Dubai: Authorities are studying the implementation of Dubai’s Makani satellite addressing system for the entire UAE, an official said.
Makani (My Location) assigns a 10-digit coordinate to Dubai building entrances viewable on a digital map in the free app. It is accurate down to a square metre.
The prospect of its UAE-wide implementation is being studied by a national committee for a unifying the UAE addressing system, said Sumaya Al Zarouni, Project Manager, Makani Application, Geographic Information System (GIS) Department, Dubai Municipality.
Last month, department director Abdul Hakim Malek said he had met Emirates Post officials who showed interest in Makani and praised the advantages of the system during a presentation.
“It’s their decision if they want to use it. They are happy with it,” Malek had said.
Makani is Dubai’s official geographic addressing system, used by police and emergency services, he added.
The Dubai Police 999 number can receive calls locating places with Makani, for instance.
Officials expect it to catch on among residents, tourists, taxis, and transport, delivery and courier services.
It does away with the need to give directions as the Makani number guides users to the location. Users simply tap on their building on the map to see the number, which can be shared online.
The app also offers instant conversion to other coordinate systems to support any GPS navigation device in the world. It features turn-by-turn voice-guided navigation from the current to the targeted location.
Residents can also read the number on Makani plates being posted on entrances and call or text it over. The plates also display a QR code that can be scanned by smartphones and shared.
More than 128,000 entrances for more than 124,000 buildings, regardless of land use, are being captured. The coverage area is for the whole of Dubai emirate.
Each building entrance is linked with its building boundary marked and highlighted on the interactive map in the app.
Sumaya said as soon as any new building is issued a building completion certificate by the municipality, it will be linked to the Makani database.
She added that a secured link is being provided to install Makani numbers in GPS devices to support field workers during their site visits.
Sumaya also said that the project to affix Makani plates will be completed this year.
Makani was awarded in the GISWORX conference last month in Dubai.
Makani 2.0 is available on Apple App Store, Google Play Store and on makani.ae. It will also be released this month on BlackBerry and Nokia Lumia phones using Windows.
