Experiences of Implementing a GIS-Software (FINGIS) for Nautical Charting

The Hydrographic Department of the Finnish National Board of Navigation has developed a system for computer-assisted production of nautical charts. New nautical charts (ready-to-print films) will be produced by this system. These new nautical charts will also be updated by the system. The database software for processing chart data is based on a commercially available software, the FINGIS. The system is based on graphic workstations connected to MicroVax minicomputers with a local area network or terminal lines and on various plotting devices. The system should be ready for production during the first half of the year 1989. This paper describes the experiences of the implementation and use of the FINGIS software for the production of nautical charts.