Upande works on customized systems that capture, store, analyze, manage, and presents data that can be linked to specific locations. This data can be visually presented or analysed which can then lead to new insight into existing information or which may even generate new insights or information.

Upande Ltd offers consultancy services to business, government and non governmental organisations, UN organisations and research institutes who use spatial information on a regular basis, whether it be through Geographical Information Systems (GIS) or through online mapping applications. Upande is based in Nairobi and provides services in Kenya, other parts of Africa and beyond.

Besides consulting work, Upande offers development of web mapping applications, Content Management System (CMS) based websites as well as (spatial) database development work. We also design, implement and generate systems that deliver maps over the Web by creating custom application using common Open Source Web Mapping toolkits. These toolkits commonly offer street maps, aerial/satellite imagery, Geocoding, searches, and routing functionality.

Google Geo Services

Upande is able to provide consultancy services, training, data acquisition and programming services around:  

Google Map Maker: Data capture and digitization tool

Google Map Maker is a Google service that allows you to add or edit features, such as roads, businesses, parks, schools and more to Google Maps. Using Google Map Maker tools, you can visually mark locations and add detailed information about these locations from the satellite imagery, which will get indexed and used in various Google products. Using the downloaded data in GIS for non commercial purposes allows you to jump start your GIS work and do away with repetitive baseline mapping 

Google Map/Earth API’s

Google's Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) allow for integration of 2D or 3D map components in your own websites, whether they are externally or only internally accessible. Google Earth API (or Google Earth plugin) allows integration of Google Earth as a plugin into websites, this is especially useful when visualizing data in 3D with users own data points. Google’s Maps API and allows integration of Google Maps into websites with the users own data points.

In combination with new tools such as Google Fusion Tables, Google Map Data API and Google Visualization API, one is able to create powerful analysis, visualization and reporting applications and integrate these directly into a website including interactive charts, tables and other diagrams.

KML

KML stands for Keyhole Markup Language which is an Open Geospatial Consortium endorsed XML based schema for expressing geographic data and visualization on Internet-based, two-dimensional maps and three-dimensional Earth browsers such as Google Earth. KML is not just supported by Google mapping applications but by an increasing number of Open Source and proprietary geoweb viewers and GIS systems.

Other Web Mapping Services

The geoweb consist of many other players other than Google with their own strengths. Upande is also able to offer services in powerful webmapping toolkits such as OpenLayers, Mapserver, Geoserver and Geonetworks. Data acquisition in 

Data Capture

Upande is able to offer data capture services using either handheld GPS units, smartphones or using satellite based tracing techniques including online data capture tools such as Google Map Maker and OpenStreetMap (OSM) such as was used in MapKibera.

Desktop GIS

Besides web mapping services, Upande also offers services based on ESRI products such as ArcView and ArcGIS as well as Open Source Desktop GIS tools including: QuantumGIS and GRASS.