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12 ways commercial SaaS can save your complex environmental data (part 2/4)

Continued from Part 1

Complex data - Data quality2) Data quality is better with databases

Since 2002, a dedicated group of Locus employees has been involved with migrating data into EIM from spreadsheets provided to us by customers and their consultants. As such, we have firsthand experience with the types of data quality issues that arise when using spreadsheets for entering and storing environmental data.

Here is just a small selection of these issues:

  • Locations with multiple variations of the same ID/name (e.g., MW-1, MW-01, MW 1, MW1, etc.)
  • Use of multiple codes for the same entity (e.g., SW and SURFW for surface water samples)
  • Loss of significant figures for numeric data
  • Special characters (such as commas) that may cause cells to break unintentionally over rows when moving data into another application
  • Excel’s frustrating insistence (unless a cell format has been explicitly specified) to convert CAS numbers like “7440-09-7 (Potassium)” into dates (“9/7/7440”)
  • Bogus dates like “November 31” in columns that have do not have date formats applied to them
  • Loss of leading zeros associated with cost codes and projects numbers (e.g., “005241”) that have only numbers in them but must be stored as text fields
  • The inability to enforce uniqueness, leading to duplicate entries
  • Null values in key fields (because entries cannot be marked as required)
  • Hidden rows and/or columns that can cause data to be shifted unintentionally or modified erroneously
  • Bogus numerical values (e.g., “1..3”, “.1.2”) stored in text fields
  • Inconsistent use of lab qualifiers— in some cases, these appear concatenated in the same Excel column (e.g., “10U, <5”) while in other cases they appear in separate columns

With some planning and discipline, you can avoid some of these problems in Excel. For example, you can create dropdown list boxes to limit the entries in a cell to certain values. However, this is not standard practice as most spreadsheets we receive come with few constraints built into them.

While databases are indeed not immune to data quality issues, it is much easier for database designers to impose effective constraints on users’ entries. Tasks such as limiting the values in a column to selected entries, ensuring that values are valid dates or numbers, forcing values to be entered in selected fields, and preventing duplicate records from being entered are all easy to implement and standard practice in databases.

However, properly designed databases can do even more. They can check that various combinations of values make sense—for example:

  • They can prevent users from entering analysis dates that are earlier than the associated sample dates.
  • They can verify that numerical entries are within a permitted range of values and make sense based on past entries. This is so popular its even part of our Locus Mobile app for collecting field data.

Databases also provide the ability to verify the completeness of your data:

  • Have all samples been collected?
  • Have all analyses been performed on a sample?
  • Are there any analytes missing from the laboratory’s findings?

You can specify such queries to run at any time. Replicating these checks within Excel, while not impossible, is simply not something most Excel users have the time, skill, or desire to build.

Complex data - Data redundancy3) It’s easier to prevent data duplication and redundancy when your data resides in your database

One of the most striking differences between spreadsheets and databases is the prevalence of redundant information in spreadsheets. Consider, for example, these three tables in EIM:

  1. LOCATION
  2. FIELD_SAMPLE
  3. FIELD_SAMPLE_RESULT

In this subset of their columns, “PK” signifies that the column is a member of the “primary key” of the table. The combination of values in these columns must be unique for any given record.

Complex data - Table - Primary key

The two columns LOCATION_ID and SITE_ID can be used to link (join) the information in the FIELD_SAMPLE table. Furthermore, FIELD_SAMPLE_ID and SITE_ID can be used to link the information in FIELD_SAMPLE_RESULT to FIELD_SAMPLE. Because these links exist, we only need to store the above attributes of a given location or field sample once— in one table. This is very different from how data is handled in a single spreadsheet.

Let’s compare how the data in a few of these columns might appear in a single spreadsheet compared to a database. We’ll look at the spreadsheet first:

Complex data - Location Table

Next, let’s see how this information would be stored in a database. Here we can see more fields since we’re not as constrained by width.

First, the LOCATION table:

Complex data - Location ID Table

Then, FIELD_SAMPLE:

Complex data - Field Sample Table

Lastly, FIELD_SAMPLE_RESULT:

Complex data - Field Sample Result Table

Note one of the most striking differences between the spreadsheet and the database tables above is that much redundant information is included in the spreadsheet. The Location Type of “WELL” is repeated in every record where location MW-01 appears, and the sample date of “04/17/2017” is repeated wherever sample MW-01-12 is present. Redundant information represents one of the most significant drawbacks of using spreadsheets for storing large amounts of data when many of the data values themselves (e.g., LOCATION_ID and FIELD_SAMPLE_ID above) have multiple attributes that need to be stored as well.

Most spreadsheet data that we have received for import into EIM have consisted of either:

  1. Multiple worksheets of the same or similar formats, all containing a combination of sampling and analytical data
  2. A single worksheet containing tens of thousands of rows of such data

Occasionally, customers have sent us multiple spreadsheets containing very different types of data, with one or more hosting sample and analytical results, and others containing location, well construction, or other supporting data. However, this is atypical; in most of the migrations that we have performed, redundant data is pervasive in the spreadsheet’s contents and inconsistencies in entries are common.

Entering new records in a spreadsheet structured like the example above requires that the attributes entered for LOCATION_ID and FIELD_SAMPLE_ID be consistent across all records whose values are the same in these columns.

