Building a TPOD integration
Appfront builds integrations according to the TPOD, the application profiles for environmental documents from Geonovum. For each document type, such as the environmental plan, the environmental vision or a regulation, an application profile describes how text is structured and annotated, how rules are linked to locations, and which value lists apply. We ensure that your planning software or in-house system builds and checks documents against the correct profile, ready for submission together with STOP and IMOW, with no surprises at the end of the project.
What is a TPOD integration?
Under the Environment and Planning Act (Omgevingswet), environmental documents, such as a municipality's environmental plan, a province's environmental regulation or a water board's regulation, are drawn up and submitted digitally. Standards apply: STOP for official publication, IMOW for information on areas of effect and rules, and the TPOD, the application profiles. For each document type, an application profile describes how these standards are applied.
An application profile, for example, specifies how the text of an environmental plan is divided into chapters and articles, which annotations a rule receives, how a rule is linked to a location, and which values from the value lists may be used. In practice, it often only becomes apparent at submission that an annotation is missing or a value is not on the list. The document then has to go back, and the timeline slips.
We build custom solutions because authorities and systems differ: which documents you produce, in which software, how text and maps currently come together, and which versions of the profiles apply. The standards are maintained by Geonovum and KOOP; we make sure your system works with them.
The right profile
The application profile that applies to each type of environmental document, implemented in your software.
Checked in advance
Annotations, scopes of effect and values checked before submission.
Together with STOP and IMOW
A document that is ready for submission in line with the other standards.
How we build your TPOD integration
We start with your documents: which types you produce, in which software they are drafted, how text and maps come together, and where submission currently gets stuck. Problems often lie in annotations and scopes of effect. We build checks that show what is missing while you are writing, rather than only at the end.
Your document types, software, working methods and pain points.
Structure, annotations, scopes of effect and value lists.
Validation against the profile, both while writing and before submission.
Handover to submission, and maintenance when new versions are released.
What a TPOD integration concretely does
The components below come up in almost every TPOD integration. Which ones you need depends on your documents.
Profiles
The right profile for each document type.
Structure
Text organised as the profile requires.
Annotations
Rules annotated according to the profile.
Locations
Rules linked to areas of effect.
Value lists
Only permitted values used.
Validation
Before submission.
Who we build TPOD integrations for
The integration is intended for anyone who drafts environmental documents or supplies the software to do so.
Municipalities
The environmental plan. The annotations are the core.
Provinces and water boards
Regulations. The right profile matters most.
Consultancies
Planning for multiple municipalities. Checking is what matters.
Suppliers
Planning software. The profile within the product is the core.
Technology and integrations
This page is about integrations according to the TPOD. For official publication, see our page on a STOP integration; for areas of application and rules, our page on an IMOW integration; and for the Omgevingswet (Environment and Planning Act) in general, our page on Omgevingswet software. You can read about our approach at building software.
Why choose Appfront for your TPOD integration?
An environmental plan that comes back at submission costs weeks. That is what we build around: the right profile, checks while you write, and a document that is complete and consistent as a whole.
Right first time
Errors spotted while writing.
Timetable met
No document sent back.
Consistency
Profile, STOP and IMOW align with each other.
Security and privacy in a TPOD integration
Environmental documents become public, but designs and drafts do not yet. Access to drafts is set up by role, and every change is logged.
The integration runs in a European data centre or in your own environment, with encrypted storage and daily backups.
Frequently asked questions about a TPOD integration
Questions that government bodies and suppliers ask before they start.
The application profiles for environmental documents from Geonovum. For each type of document, such as the environment plan, the environmental vision or a regulation, a profile describes how the standards are applied: structure, annotations, links to locations and value lists. This allows the Omgevingsloket to show rules by location to anyone who wants to build or do something.
STOP is the standard for official publications, and IMOW is the information model for areas of application and rules. The TPOD describes how these are applied together for each document type. A document must meet all three to be submitted.
The version that applies to your document and submission. Profiles continue to be developed; in the first step we check which version applies, and in ongoing management we track new versions. A new version may mean existing annotations need updating; the integration shows which rules are affected.
A missing annotation or a value that is not in the list is flagged as soon as the rule is written, not only at submission. The writer can fix it straight away.
If your planning software has an interface or extension option, we build the integration within it or alongside it. For suppliers, we build the profile into their own product. Where text is created in a word processor and maps in a GIS, we bring them together so that rules and locations stay connected.
The integration reports which rules or locations are incorrect, with the reason, and to whom it can be resolved. After correction, the check is run again, so the document is submitted correctly the first time. This keeps a decision's timetable from stalling on a technical error.
For authorities with their own systems for drafting environmental documents, for consultancies writing for several authorities, and for suppliers of planning software.
Environmental documents right the first time?
Tell us which documents you draft, in which software, and where submission currently gets stuck. We will show you what the integration looks like under the TPOD.