Importing and Exporting GIS Files

DRAINS provides transfers of system data and results to between GIS programs and DRAINS, reading from and creating ESRI (ArcView) shapefiles and Mapinfo MIF files, the most commonly-used GIS formats. This facility is not standard in DRAINS, but is available at an additional cost. Only pipe system data can be imported and exported at present.

The transfers take place through options in the File menu. To import data you must set up GIS files in a required format (which is explained in the importing information for ESRI and MapInfo files, and which can be viewed in exported demonstration files). The files involved are shown below:

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It is not necessary to created all the GIS files listed above. A single set of SHP, SHX and DBF or MID and MIF files can be transferred, or a complete set of data for six types of data and a DXF background.

The exporting process is similar to the transfer from DRAINS to a spreadsheet program. It is possible to export into ESRI and MapInfo files both the data for various components and the results of analyses using storms of different magnitudes. 

• Related Articles

• Importing MapInfo files

  This process enables you to import data into DRAINS from one to six sets of MapInfo files, plus an optional background from a DXF file. The procedure is pretty much the reverse of the exporting process for MapInfo files. MapInfo stores spatial ...

• Importing ESRI files

  This process enables you to import data into DRAINS from one to six sets of ESRI or ArcView files, plus an optional background from a DXF file. The procedure is pretty much the reverse of the exporting process for ESRI files. ArcView stores spatial ...

• Exporting MapInfo files

  It is first necessary to establish a system that is capable of being run, such as the demo example shown below: Selecting the MapInfo files option from the File -> Export menu presents the following message: If you continue, you will then need to ...

• Exporting TS1 files

  As well as being able to export individual hydrographs from displays of results, DRAINS can also export all hydrographs calculated in a run from every sub-catchment, pipe, overflow route and channel. This is done in the File menu option File ► Export ...

• Exporting DXF files

  You can create a DXF file containing a plan of pipes and pits from the File menu. In the DXF files produced by DRAINS, pipes are represented by lines and nodes are represented by circles. These can be on different layers if you wish. One text value ...