The real problems surface when you have to edit records. You must correctly identify all affected records and change them all identically and immediately.

Sounds relatively straightforward, doesn’t it?

In fact, judging by what we have seem in our data migrations, discrepancies invariably creep into spreadsheets when edits are attempted. These discrepancies must be resolved when moving the data into a database where constraints prohibit, for example, a single sample from having multiple sample dates, times, purposes, etc.

In addition, audit trails are all but nonexistent in Excel. Many users tend to save the edited version with a new filename as a crude form of audit tracking. This can quickly lead to a data management nightmare with no documented audit tracking. Just as important, almost all our customers, especially customers involved with regulatory reporting, require audit tracking. This is typically required on sites that may be involved in litigation and decisions are made on the health and safety risks of the site necessitating defensible and unimpeachable data.

Complex data - Entity relationships4) Entity relationships are more manageable in databases

The discussion of data duplication and redundancy touches on another significant difference between databases and spreadsheets—how entity relationships are handled.

Excel stores data in a two-dimensional grid. While it is possible to create relationships between data in different worksheets, this is not the norm and there are many limitations. More often, as we have stated elsewhere, Excel users tend to store their data in a single spreadsheet that grows increasingly unwieldy and hard to read as records are added to it.

Let’s consider some of the relationships that characterize environmental sampling and analytical data:

  • Sampling locations are associated with sites or facilities—or, for our water utility customers, individual water systems. They may also belong to one or more planned sampling routes.
  • Different sampling locations have their own analytical and field measurement requirements.
  • Individual samples may be associated with one or more specific permits or regulatory requirements.
  • Trip, field, and equipment rinsate samples are linked to one or more regular field samples.
  • Analytical results are assigned to analysis lots and sample delivery groups (SDGs) by the laboratory.
  • Analysis lots and SDGs are the vehicle for linking laboratory QC samples to regular samples.
  • Analytical parameters are associated with one or more regulatory limits.
  • Individual wells are linked to specific boreholes and one or more aquifers.

Modeling and building these relationships in Excel would be quite difficult. Moreover, they would likely lack most of the checks that a DBMS offers, like preventing orphans (e.g., a location referenced in the FIELD_SAMPLE table that has no entry in the LOCATION table).

Complex data - Reporting & Integration5) Data reporting and integration is faster and easier with databases

How do you create a report in Excel? If you’re working with a single spreadsheet, you use the “Data Filter” and “Sort” options to identify the records of interest, then move the columns around to get them in the desired sequence. This might involve hiding some columns temporarily.

If you make a copy of your data, you can delete records and columns that you don’t want to show. If your data is stored in multiple spreadsheets, you can pull information from one sheet to another to create a report that integrates the different types of data housed in these spreadsheets. But this is a somewhat tedious process for all but the simplest of reports.

Let’s contrast this drudgery with the simplicity and power offered by relational databases.

In Locus EIM, for example, you pick the primary and secondary filter categories that you want to use to restrict your output to the records of interest. Then, you select the specific values for these data filter categories (usually from dropdowns or list-builder widgets). There is no limit on how many categories you can filter on.

Typically, you then choose a date range. Lastly, you pick which data columns you want to view, and in what order. These columns can come from many different tables in the database. For ease of selection, these also appear in dropdowns or list-builder widgets.

When you have made your filter selections, Locus EIM pulls up the records matching your selection criteria in a data grid. You can further filter the records by values in specific columns in this grid, or hide or rearrange columns. If you want to share or keep a record of these data, you can export the contents of the displayed grid to a text file, Excel, XML, PDF, or copy to your clipboard.

The list of reports spans all the major types of data stored in Locus EIM, including location and sample collection information, chain of custody and requested analyses data, analytical results, field measurements, and well and borehole data. Additional reports provide options to perform statistical calculations, trend analyses, and comparisons with regulatory and other limits.

In short, when it comes to generating reports, databases are superior to spreadsheets in almost every aspect. However, that doesn’t mean spreadsheets have no role to play. Many Locus EIM users charged with creating an ad hoc report prefer to download their selected output to Excel, where they apply final formatting and add a title and footer.  Although, with some of the newer reporting tools, such as Locus EIM’s new enhanced formatted reports, that functionality is also built into the DBMS. The more sophisticated the database, the more advanced and robust reporting options will be available.

12 reasons why commercial SaaS databases are ideal

Make sure to read the entire series to find out about 12 reasons commercial SaaS databases excel at managing complex environmental data!

About the author—Gregory Buckle, PhD, Locus Technologies

Gregory Buckle, PH.D.Dr. Buckle has more than 30 years of experience in the environmental field, most of which have been devoted to the design, development, and implementation of environmental database management systems. When he joined Locus in 1999, he was responsible for building and deploying Locus’ cloud-based EIM software. He was also instrumental in customizing EIM for the water utility industry and developing EIM’s powerful Sample Planning and Data Validation modules. The latest iteration of the Sample Planning module that Dr. Buckle built is currently being used by Los Alamos National Laboratory and San Jose Water Company to plan and schedule thousands of samples per year.

