Customising vs Configuring in ArcGIS Apps: Striking the Right Balance
The ArcGIS mapping suite provides a wealth of out-of-the-box (OOTB) templates and tools, making it easier than ever to build web maps, dashboards, and applications. Whilst these templates are great, they don’t always align with the workflows and business processes that users need. That’s when the decision arises: to configure what’s available or customise something new?
As an Esri Gold partner, we stick to the principle “configure first, customise second” where we can.
Why Configure First?
Configuration has several advantages. It allows you to make the most of existing tools, meaning:
- Maintenance is simpler – a lower bar of expertise is required to maintain and update apps.
- If users access a variety of tools and apps, using only OOTB will give them a more familiar experience between different apps, reducing their learning curve.
- Performance and stability are generally more predictable, as everything stays within the supported ArcGIS ecosystem.
- Version upgrades to ArcGIS Online or Enterprise are typically less disruptive, avoiding code rewrite.
- Configuring still means extending pretty far – for instance, multi-page navigation with Experience Builder, media-rich pop-ups, advanced filtering and data expressions.
However, configuration has its limitations. If an OOTB widget lacks key functionality, or if a workflow is too specific to be met with existing tools, customisation may be the only viable option.
When to Customise
Customisation comes into play when:
- No existing widget or functionality meets the need.
- A unique or highly specific workflow must be replicated.
- An application is replacing an older system and needs to closely match the previous application.
- Greater control is required, either by starting from scratch or heavily modifying existing components.
A Real-World Example: Configuring a Dashboard for Asset Management
Recently, we worked with a customer to develop an ArcGIS Dashboard to assist in managing part of their physical infrastructure. The goal was to provide an intuitive, interactive interface that gave users quick access to critical spatial data – specifically to view data showing potential defects along tunnels, as identified from photographs taken during surveys.
By leveraging the in-built dashboard capabilities, we were able to configure a solution that met most of the customer’s needs without customisation. Some of the key benefits we unlocked with configuration were:
- Making widgets interact with one another – this enabled greater user control and interaction with the data, such seeing the location, photographs and defect statistics for a tunnel section just by selecting a linear measurement along the tunnel.
- Arcade scripting, which allowed us to extend functionality – such as implementing custom label scales to show different measurement intervals at different scales – i.e. fewer measurements as you zoom out – to avoid cluttering the map.
- Advanced data filtering, making it easier to display relevant information at the right time, such as pre-canned SQL expressions to filter by tunnel name, survey year, survey campaign name and sector.
- Clever use of web maps, such as hiding the point symbols while showing their labels to remove clutter from the map.
- Seamless integration with external systems, including linking out to a photograph repository via custom URL, providing users with richer context for their data.
Exploring Other Options
While a dashboard provided a configurable solution in this project, other ArcGIS applications offer additional possibilities. For instance, ArcGIS Experience Builder allows multiple applications to be combined into a single interface, giving even more flexibility for complex workflows. While we didn’t use it in this case, it’s another example of where configuration can often bridge the gap before custom development is needed.
Finding the Right Approach
There’s no universal answer to the “configure vs customise” debate. The best approach depends on the complexity of the requirement, long-term maintenance considerations, and user needs. In most cases, configuring an OOTB solution provides the quickest and most sustainable path. But when the need arises, customisation can take an ArcGIS application to the next level.
It’s about finding a balance – leveraging what’s available, extending where needed, and developing when necessary. That’s how we ensure our customers get the best of both worlds: powerful, tailored solutions that are still easy to maintain and evolve over time.
Here is an additional source on this discussion:
Customizable-Off-The-Shelf or Custom Development?
If you’d like to discuss how we can help configure – or even customise – your mapping applications – please get in touch.
Post by: Ian Peebles, Head of GIS Services
