Discipline
Geospatial (GIS)
Specialisms
Geographical Information Systems (GIS), Geospatial web portal development, Natural hazard and climate change analysis, ESRI (ArcGIS desktop, ArcServer, Enterprise Portal, ArcGIS Online), QGIS and open-source GIS, GIS strategy and technical operating procedures, Delivery of GIS training, Creation of mobile mapping apps, Application development using Python and VBA, Database design and implementation, ETL software – FME, Remote sensing analysis and classification, Energy and renewables, Slope Stability, Transport and noise modelling and Flood risk analysis.
Location
UK
About
Dr Neil Thurston is OWC’s Geospatial lead with over 27 years of consultancy experience in the delivery of Geographical Information Systems, mapping and management of environmental and infrastructure data, web mapping portal development, geospatial data management, and environmental risk assessment.
Neil is an experienced project manager, director and/or technical lead of UK GIS and geomatics projects. Examples include GIS lead for peat landslide risk assessments in England, Scotland and Wales; lead developer for the Environment Agency’s National Water Resources GIS (WRGIS) system; delivery of strategic noise mapping for Northern Ireland (END Rounds 2 and 3); technical advisor for UK onshore and offshore windfarm studies for RWE, Scottish Power and Shell; development of GIS systems for Horizon Nuclear Power (Wylfa Newydd nuclear) and Nugeneration (Moorside); creation of ESRI web portal to support Heathrow Airport’s expansion programme; delivery of GIS/machine learning studies for Network Rail; flood risk assessments for the Association of British Insurers, Defra, EDF and the Climate Change Committee; and project manager for remote sensing studies of land use change (for DIO).
Neil has also managed or acted as a technical lead for a variety of international GIS and remote sensing assessment studies. These include: GIS lead for offshore wind development studies in Azerbaijan, Germany, Japan and Portugal; development of GIS capabilities for the National Water and Sewerage Authority (NAWASA) in Grenada; creation of an online ESRI mapping portal for strategic road transport in the Western Balkans (for the World Bank) and Ukraine (for the EBRD); windfarm; solar energy assessments and environmental survey projects in Australia and Saudi Arabia; and the development of GIS tools for the Government of the British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands and Turks & Caicos Islands.