About the author—Marian Carr, Locus Technologies

Marian CarrMs. Carr is responsible for managing overall customer solution deployments and customer relationships with Locus’ government accounts. Her career at Locus includes heading the product development team of the award-winning cloud-based environmental ePortal solution as well as maintaining and growing key customer accounts with Locus’ Fortune 100 enterprise deployments. In addition, Ms. Carr was instrumental in driving the growth and adoption of the Locus EIM platform with key federal and water organizations.

 

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    12 ways commercial SaaS can save your complex environmental data (part 1/4)

    Do you currently use a system of Excel spreadsheets to store your environmental data? If so, ask yourself the following questions:

    • Do you find yourself having to make the same changes in multiple spreadsheets?
    • Is your spreadsheet growing unwieldy and difficult to manage?
    • Are you finding that you’re spending more and more time scrolling through your spreadsheet, looking for specific information?
    • Do you have to jump through hoops to view specific subsets of data?
    • Do multiple people sometimes need access to the data at the same time? Or, are your colleagues continually asking you to provide them with copies or subsets of the data in your spreadsheet?
    • Are there redundancies in your data? Is the same information repeated on multiple rows of your spreadsheet?
    • Do you ever encounter erroneous entries that have been typed in by hand?
    • Are you concerned about the long-term security of your data?
    • Do you often wonder exactly where your data are?
    • Does someone else really own your data (perhaps your IT department)?

    If you answer “yes” to any of these questions, you might be outgrowing your homegrown system of Excel spreadsheets.  It may be time to consider a more mature tool to manage and store your environmental data.

    The advantages of databases over spreadsheets for managing complex data

    Before we look at other options, let’s examine the differences in how data are stored and managed in spreadsheets and databases.

    A spreadsheet consists of rows and columns. At the intersection of each are cells that store data values. Some cells can refer to other cells, and some cells can perform processing on other individual (or groups of) cell values.

    In contrast, a database is made up of named tables that contain records. Each record has columns in which values are stored.  Each table stores information on a particular type of entity. For environmental data, this could be field samples, sampling locations, analytical results, regulatory limits, or laboratory methods. Typically, one or more columns in each record store values that uniquely identify an instance of the entity. In the case of a field sample, this could be the “field sample ID”; for a location, the “location ID”.

    Complex data - Excel spreadsheets

    Locus user tips
    In Locus EIM, Site ID is also part of the primary key for locations and field samples to accommodate customers with multiple waste sites, facilities, or water systems.

    As we move to analytical or field measurements, we have to use more columns to uniquely identify a record (e.g., date, time, field sample or location ID, parameter). The remaining columns in a table that are not part of the “primary key” identify other attributes of the entity.  For samples, these attributes include sample date and time, sample matrix, sample purpose, sampling event, sampling program, etc.

    If you think of a data table as a grid with rows and columns, it seems very similar to a spreadsheet—but there’s a fudamental difference. With a spreadsheet, how you view or report the data is dictated by how it appears in the spreadsheet—WYSIWYG. If you need to view the data differently, you must reformat the spreadsheet.  In contrast, you can view information stored in a database (or serve it up in a report) in multiple ways that doesn’t necessarily depend on how the data is stored in the underlying tables.

    Databases, which are often referred to by the acronym DBMS (Database Management Systems), offer many other advantages over spreadsheets when dealing with complex data.

    Here are 12 key areas where databases—especially cloud databases built for industry-specific needs—surpass their spreadsheet counterparts.

    Locus user tips
    Pay close attention to section 2 on “Data quality”. Over the years, Locus has helped many of our customers move their data from spreadsheets into Locus EIM. Invariably, these migrations have unearthed many data issues that went undetected until we had to map and move the data into Locus EIM.

    12 reasons why commercial SaaS databases are ideal

    If, at the end of this guide, you’re still not convinced of the advantages of databases over spreadsheets for data storage, consider Microsoft’s recommendations as to when to use its low-end DBMS (Access) and when to use Excel.

    Microsoft emphasizes that Excel can store large amounts of data in worksheets. However, it notes that Excel is not intended to serve as a database, but is optimized for data analysis and calculation.

    According to Microsoft:

    Use Access when you:

    • Anticipate many people working in the database and you want robust options that safely handle updates to your data, such as record locking and conflict resolution.
    • Anticipate the need to add more tables to a dataset that originated as a flat or nonrelational table.
    • Want to run complex queries.
    • Want to produce a variety of reports or mailing labels.

    Use Excel when you:

    • Require a flat or nonrelational view of your data instead of a relational database that uses multiple tables, and when your data is mostly numeric.
    • Frequently run calculations and statistical comparisons on your data.
    • Want to perform sophisticated “what-if” analysis operations on your data, such as statistical, engineering, and regression analysis.
    • Want to keep track of items in a simple list, either for personal use or for limited collaboration purposes.

    In this 4-part blog series, we’ll explore in detail each of the 12 key areas where cloud-based environmental databases excel over home-grown spreadsheets.

    Let’s get started!

    1) Data entry is better with databases

    Complex data - Data entryIf you use spreadsheets to manage your environmental information, how do you get data into it?

    If you’re collecting the same information every week, month, quarter, or year, perhaps you have a template that you use. You might fill in only the data fields that change from one event to another, then append the rows in this template to an existing worksheet, or insert them into a new one. Alternatively, you might copy a set of rows in your spreadsheet, and then edit any fields with values that have changed.

