A unified data: framework for mapping underground: Project Iceberg. Work package 2, defining the problem space for an integrated data operating system above and below ground

Project Iceberg is an exploratory project undertaken by Future Cities Catapult, British Geological Survey (BGS) and Ordnance Survey (OS). The project aims to address the serious issue of the lack of information about the ground beneath our cities and the un-coordinated way in which the subsurface space is managed. Difficulties relating to data capture and sharing of information about subsurface features are well understood by some sectors and have been explored in previous research and industry reports. This study does not replicate past work, but rather reviews outcomes and explores the barriers to wider uptake of subsurface management systems. The long-term goal is to help increase the viability of land for development and de-risk future investment through better management of subsurface data and ground-related risk. To help achieve this, our study aims to enable a means to discover and access relevant data about the ground’s physical condition and assets housed within it, in a way that is suitable for modern data driven decision making processes. The project considers both physical infrastructure i.e. underground utilities and natural ground conditions i.e. geological data and is divided into three different work packages:  Work Package 1: Market research and analysis  Work Package 2: Data operation systems and interoperability for a subsurface data platform  Work Package 3: Identification of use cases for a subsurface data platform This report summarises the findings of work package 2.