The benefits and potential implementation problems of GIS in the water distribution services of municipalities case study: The Kirkuk Water Directorate

A potential implementation of geographic information systems (GIS) in Kirkuk Water Directorate is evaluated at a preliminary level. Selected literature has been surveyed and it is perceived that there are municipalities of smaller, bigger and same sizes which have successfully setup GIS in their water distribution departments for asset management, real time monitoring and hydraulic modeling in there services . Such works report success stories in managing their network as well as pinpointing malfunctioning segments due to problems such as leak, blowout or broken pumps.This research targeted to reveal potential problems that Kirkuk Water Directorate can face while transforming paper based records into digital environment for a prospective GIS. While the literature survey has provided reports of successful applications, any potential problem that Kirkuk Water Directorate can face could be only inferred from them. Hence, to experience GIS software and data preparation, a GIS course has been followed by the researcher. The researcher has also contacted key informants who have actively worked in Ankara?s water distribution department during the rehabilitation of its GIS. By this way, potential problems could be identified. Investigations have been done over sample files of map sheets shared by the Kirkuk Water Directorate and it is seen that potential problems can be solved by a data operator who has attended a basic GIS course. Both the literature and investigation results show that preparing spatial and non-spatial databases of assets is the start of a productive GIS. Before increasing data quality, building a hydraulic model is almost impossible and setting up a real time monitoring system is quite difficult. It is also found that organizational changes such as in business rules could be necessary as frequent field trips will be needed with the GIS staff to check assets in use. It is expected that this research will be beneficial for the municipality of Kirkuk to manage resources in implementing GIS for it is anticipated to start financial feasibility works under this topic.