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In 1994, an ISO Committee for Geographic Information (ISO Technical Committee 211 Geographic Information / Geomatics) was established. The aim of the committee's work is to develop global standards and guidelines for an efficient and sustainable way of exchanging spatial data between organizations and countries.
What does the committee do?
The committee is chaired by Agneta Gren Engberg (Lantmäteriet), and works to develop various standards for data, methods and systems. Some of the priority areas for Sweden are to develop standards for are data product specifications, quality and metadata, data exchange via the web, as well as land use and land ownership (land administration) and geodetic infrastructure. The standards are based on accepted IT standards.
It is important to collaborate with others
Within the framework of the UN Committee of Experts UN-GGIM (Global Geospatial Information Management), the ISO Committee collaborates with OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) and IHO (International Hydrographic Organization) to support the standardization work. Cooperation with international actors is both a clear strategy and a necessity for the ISO Committee.
70 countries participate in the committee, of which 33 are observers, and the committee is responsible for about 70 published standards and about 25 ongoing project. Lantmäteriet participates and has representatives in several of these works that concern geodata.
Authorities and organizations have a common benefit
The benefit of standards is great, to meet important societal challenges described in National geodata strategy. Within the framework of this work, active representatives from Lantmäteriet, Bisnode, Boverket, Geoforum Sverige, Trafikverket, Trimble Solutions Sweden AB, Skogforsk - Stiftelsen skogsbrukets research institutes and Gisassistans AB participate.
Impact on standardization takes place at several levels, through management and control, through developers who participate in the development of standards, through users who set requirements with the help of standards and through users who need a "best practice" for their work.
Ongoing standard projects
The committee has a comprehensive website that is kept up to date, with everything from long-term plans, to user stories.
ISO / TC 211 Geographic information / Geomatics webpage (new window).
The standard projects the committee is currently working on, and who is leading the work, are listed under ongoing standard project (new window).
Published standards
The committee has taken responsibility for about 70 publications. A good compilation of published standards, including ongoing standard projects, can be found on the following website:
ISO / TC 211 Published standards incl. ongoing project (new window).
Participate in the standardization work
Lantmäteriet calls for more participants from socially important activities for work in the standardization work .
If you want to know more about how you can participate in the standardization work in collaboration with other authorities and organizations, contact Helen Eriksson at Lantmäteriet, helen.eriksson@lm.se, 0980-670 75, or Mats Åhlin at SIS 08-555 523 10.
Swedish Institute for Standards (SIS) and the Swedish Geodata Committee (new window).