CCIM selects ESRI to develop GIS solution for portal

The CCIM Institute, the largest commercial investment brokerage real estate network in the world, will implement an innovative geographic information system (GIS) solution developed by ESRI at the heart of its www.ccimnext.com new commercial property listing and data exchange service platform. The portal will manage commercial property listings for sale and lease throughout the United States and will make it possible for CCIM members to more easily share property information, repurpose data through innovative means for marketing and analytic purposes, and collaborate more effectively on property decisions. CCIM awarded ESRI a 20 year contract to create, manage, and maintain major portions of the property portal. "This is the most innovative, effective, and efficient portal in the market, and we needed to find the best vendor to support our vision for the commercial real estate market," said Tim Hatlestad, 2008 president of the CCIM Institute. "ESRI is the right partner for creating this revolutionary portal. Real estate professionals want easy access to rich datasets, analytics, background mapping, and intuitive financial and site evaluation tools. With its breadth of experience and relationship with our partner companies, ESRI will enable us to turn our vision into reality." The first version of the property portal, planned for release in spring 2009, will contain commercial property information, intelligent maps, photographs, and detailed building and property information input from CCIM. The portal is the first open standards, data neutral repository of its kind and will allow CCIM members to access property information as well as seamlessly integrate the data into other property analysis software and marketing tools. ESRI's professional services team will create, maintain, and host the commercial property portal using ESRI's ArcGIS Online, a family of Web-based products and services that provides GIS functionality, analysis, and data that can be easily integrated into other online, desktop, and enterprise systems. There will be no need to change data formats or enter data more than once during the life cycle of the property. The portal will ensure all CCIM members optimize their property marketing and selections process and gain the greatest insight in the commercial investment arena. This is imperative, since CCIM members need a reliable system they can depend on to successfully complete the thousands of transactions made annually, representing more than $200 billion in value. "There is little margin for error in the real estate market," said Jack Dangermond, president, ESRI. "Commercial real estate professionals need the best tools to assist them in navigating the marketplace, no matter what type of real estate. CCIM is a true leader in the industry, and members have a tough job of understanding, communicating, interpreting, and predicting the business of location. ESRI is pleased to be a part of CCIM's vision to make this easier and more open, setting a standard for information exchange and collaboration in commercial real estate worldwide." Joe Larkin, CCIM, CIPS, SIOR is the 2009 education presidential liaison for the CCIM Institute. He is also a senior instructor and an international instructor for the CCIM Institute.  He serves on the Board of Directors of the CCIM Institute and he also serves as 2008 vice president of the NYS CCIM Chapter.