Building the digital foundation for Helsinki’s data-driven city management

KEY BENEFITS FOR THE CLIENT

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• Unified Data Access. A single, cloud-based platform integrates data from multiple city systems — giving administrators, planners, and citizens secure, real-time access to critical spatial information.

• Improved Decision-Making. With multidimensional spatial analyses and visualization tools, city officials can make faster, data-informed decisions that directly support urban development goals.

• 3D & BIM Integration. Full compatibility with modern 3D, CAD, and BIM data enables more accurate planning, modeling, and simulation — from infrastructure to environmental projects.

• Scalable Architecture. The modular SaaS design allows the platform to grow with the city’s needs — from new datasets to additional services and integrations across departments.

• Operational Efficiency. Automation of data processing and centralized management significantly reduces time and operational costs while minimizing human error.

• Smart City Readiness. Louhi provides the technological foundation for future Smart City initiatives — enabling IoT integration, real-time monitoring, and continuous innovation across urban services.

The City of Helsinki is one of Europe’s most advanced urban ecosystems — and managing its vast spatial data requires equally advanced technology.

To meet this challenge, the city adopted Louhi, a cloud-based GIS platform we are developing in close cooperation with our Finnish partner Sitowise.

Louhi integrates thousands of data layers to support urban planning, infrastructure management, and Smart City initiatives.

THE CHALLENGE

As the city expanded, so did the complexity of its spatial data.

Information was dispersed across departments and systems, making it difficult to share, analyze, and maintain consistency.

Helsinki needed a unified, scalable GIS environment that could handle growing volumes of geospatial, 3D, and BIM data, while ensuring security, accuracy, and accessibility for all stakeholders.

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THE SOLUTION

Working as a long-term technology partner, we helped design and implement Louhi as a modular, cloud-native platform for geospatial data management.

The system integrates 2D, 3D, and BIM datasets, supports advanced spatial analytics, and enables real-time collaboration between city departments, institutions, and private partners.

Its SaaS architecture ensures flexibility and scalability — allowing the city to continuously expand the system as new data sources and requirements emerge.

THE RESULTS

Today, Louhi serves as the digital backbone of Helsinki’s urban management.

It has significantly accelerated planning and decision-making, reduced operational costs, and improved transparency across all city processes.

The platform’s success has led to its adoption by other major Finnish cities, including Vantaa and Espoo, setting a new standard for Smart City GIS solutions in Northern Europe.

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To see it in action visit kartta.hel.fi

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