Richmond, VA—January 27, 2009 - Timmons Group, a leading provider of geospatial services, recently upgraded the Virginia Department of Forestry’s (VDOF) Integrated Forest Resource Information System (IFRIS©) application to ESRI’s 9.3 product line.  IFRIS allows users to spatially and temporally track activities and quantify time spent in terms of strategic goals, grant allocation and cost sharing directly through a web browser.  Additionally, IFRIS allows employees to track time and accomplishments out in the field and map forest-related activities such as forest health observations, stands, tracts, trails, and other ancillary features . 

The IFRIS enterprise also includes a mobile solution that integrates GPS functionality, allowing approximately 200 VDOF staff to use ESRI’s ArcGIS Server and ArcGIS Mobile software. All field workers are equipped with Trimble GeoXMs running ArcGIS Mobile and SQL Server Compact.  Timmons Group recently upgraded the web and mobile solutions to ArcGIS Server 9.3 and ArcGIS Mobile 9.3.  Additionally, the field to web synchronization process was upgraded to use a service oriented architecture approach based on Microsoft’s Sync Framework.  The synchronization process improved the field workers ability to submit their field collected data directly into IFRIS Web for real-time access and visualization. 

“The upgrade of the IFRIS enterprise to the ESRI 9.3 platform and the migration of the field synchronization process to a truly service oriented architecture approach has bolstered the foundation of IFRIS to support the needs of many other VDOF business requirements that will be integrated in the future”, says Chris Gerecke, Director of Enterprise Solutions for Timmons Group.

IFRIS is based on ESRI ArcGIS Server, ArcGIS Mobile, ArcSDE and Microsoft SQL Server, which stores data covering more than 147,000 forested acres.   Future releases of IFRIS© will incorporate field-based and web-based mapping and data collection of water quality harvest inspections, water quality concerns and wildfire mapping. This technology will make it easier for field staff to capture data describing the location and nature of wildfire incidents, water quality harvest inspections, forest health observations and other critical data.

About Timmons Group
Timmons Group is a leading provider of geospatial, information architecture and engineering services focusing on ArcGIS Server, ArcGIS Mobile and Enterprise solutions.  Timmons Group is a privately held ENR 500 company and maintains a strong business partner relationship with ESRI.  Timmons Group has been a recipient of both the ESRI Business Partner of the Year award and the ESRI Foundation Partner of the Year award. 

For more information about Timmons Group’s technology services, contact Lowell Ballard at Email Contact or visit http://www.timmons.com/markets-and-services/technology.asp.

For more information contact:                                                             
Tim Asimos, Marketing Manager
Timmons Group
804.200.6375
Email Contact