    In the case of analytical data, if you don’t have to type in the data manually, perhaps your lab provides data in a spreadsheet that mirrors the structure of your spreadsheet, allowing you to cut and paste it without edits.

    Each of these methods of entering data has limitations and risks:

    • Manual entry inevitably introduces errors, unless someone is independently checking every entry for accuracy.
    • Copying and editing are notoriously prone to mistakes. It is too easy to overlook fields that should be updated in the copied records.
    • Getting a lab to send you data in a spreadsheet whose structure mirrors yours can be problematic, even more so if you deal with different labs for different types of analyses. Even then, there is no check on the validity of the laboratories’ entries.
      • Are all date and number fields actually the correct data types?
      • Do all required fields have values in them?

    Databases provide various means of data input.  Two of the most commonly used methods are form entry (for when you need to enter a few records at a time) and EDDs (Electronic Data Deliverables), used for uploading text files containing tens, hundreds, or even thousands of data records in text or zipped files.

    Flexible form configuration as a standard database feature

    Databases provide unlimited flexibility in designing forms—with searchable lookup fields, advanced form controls, sophisticated styling, context-sensitive help, data validation, event handlers, and the ability to conditionally display individual or blocks of fields, based on the user’s selections.

    Locus user tips
    Locus EIM offers over 30 forms for entering and editing water systems, locations, sample collection, chains of custody, analytical data, field measurements, water levels, boreholes, well construction and other information. All of these input forms have multiple dropdown list boxes for the display of lookup values and online help.  You can easily hide unused forms for your organization to simplify the system interface and menu structure.

    Better, faster batch data loading with EDDs

    The real strength of databases comes about from their ability to load and process EDDs. Each record in an EDD typically consists of 10-50 fields (e.g., in the case of laboratory analyses: Field Sample ID, Analytical Method, Analysis Date, Lab Result, Units, etc.).  The data in these EDDs can be checked for incorrect data types, missing required values, entries that are restricted by lookup tables or LOVs (Lists of Values), and duplicates.

    Locus user tips
    Locus EIM’s powerful EDD loader can upload and error check several thousand records in under a minute. Labs need not all use the same format – the data will still end up in the same place in the database.  In fact, Locus EIM even has a special lab interface so (with your permission) your labs can upload their own EDDs.  This lab interface shows only a very small part of Locus EIM, namely the EDD Loader and selected LOVs that lab users would need to know.

     

    Make sure to read the entire series to find out about 12 reasons commercial SaaS databases excel at managing complex environmental data!

     

    About the author—Gregory Buckle, PhD, Locus Technologies

    Gregory Buckle, PH.D.Dr. Buckle has more than 30 years of experience in the environmental field, most of which have been devoted to the design, development, and implementation of environmental database management systems. When he joined Locus in 1999, he was responsible for building and deploying Locus’ cloud-based EIM software. He was also instrumental in customizing EIM for the water utility industry and developing EIM’s powerful Sample Planning and Data Validation modules. The latest iteration of the Sample Planning module that Dr. Buckle built is currently being used by Los Alamos National Laboratory and San Jose Water Company to plan and schedule thousands of samples per year.

    About the author—Marian Carr, Locus Technologies

    Marian CarrMs. Carr is responsible for managing overall customer solution deployments and customer relationships with Locus’ government accounts. Her career at Locus includes heading the product development team of the award-winning cloud-based environmental ePortal solution as well as maintaining and growing key customer accounts with Locus’ Fortune 100 enterprise deployments. In addition, Ms. Carr was instrumental in driving the growth and adoption of the Locus EIM platform with key federal and water organizations.

     

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      Locus Technologies to offer its EHS multi-tenant SaaS Locus Platform on Amazon Web Services

      Locus and AWS will simplify and expand how customers capture, analyze and take action on EHS compliance and sustainability activities

      MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., 24 April 2018 — Locus Technologies (Locus), a leader in multi-tenant Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) environmental compliance and sustainability management, today announced it will offer its award-winning EHS Locus Platform SaaS on Amazon Web Services (AWS). Locus announced it will deliver Locus SaaS services designed to simplify and expand how customers capture, analyze and take action on their data and EHS compliance activities. Additionally, Locus announced that the AWS US West (Oregon) Region will be the first new AWS Region supported in Locus’ planned international infrastructure expansion on AWS. Locus’ customers will be able to use the company’s core service—including Locus Platform and more—delivered on AWS, with general availability expected in May 2018. Locus Environmental Information Management (EIM) will be moved to AWS in early 2019.

      Locus also plans to deliver integrations that will connect the Locus Platform with AWS Internet of Things (IoT), Amazon CloudFront, and Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (Amazon VPC). Locus intends to leverage AWS IoT by building a new native integration to help businesses generate value from the billions of events generated by connected devices such as real-time environmental monitoring sensors and environmental treatment systems controls.

      AWS IoT is a set of cloud services that let connected devices easily and securely interact with cloud applications like Locus Platform and other devices. Locus IoT Cloud will connect with AWS IoT to combine device data with customer data in Locus Platform, allowing businesses to create meaningful customer experiences based on real-time activity and emissions monitoring across all their connected sensors and devices.

