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ANKUSH SUD: Hi, everyone.
Welcome to the session, So You Want to Address?
I'm Ankush, senior program manager with Google Maps.
ROHAN KUMAR: Hello, everyone.
I'm Rohan, program manager with Google Maps.
ANKUSH SUD: Many of you already know about Plus Codes
and might be wondering how you can assign
Plus Code Addresses at scale.
There could be questions like, is there
a turnkey solution that I can use
to assign addresses at scale?
Is the solution accurate, efficient, and easy to use?
How do I plan for my addressing project?
What are the different phases in the project?
What resources will be required for the project?
Well, today, in this session, we shall
try to answer these questions for you.
So, starting with the first question, yes.
There is a turnkey addressing solution called Address Maker.
Address Maker is a free Android app
that lets governments and NGOs easily create addresses
using Plus Codes.
Address Maker's solution has three components--
Android mobile app, to generate and verify
Plus Code Addresses on the ground; web console,
to manage the addressing project; training resources,
to onboard the project team to Address Maker's solution.
Now you know about the addressing solution.
But how do you plan for your addressing project?
Well, we can divide an addressing project broadly
in three phases.
First phase, project setup, followed
by on-ground addressing, and then address activation.
What happens in each phase?
Let's see in subsequent slides.
Starting with the first phase, project setup,
we shall first look at various approvals and communications
that are required before we start the project.
Addressing location.
Identify the area wherein you want to do addressing.
Depending upon the scale of your project,
it could be a neighborhood, locality, or even
a complete city or state.
Approvals.
Before starting an addressing project,
it's important that you secure all necessary approvals
from the local authorities.
This will ensure that the authorities are
aware about your project and the benefits it will bring to both
the citizens and authorities.
Communications.
Local community might have questions
if someone starts addressing their area without knowing
who is doing it, how it will be done,
and what are the benefits.
This might also cause resistance from the community
during addressing project.
To avoid this and gather support from the local community,
it's important to sensitize them about the project.
This can be done in partnership with local authorities,
by printing and distributing leaflets, putting up
posters, or presenting the project in the community town
halls.
Next comes addressing policy.
Before the team starts assigning Plus Code Addresses,
it's important to agree on the addressing policy.
This ensures that addresses are assigned consistently
across the project by different people working on it.
Policy helps answer key questions upfront,
such as, what types of properties get an address?
A residence, a business, a health care facility.
But what about schools, parks, or tourist attractions?
Do we assign an address at the entrance
of the property that is used for public access,
or somewhere else?
What to do if the property is under construction
or the owner is not present?
Do we come back again?
How do we address a building that
might have multiple residences or businesses inside?
As part of the Address Maker solution,
we provide you with templates to help drive these decisions.
Once the policy is finalized, we configure the policy decisions
in the Address Maker app, so that the team
can use it real time, while assigning
addresses on the ground, and hence,
avoid making any mistakes.
Moving on to the project team.
We broadly have two roles under the project team--
project manager and field operators.
Project manager is expected to have
experience in project management and running field operations.
The project manager leads the addressing project
and collaborates with all stakeholders
to drive decision making and ensure successful project
execution.
Project manager helps the field operators
to get onboarded to Address Maker solution.
Field operators.
They use the mobile app to visit the area
to be addressed and assign Plus Code Addresses.
They should be comfortable with the use of Android smartphones
and get onboarded to the Address Maker solution.
They will have to complete work assignments as assigned
by the project manager and be responsible for quality
and timely submissions of their work.
Address boards are fixed at the entrance of a property.
They help the user to validate whether they have reached
the right property or not.
This is wherein the online and offline worlds meet.
It's important to set up a robust supply of address codes
for your addressing project.
Quality, cost, and time all need to be
considered before arriving at the decision.
For example, we need to make sure
that the address boards can last long in adverse weather
conditions that we might witness in some parts of the world.
We can also share the address board specifications with you
that can help you to get the right board for your project.
Other resources required for the project.
Mobile devices.
Mobile devices will be used by the field operators
to go in the field and assign addresses using the Address
Maker mobile app.
Android 6 or above mobile devices
are required with internet data connection.
Devices with good GPS capability,
like GPSA and GLONASS, are recommended,
as it helps with quick sync while in the field.
Apart from the mobile devices, the field operators
would also need tools like hammer, nails, et
cetera to fix the address boards, as well as leaflets,
stationary, while doing the addressing.
With that, now I shall hand it over to Rohan
to take us through the rest of the session.
Thanks.
ROHAN KUMAR: Thanks, Ankush.
So once the project setup is completed,
we move to the next phase of on-ground addressing.
The first stage in this phase is called work package setup.
The area to be addressed is divided
into smaller subsections, called work packages,
via the web console.
Each work package has a clearly defined boundary.
Once these work packages are set up,
the project manager or the ops lead
can then assign these work packages
to the field operators using the web console.
After a work package has been assigned to a field operator,
it will reflect on the home page of the operator's Address Maker
app.
The operator will then open the assigned work package,
move to the location where the work package boundary exists,
and once they reach that area, they
will choose a starting point and start addressing road segments
as well as assigning Plus Code Addresses to properties
existing on each side of that road segment.
This activity is repeated for all road segments
and properties within the assigned work package boundary.
Please note that the agreed addressing
policy is pre-configured on the app
and it will guide the field operators
during their on-ground addressing work.
When all the properties have been addressed,
the operator can then submit the work package
and the package then moves on to the next stage.
In the next stage, quality checks
are performed on the added roads and addresses
in each work package.
If this data looks good, it is added to Google Maps
and the addresses are then sent for printing on the address
boards.
Once on-ground addressing is completed,
then the field operators go to the field
one more time and fix address boards
to the entrance of each property,
using some basic field equipment like drills, or hammers,
and screws, et cetera.
The status of the board fixing is then
updated on the Address Maker app.
After the address boards are fixed,
the project moves to the next phase,
called address activation.
In this phase, the addressing team
works with local businesses, service providers,
and authorities such as postal services,
e-commerce retailers, emergency service providers, et cetera,
to integrate the Plus Code Addresses
as part of their ongoing services
being provided to the residents in that community.
Let's roll the video to look at an example.
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[STOMACH GROWLING]
SPEAKER 3: Phew.
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Thank you.
SPEAKER 4: Aw.
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Hmm?
ROHAN KUMAR: If this looks interesting to you
and you wish to get access to the Address Maker solution
to use it for your addressing project,
please submit the form at the link mentioned in this slide.
We'll pause for a few seconds in case
you want to note this down.
All right.
That brings us to the end of this session.
Hope it was useful.
Thanks for attending and happy addressing.
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