Geonex
Why distribution utilities need coordinate-accurate field data
Electric and gas distribution networks are asset-dense: poles, transformers, switches, meters, valves, regulators, and miles of line or pipe, much of it installed or modified in the field long before it's reflected in the GIS system of record. Every gap between what's actually in the ground and what's in the database turns into a slower outage response, a riskier excavation near an unmapped line, or a compliance finding during an audit. Geonex gives field crews — linemen, service technicians, and utility locators — a way to capture asset coordinates accurately at the moment of installation or inspection, instead of relying on an after-the-fact as-built survey that may not happen for months.
Logging poles, transformers and other point assets
Each asset type a crew tracks can be set up as its own layer with the attribute fields that matter for that asset — pole ID, transformer kVA rating, install date, inspection status, whatever the engineering or GIS team needs. In the field, recording a new or inspected asset is a single tap once GPS has settled on the location, with the custom fields filled in right there rather than on a paper form that gets transcribed later. Because the coordinate system is fixed for the whole project, every point lines up cleanly with the utility's existing GIS data on import.
Tracing pipeline and distribution line routes
Gas pipelines and electric distribution lines are naturally line features, and Geonex's line tool captures them as a sequence of coordinates rather than a single approximate pin. Walk or drive the route, adding vertices at bends, tie-ins, and other significant points, and the app reports segment and total length as you go — useful for confirming an as-built route matches design length, or for estimating line footage before a repair crew is dispatched.
Recording valves, meters and service points precisely
Buried or hard-to-see assets like valves, regulators and service connection points are exactly the kind of feature where an inaccurate coordinate causes real problems later — a locate crew digging in the wrong spot, or an emergency responder unable to find a shutoff valve quickly. Geonex records the coordinate at the moment you're standing at the asset, with elevation available on Pro accounts, so the point in the system matches the point in the ground as closely as the device's GPS allows.
Coordinate conversion between field, GIS and regulatory systems
Utility data frequently has to move between the coordinate system a field crew works in and whatever system the corporate GIS, a regulator, or a one-call/locate service expects. Geonex's Transform tool handles that conversion instantly — by hand for a handful of points, or in a batch of up to 1,000 rows read directly from an Excel file — so a field supervisor isn't stuck retyping coordinate lists to satisfy a format requirement.
Getting field updates to the GIS and engineering team the same day
Geonex Pro's cloud layers let a field crew's updates reach the back office without waiting for a batch upload process. Share an asset layer with the GIS or engineering team by email, set the access level appropriate to their role, and every new pole, valve, or line segment a crew records is visible to them immediately. Photos can be attached to any point or line — a nameplate, a damaged pole, a corroded fitting — giving the office context that a coordinate alone can't provide.
Exporting for compliance, mapping and work orders
Whether the destination is a desktop GIS package, a compliance filing, or a simple spreadsheet for a work-order system, Geonex exports any layer as a KML file or an Excel workbook with attributes intact, shareable straight from the app. A crew can close out a day's work by sending a finished export to the office before they've left the truck.
Logging outages, damage and emergency locates on the spot
Storm response, third-party dig-ins, and emergency locate requests all share the same problem: the crew on scene needs to record an exact location fast, with enough context that the office and any follow-up crew understand what they're dealing with without a phone call. Geonex lets a field technician drop a point the moment they arrive, attach a photo of the damage or the affected asset, and fill in a short set of fields — asset type, damage description, priority — defined once for an outage or incident layer. Because that layer is shared with dispatch and engineering in real time, the office sees new incidents as they're logged rather than waiting for a radio call or an end-of-shift report.
Why utility crews pick Geonex over a generic mapping app
A consumer map app can drop a pin, but it has no concept of a transformer's kVA rating, a valve's install date, or which of twenty field crews should be allowed to edit a given asset layer. A full enterprise GIS has all of that, but it's rarely something a lineman opens mid-storm from a bucket truck. Geonex is built for the space in between: phone-first and fast enough to use on a routine service call, while still structured around real coordinate systems, custom attribute schemas, and layer-level sharing that matches how a utility's GIS and engineering teams already organize asset data.
Frequently asked questions from utility field teams
Can we set up different fields for different asset types?
Yes. Each layer you create defines its own set of attribute fields and data types, so a pole layer, a valve layer, and a pipeline layer can each be structured for what that asset actually needs to track.
Will exported data import into our existing GIS?
Geonex exports standard KML and Excel (XLSX) files, both widely supported import formats for desktop and enterprise GIS software. Your GIS team can map attribute fields on import as needed.
How accurate is the coordinate capture?
Accuracy depends on the device's GPS and field conditions; Geonex records the coordinate your phone's GPS has settled on for each point, and photos and elevation data can help verify or annotate uncertain locations later.