      For example, a water utility company that maintains millions of IoT-enabled sensors for water flow, pressure, pH, or other water quality measuring devices across their dispersed facilities can use AWS IoT combined with Locus Platform as a whole solution to ingest and manage the data generated by those sensors and devices, and interpret it in real time. By combining water sensor data from AWS IoT with Locus IoT customer data, the water utility company will be able to automatically create an emergency shutdown if chemical or other exceedances or device faults are detected and will be better prepared to serve their customers.

      By combining the powerful, actionable intelligence and rapid responsiveness through Locus Platform with the scalability and fast-query performance of AWS, customers can seamlessly analyze large datasets on arrival in real time. This will allow Locus’ customers to instantly explore information, find insights, and take actions from a greater variety and volume of data—all without investing the significant time and resources required to administer a self-managed on-premises data warehouse.

      Locus Platform offers a highly configurable, user-friendly interface to fully meet individual organizations’ environmental management needs.  “Locus Platform, when combined with the power and security of AWS, can improve companies’ data collection, analysis, and most importantly, reporting capabilities, resulting in streamlined EH&S compliance and the mitigation of regulatory risks and fines.”  said Wes Hawthorne, President, Locus Technologies.

      Locus Technologies receives the prestigious EBJ Award for innovation and growth for 12 consecutive years

      Environmental Business Journal (EBJ) recognized the firm for record sales and innovation in automating compliance and sustainability at enterprise level

      MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., 8 February 2018 — Locus Technologies, a leading provider of multi-tenant, SaaS-based EHS software, was awarded its 12th consecutive award by Environmental Business Journal (EBJ) for growth and innovation in the field of Information Technology. EBJ is a business research publication providing high-value strategic business intelligence to the environmental industry. Locus received the award for reporting record sales of its multi-tenant, SaaS-based EHS software as an independent company, while most of its competitors were bought out, merged, or disappeared.

      In 2017, Locus launched a SaaS financial management application on Locus Platform for Honeywell International, a long-term customer of their Locus EIM and ePortal products. The app will help Honeywell to better manage their environmental liability risk management and purchase orders associated with environmental projects. Locus also released an upgraded Sustainability app for Locus Platform, which allows XML submission to multiple climate programs and tracking/reporting of sustainability indicators.

      Locus’ products are evolving to support the future of EHS software, which will inevitably comprise AI, IoT, and virtual reality applications. The company intends to revolutionize the way its EHS software is automating compliance and sustainability at the enterprise level.

      “We are honored to receive the EBJ Information Technology award once again, and we shall continue to build robust solutions in the emerging space of cloud and mobile-based environmental information management and EHS compliance,” said Wes Hawthorne, President of Locus Technologies.

      Along with Locus Platform, Locus’ flagship Environmental Information Management (EIM) software service continues to grow with new customers in the mining, water utilities, water engineering, and US DOE environmental surveillance sectors.

      Can your EHS software vendor share SaaS system performance statistics in real time? Across all customers?

      EHS SaaS Multitenancy explained and why it matters.

      There is a considerable degree of (intended) confusion in the EHS software space when it comes to cloud computing and multitenancy. If your software vendor cannot share statistics in real time like shown in the figure nearby, most likely they do not run on a multitenant SaaS platform.

      The real-time information on system performance and security of SaaS cloud platform is the most important element that frequently gets overlooked during EHS software selection process. Success in the cloud is built on trust.  Trust starts with transparency.
      Our real time status monitoring (ran by an independent provider of web monitoring services) provide transparency around service availability and performance for Locus’ EHS SaaS products.
      Just as with airlines that fly through clouds, our entire business is built on trust and security of our cloud offerings. Over 700,000 locations around the globe trust Locus to safeguard their data in the cloud.

      Cloud Computing
      Since the turn of the millennium, cloud computing has revolutionized the landscape of the computing world because it provides enterprise-grade computing resources that are affordable and instantly available. Clouds provide straightforward access to IT resources—you just access as many resources as you need when you need them, and never have to deal with the complexities of managing all of the underlying infrastructures that provide those resources. EHS manager job is suddenly a lot simpler and easier with cloud computing. You don’t even need help from IT department (if you don’t want it).

      Multitenancy

      Multitenancy is the fundamental technology that clouds use to share computing resources cost-efficiently and securely. Just like a bank—in which many tenants cost-efficiently share a hidden, common infrastructure, yet utilize a defined set of highly secure services, with complete privacy from other tenants—a cloud uses multitenancy technology to share IT resources securely among multiple applications and tenants (businesses, organizations, etc.) that use the cloud. Some clouds use virtualization-based architectures to isolate tenants; others use custom software architectures to get the job done. The multitenant design of a cloud service can have a dramatic impact on the application delivery and productivity of an IT organization, yet most CIOs, CTOs, system architects, and developers who use clouds don’t give it a second thought because it’s all magic that transparently happens behind the scenes.

      Locus Platform is the proven cloud application development platform that powers popular Locus cloud EHS and Sustainability applications as well as custom applications that customers build to satisfy their specific EHS+S requirements.

      Locus celebrates 20 years of innovation in EHS cloud software

      Silicon Valley’s oldest EHS cloud software company reaches a major milestone

      MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., 11 April 2017 — Locus Technologies (Locus), the multi-tenant Software as a Service (SaaS) environmental compliance and sustainability management company, today celebrates the 20-year anniversary of its founding and, with it, 20 years of customer success.  Two decades ago, Locus was founded with a bold vision to lead the EHS software space.  Today, the company’s cloud computing model has enabled new levels of success.  Locus has more net paying subscribers in its single instance multi-tenant SaaS platform than any competitor and has over 600,000 locations around the world.

