Click the map above to view a larger version

Lent is about to start – which means today is Mardi Gras (“Fat Tuesday”)! Cities around the world are celebrating the pre-Lenten period with a range of carnival-like celebrations.

If you’re thinking of heading to a Mardis Gras celebration next year, or would like to know more about where these carnival-style events take place, a map is always a good place to start looking!

Our first map (above) shows the top 12 countries renowned for their Mardis Gras parades and celebrations, including Brazil, USA, and Mexico.

Ciick the map above for a larger version

Notably, these festivals are largely centered on Europe where Mardis Gras is said to have originated – but also in the United States, which inherited many European festival traditions due to immigration.

Want to find out more? Two source we used are:

• National Geographic‘s recommendations for the top 10 pre-Lenten carnivals
• Wikipedia’s page on Carnival

Our marketing team is expanding again: we’re looking for a Content Specialist/ Copywriter!

We’d like to hear from you if you have at least 4 years’ experience in commercial writing and fancy a challenging role with lots of variety and responsibility!

The successful applicant for this contract role will be responsible for writing compelling copy in a fast-paced environment, and sharing their expertise with another team member.

Hours and location will be flexible – though we’d like to see you regularly in person at our office in EastPoint Business Park, Dublin, Ireland.

Check out the job spec: Content Specialist/ Copywriter at eSpatial (contract role)

Agencies and third parties: Thanks, but we’re only accepting direct applications at this stage. If we need help, you’ll read it first here on our blog!

Click the map to view a larger version

Update: As a commenter rightly pointed out, our initial map didn’t factor in population size. We’ve added a map that looks at chocolate consumption on a per capita basis, and have amended our blog post accordingly. Apologies for any confusion!

There are lots of things that people associate with Valentine’s Day – romance, a saint, a well-known card company… What we most closely associate with it is chocolate.

Originally a South American treat, we’re grateful to Hernán Cortés, a Spanish conquistador, who brought chocolate back from the “New World” to share with a wider audience in the 16th century!

In honour of Valentine’s Day, we’ve taken data on chocolate consumption in 2009 from the International Cocoa Organisation, and mapped it for you.

The map above illustrates worldwide chocolate consumption.

Click the map to view a larger version

This second map shows us that:

• Chocolate consumption figures for Asian countries were limited – but the figures available for China and India indicate that it’s not very popular.
• Inhabitants of western European countries tend to consume more chocolate than their eastern counterparts.
• While chocolate was originally a South American treat, its consumption per capita is relatively low compared to that of Europe or North America!

Our team is continuing to grow!

We’re looking for a smart, motivated individual to join our growing Sales & Marketing team as a Technical Sales Engineer.

The successful applicant will be based in our head office in EastPoint, Dublin, Ireland.

If you have a Computer Science or Engineering degree, great technical troubleshooting skills, and like working with people in a fast-paced team environment, you’ll love this highly varied role.

Check out the job spec: Technical Sales Engineer at eSpatial

Agencies and third parties: Thanks, but we’re only accepting direct applications at this stage. If we need help, you’ll read it first here on our blog!

Our team is growing! We’re looking for a smart, motivated individual to join our growing Sales & Marketing team as a Pre-Sales Representative.

The successful applicant will be based in our head office in EastPoint, Dublin, Ireland.

If you have a minimum of one year’s telemarketing experience, a can-do attitude and the ability to work in a fast-paced team environment, check out the job spec: Pre-Sales Representative at eSpatial

Agencies and third parties: Thanks, but we’re only accepting direct applications at this stage. If we need help, you’ll read it first here on our blog!

We’ve blogged before about our journey as pioneers of SaaS-based GIS, and about the overwhelmingly positive response we’ve had from both GIS experts and newcomers.

One aspect of the journey we haven’t shared much about is how we’ve been able to manage this demand.

We’re a relatively small company – a good size, but certainly smaller than our competitors in the GIS software market. We’re committed to providing personal, professional service – helping our customers to get the full value out of our software. We’re also committed to providing our GIS software at competitive prices.

As demand began to grow more rapidly last year, we knew we needed to find a solution that would help us to manage the high level of demand – but still provide the great service our customers love.

In the end, we chose to work with another great SaaS company – Marketo. Their software has helped us to reach out to everyone who’s gotten in touch with us, and provide relevant, helpful information at the right time.

While we enjoy producing cutting-edge SaaS software, it’s exciting to be on the customer side too – seeing the benefits that the business has gained. We’ve been so pleased with the results that our Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, Colm Mulcahy, recorded a video testimonial for Marketo.

See what Colm has to say about the benfits of working with Marketo

Given the great – and increasing – need for geospatial data analysis, we anticipate that demand will only increase. Working with Marketo means we’re looking forward to it!

Click the map above to view a larger map.

You may have heard that Croatia recently voted to join the European Union (EU). It’s an important and exciting step for Croatia – and for the EU!

But if you don’t live in Europe, you may not be so familiar with the EU – when it began, who the member states are, and which countries are preparing to join.

This map (above right) is a great illustration of EU membership – not only can you see who the members and prospective members are, you can also see when each member joined.

And below, we’ve compiled some quick facts about the EU:

• Founded in 1952, by Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Luxembourg and Belgium.
• Now has 23 official languages.
• Home to 7% of the world’s population.
• Membership requires a country to satisfy “the Copenhagen criteria”, which involves implementing EU rules and regulations.

