Eenie, Menie, Miney, Moe?
GEO W ORLD /FEBRUAR Y 2O10 26 Site Selection W hen a company searches for the optimal location of a new facility or site, a site-selection process is used to help evaluate myriad company objectives and criteria that can some-times be conflicting. Of all the decisions a company can make, where to locate ranks among the most impor-tant and complex. Investing in the wrong place can have devastating consequences to profits, shareholder value, customer service and employee morale. The site-selection search can encompass an entire country or multiple countries. Sometimes, a client may have narrowed the search region to a limited geo-graphic area (such as a few states) after running its own inhouse evaluations. GIS provides the following fundamental benefits to the site-selection process: Â Decision support (comprehensive and thorough analysis of multiple factors) Â Presentation support (visual elements/maps have a strong impact on users' understanding of the results) Â Communication enhancement (pictures really are worth a thousand words) Companies are deadline driven more than ever, and the time allotted for siting decisions has been compressed, BY BARBARA DENDY Eenie, Menie, Miney, Moe? GIS Reduces Guesswork in Site Selection