      Locus was founded in 1997 with a vision for three new revolutionary models: a new technology model where customers access EHS services via the cloud rather than buying and installing software; a new subscription-based business model where customers pay as they go; and integrating mobile technology in its cloud offering from the get-go.

      As a result, Locus is largely responsible for the creation of the emerging technical sector of EHS&S management software at the intersection of two major trends at the time of the company’s creation: the rise of the Internet and corporate attention to environmental compliance management.  Locus not only defined and pioneered the new space of environmental information management in the cloud, but it also became a leader, leaving many well-funded startups with borrowed ideas and established ERP software companies behind.  The company introduced many industry firsts, including: first cloud-based EHS system in 1999; first EHS mobile application in 2000; first integrated EHS portal in 2001; first web-based GIS in 2003; first user-configurable, drag-and-drop platform (Locus Platform) in 2013, and first IoT (Internet of Things) integration in 1999, before it was called “IoT”.

      Locus’ distinction comes both from harnessing the cloud and from a unique perspective on how to address the complex issues of environmental compliance and information management.  Multi-tenant SaaS technology offers Locus’ customers numerous advantages such as improved data collection, aggregation, visualization, business analytics, advanced analysis, and the cost reduction inherent in multi-tenant web-based software.  These features translate into a competitive advantage and increased profitability for customers.

      As the industry continues to evolve, competitors merge or disappear, and new markets emerge and grow, Locus continues to stay independent and lead innovation in a space littered with failures.
      “Twenty years is a major milestone for Locus,” said Wes Hawthorne, President of Locus Technologies.  “I have watched our software evolve and expand to cover all aspects of environmental information management— from our latest configurable platform where customers can design any application, to integrated mobile apps that truly streamline field data collection.  I can’t predict the next 20 years of technological innovation, but I am sure Locus will continue to innovate and push the envelope to serve a market we understand so well.”

      “I’d like to thank our customers, who have created an unprecedented record of success and inspired our best innovations, and our employees to making it all possible,” said Neno Duplan, founder and CEO at Locus.  “As we look forward to the next decade, we see not only applications, but integrated platforms, powered by AI and running in the cloud.  The age of enterprise multi-tenant cloud EHS computing is here.”

      Data mining gains more cachet in construction sector

      Locus is mentioned in ENR’s article about data mining, discussing how Locus software helps our long-time customer, Los Alamos National Laboratory, manage their environmental compliance and monitoring.

      EHS SaaS explained: Multi-tenancy is a difference that makes a difference

      There is a considerable degree of (intended) confusion in the EHS software space when it comes to multi-tenancy.  Companies that are considering Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) hear all sorts of things from EHS software vendors hoping to tap into the momentum of cloud computing.  Among the most common is that multi-tenancy is a “techie” thing that doesn’t need to be part of the conversation.  Many go as far as saying “sure, we can do multi-tenant, single-tenant, whatever you need!”— anything to win the job.

      Unfortunately, those vendors simply do not understand what they are talking about.  Multi-tenancy is a major shift in computing and requires all new approach to software architecture and delivery model.  It is transformational, and customers who intend to buy the next generation of EHS software should spend the time to understand differences.

      Multi-tenancy is the core foundation of modern SaaS and shouldn’t be taken lightly, generalized, or massaged into something that suits a vendor’s self-serving interpretation of SaaS.  Having experienced first-hand the true benefits of multi-tenant SaaS, I can’t conceptualize how SaaS would have delivered those benefits if it wasn’t multi-tenant.  Can anyone imagine companies like Salesforce, NetSuite, Google, or Amazon offering a “single-tenant” solution side by side to their multi-tenant clouds?  I will go as far as say that any company offering a single-tenant solution cannot be a serious contender in offering multi-tenant SaaS.

      I would also add that single-tenant (hybrid) cloud applications are worse than on-premise installment.  Why?  Because they are fake clouds.  In these instances, a customer is, in fact, outsourcing maintenance of their application to a vendor that is not equipped for that maintenance.  No single vendor in the EHS software industry is large enough to undertake maintenance of the single-tenant infrastructure on behalf of their customers, regardless how inexpensive hardware may be.

      There are many ways to take the functions of on-premise installed software model of the 1980s and package them as services.  Some of these service delivery modes– such as ASP, single-tenant hosting, and hybrid clouds– merely relocate and reassign long-standing problems and potentially make them worse.  In a single-tenant model, user customizations may infiltrate throughout the stack, in a way that makes it difficult to upgrade the performance of the stack.  The true SaaS models confront and mitigate– or even eliminate– some of the most vexing elements of software installation and maintenance: configurability on the fly, software maintenance, and upgrades.  It is “a tyranny of software upgrades” that kills the single-tenant model.

      Let me offer a simple analogy to drive home the point as to why multi-tenancy matters: Tesla vs. Edison– War of Currents.

