GIS Updating & GPS Field Collection

Weston & Sampson was selected to establish a comprehensive water system GIS for the City of Everett, Massachusetts to support hydraulic modeling and Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) design tied to a major hotel and resort development.

The GIS was first updated to reflect five years of system improvements using CAD files and original city-wide plans showing swing ties to surface features. These swing ties, critical for locating buried valves, were georeferenced, and their measured distances were preserved as attributes. Our team also collected approximately 11,000 GPS points for hydrants, valves, and curb stops using RTK receivers, ensuring accuracy with post-processing validation. To meet deadlines, field staff were trained, and data uploads enabled rapid feedback. Once collected, GPS data was used to adjust existing features and add new ones. A custom tool flagged misaligned pipes for targeted correction. The final deliverable was a complete geodatabase with over 8,000 new features and embedded accuracy data.