Case Study: ESB Networks achieves modern enterprise GIS, safer field operations and streamlined asset management with Hexagon's Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial Division

Utility GIS Meets Infrastructure, Customer Needs for Ireland’s Electricity Distribution System

ESB Networks, the licensed operator of the Republic of Ireland’s electricity distribution system serving more than 2 million customers and managing roughly 160,000 km of network, faced risks from a 25-year-old bespoke GIS hosted on aging IT infrastructure. To modernize and future-proof its asset management and safety-critical workflows, ESB Networks selected Hexagon's Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial Division to deliver an advanced utility GIS solution—deploying Hexagon’s electricity data model with geospatial data in Oracle Locator and integrating the new system with corporate IT.

Hexagon's Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial Division implemented a single enterprise GIS over three years (went live in 2015) that now supports about 1,000 ESB staff, offers geographic/geo-schematic/ortho-schematic views, and includes design and read-only web applications used by 150+ and 850+ users respectively. The solution integrates 12 third‑party data sources, updates outage management (OMS) within 24 hours, improved field crew and public safety, streamlined workflows for planning and maintenance, enabled new services like SIRO fiber management, and has been recognized with industry awards—delivering measurable efficiency, accuracy, and reduced operational risk.

ESB Networks

Christian Beausang

Functional Lead & Support