      The War of Currents was a series of events surrounding the introduction of competing electric power transmission systems in the late 1880s and early 1890s that pitted companies against one another and involved a debate over cost and convenience of electricity generation and distribution systems, electrical safety, and a media/propaganda campaign, with the main players being the direct current (DC) based on the Thomas Edison Electric Light Company and the supporters of alternating current (AC) based on Nikola Tesla’s inventions backed by Westinghouse.

      With electricity supplies in their infancy, much depended on choosing the right technology to power homes and businesses across the country.  The Edison-led group argued for DC current that required a power generating station every few city blocks (single-tenant model), whereas the AC group advocated for a centralized generation with transmission lines that could move electricity great distances with minimal loss (multi-tenant model).

      The lower cost of AC power distribution and fewer generating stations eventually prevailed.  Multi-tenancy is equivalent of AC when it comes to cost, convenience, and network effect.  You can read more about how this analogy relates to SaaS in the book by Nicholas Carr, “Big Switch,” a Wall Street Journal bestseller. It’s “the best read so far about the significance of the shift to cloud computing,” said Financial Times.  The EHS software industry has been a laggard in adopting multi-tenancy.

      Given these fundamental differences between different modes of delivering software as a service, it is clear that the future lies with the multi-tenant model.

      Whether all customer data is put onto one database or onto multiple databases is of no consequence to the customer.  For those arguing against it, it is like an assertion that companies “do not want to put all their money into the same bank account as their competitors,” when what those companies are doing is putting their money into different accounts at the same bank.

      When customers of a financial institution share what does not need to be partitioned—for example, the transactional logic and the database maintenance tools, security, and physical infrastructure and insurance offered by a major financial institution—then they enjoy advantages of security, capacity, consistency, and reliability that would not be affordably deliverable in isolated parallel systems.

      In enterprise cloud applications and cloud application platforms, multi-tenancy yields a compelling the combination of efficiency and capability without sacrificing flexibility or governance.

      When a software provider seeks to blur the distinctions between one technology and another, there’s usually just one reason: because they are unable to offer the superior technology to their customers, and hope to persuade their customers that real differences are not relevant to their needs.  Multi-tenant platforms for enterprise on-demand applications represent genuine opportunities for customer advantage.  The reality of multi-tenant differentiation is acknowledged by authoritative industry analysts such as Gartner, whose March 2007 announcement1 of its Outsourcing Summit that month included this definition of Software as a Service:

      “Hosted software based on a single set of common code and data definitions that are consumed in a one-to-many model.”

      In other words, hosting models that do not offer the leverage of multi-tenancy don’t belong in the same discussion as the value proposition implied by the term, “SaaS”.  Multi-tenancy is a difference that makes a difference.

      —

      References

      1Gartner Inc., “SaaS will have significant impact on IT services and outsourcing providers,” Tekrati, 7 March 2007

      Different is good—How to find your unique strengths for success in R&D

      Periodically, our CEO Blog will host blog contributions from Locus employees, who will be blogging about environmental data, compliance, sustainability, or other topics of interest to our customers and partners. We hope you will enjoy these different perspectives, and we invite you to join in the conversation, either in the comments field below, or on our social media channels:

      [sc_icon icon=”facebook” shape=”circle” color=”#ffffff” background_color=”#52a6ea” size=”mdsmall” link=”https://facebook.com/locustechnologies” link_target=”_blank”] [sc_icon icon=”twitter” shape=”circle” color=”#ffffff” background_color=”#52a6ea” size=”mdsmall” link=”https://twitter.com/Locustec” link_target=”_blank”] [sc_icon icon=”linked-in” shape=”circle” color=”#ffffff” background_color=”#52a6ea” size=”mdsmall” link=”https://www.linkedin.com/company/locus-technologies” link_target=”_blank”]

      Finding a differentiator for R&D success in cloud SaaS applications

      Finding a differentiator for your organization is the key to success in a competitive marketplace.

      Anyone in the tech industry will tell you that building software can be a costly endeavor.

      On top of the overhead expenses, selling enterprise software means long sales cycles and competing in a crowded field of vendors.

      To succeed in this cutthroat environment, you need a differentiator—somewhere your company excels compared to the other players in the field.  This differentiator will be your main focus in every aspect of the business.  It allows you to effectively prioritize and execute your tasks, maintaining an edge on the competition.

      Working at Locus, a question I often hear is, “How do you hire and retain top engineering talent, when you’re competing with the big tech titans in Silicon Valley?”

      My answer is simple and straightforward: our environmental focus.  Ever since Locus started as a company, our vision has been to deliver technologies that optimize the management of environmental data for our customers.  Our goal is to be the best technology partner for helping our customers manage their environmental footprint.

      Locus environmental engineers collaborating with software designers

      At Locus, environmental engineers with high domain expertise work closely with software engineers to build solutions that very effectively fulfill our customers’ needs.

      To work on Locus’ product development team, you must either be exceptional in cloud/SaaS technologies or in environmental engineering.  Our ability to integrate these two specialties is our differentiator.  Other vendors may have capability in one area, but very few can claim both.

      At Locus, these two types of engineers work side by side, collaborating to deliver new software.  This dynamic creates incredible opportunities for engineers to learn new things and experience the satisfaction of being challenged at work.  At the same time, it creates an ideal team to deliver the best products to address the environmental health & safety market.

