Robert D. Niehaus, Inc.
Robert D. Niehaus, Inc. (RDN) is an economic consulting company that provides resource analysis for the U.S. Military Services and other agencies. RDN recently developed an application for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) that helps administrators in the DoD Military Housing Office define criteria for acceptable military housing and determine monthly housing allowances for approximately one million active servic members.
During development of the application, consultants at RDN realized that the solution would have additional value if it included an interactive map that enabled users at the DoD to visualize and edit geographic housing data. With a tight deadline looming, leaders at RDN sought additional skilled resources with expertise in geographic information systems (GIS) and .NET development to help them deliver a comprehensive solution for their government client.
We needed outside help to deliver a complete solution for our client. Visus leveraged its expertise with geographic information systems to create an interactive map that integrates seamlessly with our application. Our client loves the results. We would not have been able to complete this project without the expert help that Visus provided.
"Of all the technology providers we reviewed, Visus most clearly understood our requirements," says Ian Monsma, RDN project manager. "Their experience working with interactive mapping applications and overall software development experience assured us that they could provide a first-rate solution within our limited budget and short timeline."
The Visus development team conducted detailed research to identify our exact needs and verify that the project could be completed in a timely manner so we could meet our tight deadline.
Skillful Project Management Underpins Success
At the outset of the project, Visus provided RDN with a cost assessment that explained how the project would be managed and billed, with a timeline for completion. "We knew exactly what to expect and what Visus would deliver," Monsma explains. "Their team met with us regularly throughout each phase of development to give us detailed status updates. They did a very good job managing their side of this collaborative project."
As a subcontractor, Visus added valuable capabilities to the solution we developed for our client. Users can easily visualize information and sort data in new ways. It's one of the most popular features of the solution.
RDN wanted to provide the DoD with as much detailed information as possible about how data is collected, analyzed and verified, and make the information easy to understand. "Visus determined how best to visualize the data on a map so that it could be easily manipulated by users," Monsma says.
Visus carefully studied our project requirements and was able to respond quickly to accommodate changes from our client.
Personnel in the Military Housing Office don't need expertise in technology or statistical analysis to interpret complex data using the interactive map Visus created. "Visus enabled us to take our existing application to a higher level by making a complicated process simple and intuitive for end users at the DoD," Monsma summarizes. "Our client is very happy with the complete solution Visus helped us provide."