Interested in producing your own maps? Contact us to find out more about our data mapping software!

eSpatial, leading provider of GIS (Geographical Information Systems) and pioneer in GIS delivered via Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), has released a new whitepaper that explains the value of analysing location data, aimed at businesspeople unfamiliar with the discipline.

Entitled “Location Matters: The case for location intelligence”, the whitepaper explores the value of data with a geographic component, and the benefits that analysing this data can bring.

The whitepaper is available for download at: http://esp.tl/wn91u3

Available at no charge upon registration, the whitepaper provides a comprehensive introduction to the concept of location intelligence. Topics covered include:

• Why location matters.
• How existing organisational data can be leveraged.
• What benefits will be gained from analysing location.
• Where to get started with location intelligence software.

“We continue to believe strongly in the value of geospatial analysis for all organisations,” says Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Colm Mulcahy.

“We are pleased to be able to provide the wider business community with information that brings them up to speed with the concept and benefits of analysing data with respect to location.”

Want to understand more about the value of location intelligence?
Register for your copy of “Location Matters: The case for location intelligence” today!

eSpatial, leading provider of GIS (Geographical Information Systems) and pioneer in GIS delivered via Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), today announced a strategic partnership with Aventine Consulting, IT consultants to the energy industry.

The partnership focuses on the provision of eSpatial OnDemand GIS™, eSpatial’s flagship SaaS-based GIS software. This pioneering GIS software suite provides full, enterprise-grade GIS functionality, combined with the availability, flexibility and scalability of SaaS delivery.

The partnership grants Aventine Consulting exclusive resale rights to eSpatial OnDemand GIS™ in the energy and natural resources industries in western Canada.

Aventine’s specialised team has over 30 years of combined experience in providing GIS and IT solutions. Most recently, Aventine completed the end-to-end implementation of GIS capabilities for two junior oil and gas companies, and consulted in the business planning for a new geomatics department of a major Canadian engineering company. Aventine also worked with one of Canada’s largest mining companies helping them better understand their future needs for GIS, aligning their IS support capabilities for the growth of GIS, and supporting the business units programme planning and execution to enhance their GIS environment.

“eSpatial’s suite of technologies and services is a perfect fit with Aventine’s technology and business strategy,” said Aventine principal and co-founder Joseph Hlady.

“GIS software as a service provides a measurably cost effective way for our clients to quickly develop and deploy fit-to-purpose GIS capabilities for data management and storage in a secure environment.”

“Making eSpatial OnDemand GIS more widely available through a network of strategic international partners is a key priority for us this year,” says eSpatial’s Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Colm Mulcahy.

“We are delighted to be able to partner with Aventine Consulting, who bring a wealth of experience, particularly in the oil and gas industries. We’re committed to partnering with only the very best people, and are excited to work with GIS experts who are ready to embrace cutting-edge technology.”

Interested in learning more about partnering with eSpatial?
Enquire about a partnership today!

eSpatial, leading provider of GIS (Geographical Information Systems) and pioneer in GIS delivered via Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), has begun to seek strategic partnerships with other companies in the UK, North American and Australasian markets.

With growing demand for SaaS-based data mapping software in the business market, the company has decided to expand its partnering programme to accommodate the high levels of interest expressed by management consultancy firms.

“We’ve been overwhelmed by the level of interest that members of the wider business community have shown in our SaaS-based data mapping software, eSpatial OnDemand GIS™,” says eSpatial’s Chief Sales & Marketing Officer, Colm Mulcahy.

“By forming strategic partnerships with management consultancies, we hope to be able to satisfy the market demand, which will only continue to increase.”

While a relatively new approach to data analysis in the wider business world, data mapping – often referred to as GIS or geospatial analysis – is a respected discipline in a range of sectors such as urban planning, telecommunications and utilities.

While the technology previously required significant investment in infrastructure, the advent of SaaS-based data mapping software has made the same, robust capabilities available to any organisation at less than a fraction of the price.

With a solid background in producing data mapping software for experts, eSpatial is one of the pioneers who made the leap to SaaS delivery – and has already begun to reap the rewards.

“It’s exciting to see the high levels of interest shown in eSpatial OnDemand GIS,” says Mulcahy.

“The variety of sectors has been fascinating – everyone from sales and marketing companies, to retailers, to waste management companies have been in touch to learn how data mapping can help their business.”

While management consultants have traditionally provided advice and solutions to their clients, they have been unable to provide data mapping capabilities to anyone other than their largest clients, due to the complex setup and substantial budgets involved.

By partnering with eSpatial, consultants will have the opportunity to introduce their clients to data mapping – and a cost-effective, efficient means of data analysis.

“The rapidly growing interest in business data mapping we’ve encountered is only a drop in the bucket – we anticipate huge growth in the future,” says Mulcahy.

“Management consultants who partner with us have the opportunity to stay ahead of the curve and introduce their clients to cutting-edge technology, while simultaneously maximising their own revenue stream.”

With a host of benefits and expert advice and support on offer, the company is confident that its programme will provide partners with a unique business opportunity.

“In a few years, data mapping technology will be commonplace. Engaging with us today provides our partners with a substantial head-start over their competition,” says Mulcahy.

“We look forward to working with forward-thinking consultants who are ready to embrace the future – and this unique business opportunity.”

Interested in learning more about partnering with eSpatial?
Enquire about a partnership today!