RouteSmart announces GIS software update

RouteSmart has announced it is offering RouteSmart for ArcGIS, which the company says combines the latest geographic information system (GIS) technology and routing software.

This new integrates with RouteSmart web services, such as Routing as a Service (RaaS) and RouteSmart Online (RO), to give users better control of their routes.

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GIS-based interoperability is a unique feature in other route-planning services. It is another step forward in the Columbia, South Carolina, company’s partnership with Esri, the Redlands, California-based maker of ArcGIS.

“This is truly a unique combination of technologies that only RouteSmart can offer,” RouteSmart Vice President of Sales Chris Walz says. “As an Esri Gold Partner, RouteSmart Technologies has continually developed our route planning solutions over the past four decades on top of the latest and greatest Esri-based geographic information systems—the world leader in GIS solutions and software.”

RouteSmart for ArcGIS Pro is designed to appeal to a wide range of stakeholders. Current RouteSmart clients hoping to use GIS to modify and analyze route data using RaaS or RO will find value in this tool, the company says.

RouteSmart for ArcGIS Pro is a free add-in from RouteSmart. For clients to take full advantage of its capabilities, they will need a subscription to RaaS or RO.

Three rounds of features have been released. Clients can import RaaS and RO workspaces into RouteSmart for ArcGIS Pro and then edit and export the workspace in a format that may be used in the RaaS portal. Additional tools available include the RouteSmart Categories Manager to filter routes in the map view, RouteSmart Selection Statistics to summarize workloads by route and visualize time-sensitive stops on the map view.

Direct connectivity to RO and RaaS will be available in the third quarter. RouteSmart also is working to enable clients to send edited street layers from ArcGIS Pro to the RouteSmart Data Cloud for use by RO and RaaS. More features are due in the fourth quarter.

“We will continue to differentiate ourselves from other route planning category players by offering a solution that is compatible with ArcGIS Pro, a platform that no one else is offering to round out the route planning experience for our clients and the industries within which they operate,” Walz says.

By using the mapping functionality of RouteSmart for ArcGIS Pro, clients can develop their own route-planning applications or inspection workload planning tools while leveraging the powerful capabilities of RouteSmart as the route-planning engine.

In developing RouteSmart for ArcGIS Pro, RouteSmart has recognized the demand from GIS-centric clients who want access to their data for GIS manipulation, such as making maps, sharing data across enterprise GIS and performing other GIS analyses that web applications cannot support.

“RouteSmart Technologies has always carried the banner of the value of using GIS in support of route planning. We have traditionally competed in the route planning marketplace by using GIS technology as a differentiator and enabler,” Walz says. “We will continue to differentiate ourselves from other route planning category players by offering a solution that is compatible with ArcGIS Pro, a platform that no one else is offering to round out the route planning experience for our clients and the industries within which they operate.”