Baker Receives GIS Services Contract From SBC Services.

Business Editors, High Tech Writers

JACKSON, Miss.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 5, 2001

Michael Baker Jr., Inc., has been awarded a Professional Services Agreement from SBC Services, Inc. (www.sbc.com) to perform landbase construction and other Geographic Information System (GIS) support services related to SBC's Pacific Bell and Nevada Bell (PB/NB) Telephone Companies.

To date, Baker has received a number of work orders under this agreement valued in excess of $4.5 million. These work orders are scheduled for completion during 2001. Michael Baker Jr., Inc., is a subsidiary of Michael Baker Corporation (AMEX:BKR).

Baker began working with PB/NB in the Fall of 2000, and under various work orders, Baker's services have grown to include the preparation of digital landbase data for 330 wire centers in the Pacific Bell Telephone Company's franchise territories. A total of approximately 600 wire centers are present in California. The remaining California wire centers, and approximately 50 in Nevada, are scheduled for production in 2002, dependent upon SBC's continuation of this landbase program.

Additional services provided by Baker included the specification of systems requirements, database design, and implementation of a geodatabase model based upon ESRI's ArcGIS GIS software, including ArcSDE. The geodatabase has been developed to support long-term landbase data maintenance using software developed by Baker using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) and the ArcObjects implementation of ArcGIS 8.1.

Baker is also providing on-site support staff for the maintenance activities in Nevada Bell's telephone facilities in Reno, Nev. The landbase constructed under existing work orders will ultimately be maintained in Nevada Bell's Reno, Nev., facility.

"When we were first presented with the possibility of participating in this landbase construction project, we recognized it as a truly unique opportunity for Baker to demonstrate our commitment to succeeding on really large projects. This project constantly demands innovative solutions and huge resource requirements," says Robert Hanson, a principal in Baker's Geospatial Information Technologies group. "The project also allowed us to immediately deploy ArcGIS on an enterprise system solution. We were fortunate to have this opportunity to work with an exceptional team of professionals within SBC's organization."

Michael Baker Corporation (www.mbakercorp.com) provides engineering and energy expertise for public and private sector clients worldwide. The firm's primary services include engineering design for the transportation and civil infrastructure markets, operation and maintenance of oil and gas production facilities, architecture, environmental services, and construction management for building and transportation projects. Baker has more than 3,800 employees in over 30 offices across the United States and internationally.