      Recently, our engineering team was working on our vapor intrusion and indoor air management application, built for our customers for compliance and regulatory reporting.  Environmental engineers were best suited for this project because they thoroughly understand the regulatory compliance process.  Having environmental engineers collaborating directly with software designers on the team, rather than relying on consultants, allowed us to quickly design a reliable system for automating GHG tracking.  This is just one example of how we integrate a unique set of skills and expertise in our company.

      Projects such as this one help reaffirm my belief that finding a unique differentiator is the key to success.  Find what makes you stand out in the market, and pride yourself on that quality.

      —

      Still looking for the right EHS software to revolutionize your environmental and compliance initiatives?  Book a demo with us today!

       

      Sandeep Khabiya - Director of Software Engineering

      About guest blogger— Sandeep Khabiya, Locus Technologies

      Sandeep Khabiya is responsible for driving software development at Locus Technologies in alignment with the company objectives. In his role, he directs the work of a broad range of technical personnel and is a coach and mentor for team members across multiple and diverse projects.

      Before joining Locus as the Director of Software Engineering, he spent over 14 year with HP Software leading development of products like IT Governance, Project Management and Cloud Service Automation while working with teams across the globe in US, Czech Republic, India, and China.

      The six characteristics of the “perfect” EHS application

       

      Build your own EHS apps with Locus Platform

      A configurable application-building platform lets you easily build and reconfigure apps that perfectly fit your business needs.

      In the EHS&S industry, companies and organizations demand a unique set of needs from their software applications.

      There are many software tools and applications available out there aimed to assist with any aspect of your company. Many buyers get stuck on the question of how to find the perfect app solution for their business needs, especially considering that these needs grow and evolve over time. They spend money and time researching the perfect app that fits their unique situation.

      An unexpected solution to this dilemma lies in a configurable software platform— designed specifically to allow you to easily build and reconfigure apps that perfectly fit your business needs.

      Developing custom applications on a cloud-based application development platform has a number of advantages that you should consider before deciding to buy an off-the-shelf application that happens to tick all the boxes on your features list. This solution delivers easily configurable, scalable, and well-integrated applications that will help you drive your productivity and success in the future.

       

      Currency cost icon  Lower long-term costs

      Custom app development on a platform means you can create a custom application that is specifically tailored to your company’s needs, as well as being focused on scalability and efficiency.

      Off-the-shelf software may initially seem like the faster and cheaper option, but the lack of customization for day-to-day operations is ultimately inefficient (and often leads users to invent their own manual processes outside the software to compensate for the software’s inefficiencies).  As the application is used more often, even the smallest issues can grow exponentially, leading to costs that will far outweigh your initial savings on the off-the-shelf software.

       

      Configure customize icon  Better productivity = higher ROI

      Configurable custom applications that are specifically designed with your needs in mind will help your team work faster and smarter.  Well-integrated apps on a unified platform can yield major efficiency gains, since all the data is in one place and users do not have to switch between different applications or websites as part of their workflow.

      Another added benefit comes from the interoperability of apps coexisting on the same platform, which can drastically reduce input requirements, as well as the need for multiple QA/QC processes.  Input once, use many times.

       

      Speed fast icon  Save time, adapt faster

      The ability of an organization to quickly shift technology strategies can mean the difference between dominance and obsolescence in many industries.  A configurable platform enables you to rapidly customize and deploy your application, with a fraction of the time and resources that would be required for an off-the-shelf application.

       

      User Interface UI icon  Common UI, data and security model

      Platform applications share the same user interface, security, and configuration-data model amongst all apps.  There is no need to manage data integration or sync issues.

      Additionally, new software upgrades are easily deployed to a large number of users, so users will remain in a familiar interface across all apps.  These benefits support faster and easier deployment, as well as rapid user adoption— both of which are critical to success and a high ROI for any solution.

       

      Integration icon  Built-in support for integration with other platforms

      Advanced APIs (to support integration of third-party, enterprise, Internet of Things, or legacy applications not on the platform) are interoperable and will help maximize your team’s productivity.

      Off-the-shelf software may not be compatible with other programs.  You may need one software product to read IoT data from sensors, another to launch an incident management workflow, and yet another to file a new SAP purchase order.  If the programs do not communicate effectively, they will hinder your work process.

      A custom platform app can integrate with a wider set of APIs from different software and data partners, providing a seamless flow of information.

       

      Mobile icon  Mobile capability

      Mobile applications have become a significant extension of any web-based application.  A configurable app platform inherently supports an easy transition from a web app to a mobile app, without any extra development efforts.  This saves time, money, and resources needed to maintain the mobile app.  It also resolves any data integration or usability issues that integrating a third-party, custom mobile app could cause with your application.
      —

      Still looking for the right EHS software to revolutionize your environmental and compliance initiatives?  Book a demo with us today!

       

      Rehan Shah - Senior Software Engineer

      About guest blogger— Rehan Shah, Locus Technologies

      An avid programmer, Rehan Shah is passionate about programming and making the world a better place.  At Locus, Rehan gets the opportunity to combine both his passions, making his job much more fun and intriguing.

      After graduating from Purdue with a degree in computer engineering, he spent the next 10 years working for industry leaders including HP, Oracle, and ServiceNow.  Now at Locus, he’s a senior software engineer in the Locus Platform dev team, an agile dev team lead and a self-proclaimed Chief Hackathon Officer.