A Look at Blaine Hackett

Blaine Hackett, president of Roseville-based GIS Rangers, first used GIS technology in the late 1980s, while a geography major at the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse.

At the time, GIS technology was “very expensive,” and available only to institutions with sophisticated, mainframe computer systems, Hackett recalls. “But we were lucky enough to have a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service office in LaCrosse, which used GIS technology.

“Several of us in that class volunteered time working on projects, able to get experience with the software,” says Hackett, who later earned a master's degree in Geographic Information Science from the University of Minnesota.

As the technology continued to evolve, Hackett used PC-based versions of GIS, and “open source” (free) software that made GIS accessible to more users. During the past three years, it's use has increased exponentially with the development of GIS map-making applications for cell-phones and other hand-held devices.

“It used to be difficult to explain GIS to non-users,” Hackett notes. “Now I just say 'Have you used Google Maps? That was all created with GIS."

After working as a GIS engineer for a local engineering firm and the Minnesota Department of Transportation, Hackett founded GIS Rangers in 2003, along with a partner who has since left the state.

“I had always liked the idea of being a small business owner, and had ideas I wanted to implement.”

Since then, the six-employee company has “helped a lot of people optimize the capabilities of GIS,” including the cities of Fridley, Andover and Columbia Heights, state government, and large and small corporate clients, according to Hackett.

“As this technology becomes more integrated into everyday life and more people use web-mapping to obtain and organize useful data, the need for it is just going to increase.”