The best ways to use Optioneer

Optioneer currently supports the following:

Please refer to documentation to find out more detail on what is & isn't supported for individual asset types.

Optioneer can currently support:

It is possible to use Optioneer on projects that are shorter than stated above but the detail of results will be limited due to resolution that Optioneer operates at (circa 30m or 1 arcsecond).

Opportunities to use Optioneer on projects longer than stated above should be discussed with Continuum Industries team. The limitation is in place due to size of data and 'search space' complexity. Larger projects can be supported with use of waypoints and manual 'stitching' of various sections of the project.

Optioneer currently supports 'single line' type of designs and will return the centerline of the asset to the user.

Optioneer is currently best suited for rural schemes which don't include a significant portion of the route going through urban areas.

In case any required sections of the alignment go through densely built-up areas, users should split the design into sections which can be generated by Optioneer and those that can be drawn by the user. Users can then use Optioneer to evaluate various sections of the route and sum up the components manually.

Continuum Industries team might be able to devise custom solutions for projects in urban areas. Please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have a project which could use Optioneer but contains a significant urban component.

A single project space can currently only support a single type of asset. This means that for projects that include, for example, an onshore and offshore cable component, the work has to be split up into sections. Users will run separate projects and complete options will have to be 'stitched up' outside of Optioneer.

Optioneer is intended to serve as an early-stage design and planning tool.

While users do get access to design information which is normally not available at early design stages. calculations that are used in Optioneer are often useful approximations. Information derived from Optioneer is intended for comparison of options and high-level understanding of technical aspects of individual options.

Optioneer was built with an intention that users will take outputs of Optioneer to other, more domain-specific software packages.

Moreover, the user interface is currently intended to support looking at the 'big picture' rather than specific aspects of design, such as details of crossings, landfall points or any specific 'local' requirements.

Yes! Users can enter existing alignment ideas into Optioneer and evaluate these to get benefits of rapid calculations. Users can also enter any new alignment options and compare 'existing' alignments with any new options that might arise during the project lifecycle. Moreover, Optioneer can be used to develop a range of alternatives and strengthen the logic behind selection of the original option(s).

Optioneer needs data to have a solid basis for calculations and determining where the best options can be found. At the moment, Optioneer isn't capable of 'understanding' satellite imagery and requires that users provide appropriate geospatial data. At the very minimum, Optioneer requires information on elevation, existing constraints and linear features.

You can probably still benefit from Optioneer, but it is unlikely that software will be suitable to deal with complex geotechnical conditions, very challenging routing requirements, busy and complicated crossings etc. Optioneer was built to allow to look at options at the macro level and provide insight into the detail of potential challenges. Optioneer frequently uses approximate calculations, heuristics, rules-of-thumb and standardised costing / penalty scoring. This approach is designed to support Optioneering at a whole-route level, rather than to deal with specific challenges.