PC Calculator Testing New Service

The ISRB PCC runs using webservices. The ISRB does not attempt to maintain a database of geocoded addressess for the State of Idaho. The current Geocoding service ESRI is discontinuing there service. The PCC has been recoded to access the webservice provided by Microsoft's Virtual Earth. Virtual Earth we are told uses a combination of NAVTEQ and Tele Atlas data.
We are testing the new service by running request we receive through both the production server and the test server. What we have found that is some parts of Idaho Virtual Earth codes to what appears to be the front door of a building. In other part it codes to the street.

In places where it codes to the street we get good matches between the two systems. However the coding to the building has presented some problems. Let me explain. The returned geocode or Lat/Long is projected on a dataset resembling a polygon called a shapefile. A shapefile has been created that goes from every fire hydrant that we have geocoded, down the center of each and every street for a distance of 1,000 feet. The Shapefile is then expanded from the center of the street 50 feet on both sides and the end of the street. This watersystem shapefile represents the rule in the Public Protection Classification Manual - Idaho for how the distance to a fire hydrant is determined. When a returned geocode is at the building. The building may be back off the street more that 50 feet. We miss hitting the water layer by that much.

The other problem we have with both systems is that the street data geocoding. Does not always matchup well with the shapefiles we receive from the State of Idaho for taxing districts. We notice this most when boundaries touch and run down the center of streets.

Since the ESRI service is closing the end of June 2009. We will be changing soon.

Changes Comming to Protection Class Calculator

The geocoding service used by the ISRB Protection Class Calculator is being discontinued by ESRI. The Bureau has started the process of changing the service provided for the geocoding and routing information needed to process the public protection classess associated with an address.

Bases on advice from our software developer and other the calls for geocode and routing will be changed to a Microsoft service. Virtual Earth reports to use the best of both NAVtag and TeleAtlas data.

As the new code is completed, it will be tested before being put into production.

Adding Fields to Specific Loss Cost Database

The specific loss cost database currently has two tables. The addresses database provides the address for each risk as well as some underwriting information including the key to the fire defense provide. Within the next few months we will be adding a zip code field to the database, followed by fields for the Latitude Longitude and altitude.

More Changes in the Public Protection Database

Currently we are cleaning up some of the entries in the database deleting some entries that we believe are no longer needed. In addition we are reviewing all the "see" reference to make sure that they are still correct and making the corrections when needed.

In an effort to use abbreviations in s consistent manner, some of the names will change as we apply a common style is the Name field.

Finally, in the order to avoid confusion between "Subscription" district in other state and fire defense providers in Idaho. We are changing our fire department type from "S" for subscription to "A" for Association. In Idaho those organizations who provide fire defense service but are not public entities must respond to all fire within established boundaries and meet all of the same minimum criteria used for tax supported entities.

These changes will appear only in the web searches by provider name. These mass changes w ill only appear with the publication of the next edition of the manual, and for those entities that are modified via Monthly Updates for the remainder of this year.

Specific Loss Cost Database PCode Field

This morning the production Specific Loss Cost Database has been updated by changing the data in the PCode field to represent the same data in the gradID field in the Public Protection Database.

Data in the GradID field that has less than three digits is represented in the PCODE by adding "0's" to the left of the digit to make the data three characters.

Example: 1 to 001
23 to 023

Database Projects

Bureau Staff is working on some incremental changes in two of our key databases. The first phase of this project is to change the one of the fields in the Specific Loss Cost Database.

This database has a field to identify the fire defense provider for each risk. The field is named "PCODE" and is a three character text. These codes are being changed to match the gradID code used in both the "Public Protection Classification Database" and the "Protection Class Calculator"

Although the Public Protection Classification Database GradID field is a numerical field the changes in the in the Specific Loss Cost Database will only be in the data.

Watch this space for news on other upcoming changes.