GBM Konect represents the next major step in the evolution of location-based data collection applications, offering industry, state and municipal infrastructure authorities’ real-time access to essential information.
According to the Grattan Institute, councils in Australia manage more than 75 per cent of the national road network.
Legislative and regulatory requirements necessitate that local councils must develop what’s known as an Asset Management Policy and Strategy, covering how they intend to preserve service standards, conduct asset condition assessments, implement proactive maintenance and develop long-term planning.
All of this and more aims to ensure that councils are responsibly, sustainably and cost-effectively managing road infrastructure for the community. But how do you effectively and efficiently track what’s done and what’s not? Particularly for municipalities that are being asked to do more, with less.
It’s a question that Global GBM set out to answer more than a decade ago.
Having initially worked on three-dimensional modelling in the mining industry in the early 1990s, Global GBM began developing GIS (Geographic Information System) software and field data collection tools for mining applications.
The company recognised soon after that the software could serve much broader markets beyond mining. As such, it began developing related products and web-based solutions.
With the introduction of the first iPhone and other significant technological improvements, Global GBM decided to redevelop its product for modern platforms.
This paved the way for the creation of GBM Konect.
History in the making
GBM Konect is a field services platform widely used in road and road infrastructure management, especially by local governments.
Russell Shooter, Chief Executive Officer – GBM Konect says the app enables users to locate and manage assets in the field using geospatial awareness (mapping assets with X, Y coordinates).
“Through the geospatially aware Konect app, users can build quite a comprehensive set of tools to help manage road assets, from potholes and resurfacing, through to road furniture management and everything in between,” he says.
The platform captures a wide range of field data, including asset inventories such as roads, trees and signage. It’s also capable of capturing inspection records, defect reports and work orders for maintenance.
This field data is typically captured via mobile devices, allowing users to collect information directly in the field.
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Understanding that unique challenges require bespoke solutions, the Konect platform has also been designed to cater for virtually any application.
As John Ivett, Director – GBM Konect explains, the process often starts with a trial or proof of concept, where the platform is configured to capture a portion of the client’s requirements, before being expanded as needed.
“Most will go to market and say ‘I need something that collects information about roads or trees or parks’. Most platforms will come to the table and offer the solution, but say you’ve got to do it their way,” he says.
“Whereas, with Konect, we go to our potential users and encourage them to tell us what they need to do. We’ll then modify those components for them.”
Konect is designed to be fully flexible and customisable, allowing users to tailor the platform to cater for specific parameters, without requiring programming skills.
“It almost seems too good to be true, but as it’s a fully customisable and flexible system, it can virtually accommodate whatever you want to throw at it,” Ivett says. “You can collect the data that you want, when you want it, and how you want it. It doesn’t matter how, when or why. Thanks to Konect, there are no longer barriers for those who need to collect data.”
It’s features such as this that have seen Konect become popular among a number of segments in the transport and infrastructure space, as Shooter explains.
“The Konect app is already widely used in roads and road infrastructure, but it’s most widely used in the context of local government road maintenance,” he says.
First-hand
The City of Greater Geelong is just one municipality that’s benefiting from the use of the Konect platform.
Covering an area of 1247 square kilometres, as well as an estimated population greater than 280,000, the City of Greater Geelong’s responsibilities are significant when it comes to maintaining and delivering services to the community. Especially its road network.
With essential road links across the region, such as the gateway to the Great Ocean Road, City of Greater Geelong is heavily relied upon to uphold local infrastructure.
Across the organisation, about 300 council staff are using Konect. The rollout began with the City Works department in late 2020 and has recently expanded to the Parks & Natural Assets department, adding about 120 more users.
Alex Hardiman, System Support Analyst – City of Greater Geelong, says Konect has been used primarily by field staff involved in tasks such as pothole repairs, graffiti cleanups, line marking, and tree cutting.
“Through Konect, our systems have been set up to be really streamlined and given us greater control over the flow of information,” he says. “On the flip side, Konect makes it really simple for us, importantly, to get that information back out to our teams.
“After all, if it’s worth capturing, then it’s worth reviewing.”
Konect is used to manage all field work, with jobs logged by customer service officers or inspectors, before being assigned to supervisors, and then dispatched to crews.
The system streamlines information flow and data collection, including job details, comments, photos, and safety questionnaires, all into one platform.
Hardiman adds that the map-based interface, ease of use, and ability to extract data for reporting and compliance are among the key benefits for council.
“The fact that it’s map-based really helps to reduce travel time. It’s a big region, so some days our team might complete 20 jobs, or three, depending on the travel time,” he says. “With Konect, teams can be more efficient with the travel between jobs, therefore increasing our work throughput and coordination.
“Now we’ve got a better idea of the square meterage and how long each of these jobs takes.”
City of Greater Geelong is also piloting the use of Konect with external contractors, aiming to further streamline work allocation and reporting.
Hardiman says the feedback he’s received so far from council staff has been overwhelmingly positive, particularly around the flexible nature of Konect.
“It’s great to use a platform that has so much freedom for making adjustments,” he says. “If someone in our team asks for a minor change, I can have that sorted in 10 minutes.
“Konect really fills us with confidence that the information we’re getting is accurate, usable and potentially impactful.”
This article was originally published in the October edition of our magazine. To read the magazine, click here.
