As revealed in last month’s Oil IT Journal, MJ Harden Associates has rolled out the first ArcGIS Pipeline Data Model. The joint development with ESRI was hailed as ‘a first step toward broad industry consensus on a common conceptual data model for the pipeline industry.’ The new data model leverages the Integrated Spatial Analysis Techniques (ISAT) pipeline data model – originally developed by the Gas Research Institute and now under MJ Harden’s custody.
Kicked-up dust!
But the new data model has kicked up some dust in the pipeline community. Readers of Oil IT Journal will be aware that there is more than one ‘industry standard’ data model. Indeed, at the GITA Houston conference, Montana-Dakota Utilities (MDU) announced the joint development of guess what—an ArcGIS pipeline data model based on the Pipeline Open Data Standard (PODS) data model. Oil IT Journal quizzed the PODS folks at GITA and learned of their surprise at the ESRI announcement. PODS are concerned that any ‘standard’ GIS-enabled model should have more input from the community at large and should be vendor independent. PODS claims to be “seeking consensus and vendor neutrality.” ESRI’s Andrew Zolnai issued a statement addressing the “confusion around the Pipeline Geodatabase schema.” The ISAT release was “done in an orderly manner, if more rapidly than expected, and with absence of malice.”
EU can play too!
Don’t worry though, there’s no reason why the industry should stop at two ‘standard’ pipeline data models. There’s already a third under development—funded by the good old European taxpayer! Check out the latest ‘Industry Standard’ Pipeline Data Management on ispdm.org!
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