Kansas State University modernizes geospatial research with Geocat on AWS

Across disciplines like agriculture, public health, ecology, and economic development, geospatial data is playing a significant role in research, technology, and policy. This importance is reflected in the explosive growth of geospatial information system (GIS) technologies: The global geospatial analytics market is valued at nearly $95.8 billion in 2025, and expected to grow to $174 billion by 2030.

In higher education, universities and research institutions are at the forefront of utilizing GIS data and nurturing the next generation of GIS analysts. But for many universities, legacy on-premises infrastructure struggles to keep pace with research demands, emerging analytics technologies, and the volume of spatial data generated across disciplines.

Kansas State University (K-State) saw this challenge as an opportunity. In collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and AWS Partner, ROK Technologies, the university is developing Geocat: a scalable, cloud-native ArcGIS Enterprise platform. Designed to serve students, faculty, and extension professionals, Geocat is advancing K-State’s land-grant mission by making cutting-edge geospatial infrastructure accessible across the university and beyond.

Building a platform for geospatial scholarship

K-State is home to more than 20,000 students. Its Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Spatial Analysis Laboratory supports a wide array of spatially focused programs. However, until recently, the university’s ability to support large-scale GIS workflows, as well as emerging spatial technologies such as high-resolution image analysis, geospatial artificial intelligence (AI), and 3D modeling, was limited by its aging on-premises infrastructure.

“We’ve supported enterprise GIS capabilities for more than a decade,” said Dr. Shawn Hutchinson, professor and director of the GIS Spatial Analysis Lab. “But it was increasingly difficult for us to provide that capability on premises.”

With researchers across departments seeking more scalable and robust research infrastructure, Hutchinson and a small group of power users began designing a new vision: a managed cloud-native GIS platform, named Geocat, modeled after the university’s high-performance computing cluster, Beocat.

“We wanted to build something that could do for geospatial data what Beocat does for parallel computing,” Hutchinson explained. “In terms of our ability to scale and add additional software and hardware infrastructure to that system, our only viable solution was to go with a cloud-based approach.”

Partnering with AWS and ROK Technologies to meet next-generation geospatial needs

This vision for Geocat gained momentum after a December 2024 meeting between K-State and AWS. AWS helped the team define concrete steps to move forward and awarded a $20,000 grant to help accelerate the project’s development. The Kansas Water Institute also provided three years of financial support for Geocat.

AWS also introduced the team to ROK Technologies, an AWS Partner with expertise in ArcGIS cloud deployments. “ROK specializes in the setup of ArcGIS software in the cloud,” Hutchinson said. “Having a team of people who are thoroughly fluent in ArcGIS is a huge asset. They handle the maintenance, the updates, the optimization of the system so that we get every ounce of performance possible out of it.”

Designed to meet the increasing demand for data-intensive and spatially explicit research and communications, Geocat will support high-performance geospatial workflows, including 3D visualization, data discovery and sharing, remote sensing analysis, geospatial AI, and complex spatial modeling.

Designing a future-proofed geospatial data platform

K-State and ROK are currently deploying Geocat in four phases, with full go-live expected by the end of summer 2025. Once complete, it will offer researchers a single, scalable system to store data, perform analysis, build interactive applications, and securely share results. ROK is currently managing Geocat as a hosted service, with plans to transition ownership back to K-State in future phases.

The system includes three main components:

• ArcGIS Portal: A browser-accessible hub for organizing, sharing, and discovering services. Researchers will be able to collaborate in teams, share datasets, and create web maps, mobile apps, and dashboards.
• ArcGIS Server: Researchers can publish web-based GIS services, including map services, image services, and geo-processing services, all backed by authoritative datasets.
• Data storage: Utilizing Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) buckets and Microsoft SQL Server databases for both spatial and non-spatial data, researchers will have 24/7 access to datasets from any location.

To further simplify access for students and online learners, the system also integrates Amazon AppStream 2.0 and Amazon WorkSpaces, offering GPU-enabled virtual desktops with pre-installed GIS tools to encourage easier access to these technologies for students and researchers. “One of the things that’s going to be really important for us is allowing students to use these virtual desktops with the software installed, access to the Geocat data, portal, and server from their personal computers or laptops,” said Hutchinson.

Geocat will also support a wide range of research activities, from real-time internet of things (IoT) sensor analysis and environmental mapping to student coursework and public dashboards. Geocat is also designed with discoverability and reproducibility in mind. “Once researchers are done with the data and products, publications have been made, and grant commitments have been fulfilled, we’ll have that data in the system that others can search for, build from, rather than reinventing the wheel,” Hutchinson said.

Early Geocat projects and lessons for other universities

Geocat is already powering projects with the Kansas Water Institute focused on surface water quality, a major issue in the state. The Kansas Mesonet, which manages over 90 weather stations across the state, is also exploring how Geocat can enhance its analytics and data delivery capabilities.

But the system’s value goes beyond any single research project. “We wanted a system that could scale,” Hutchinson said. “Not just to support the activities of an individual lab or a small research team, but that can support geospatial operations for everyone at the university.”

For other research leaders and universities considering how to develop a similar solution, the K-State team emphasized the importance of a clear vision and early funding. “Find a funding champion,” Hutchinson advised. “We’re operating in a resource-constrained environment, and having upfront support, like what we received from AWS and the Kansas Water Institute, gave us a fighting chance.”

He also emphasized the importance of framing GIS modernization as central to the organizational mission. “This isn’t just about data infrastructure. A platform like this supports student instruction, research, and public engagement with one system,” he said. “And GIS data is not niche, about 80 percent of the data we work with has a spatial component.”

Get started with AWS for geospatial research

As K-State moves toward full launch, the team is focused on user education, long-term sustainability, and expanding the system’s impact. Geocat already offers a powerful demonstration of what’s possible when academic needs drive technical innovation.

“As a next-generation land-grant university, using these digital tools and cloud technologies to maximize our ability to accomplish our mission is going to be exciting,” said Hutchinson.

To learn more about how AWS can help your institution build, deploy, and scale purpose-built research solutions, contact the AWS Public Sector Team.

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