Create Business Analyst custom data

Available with Business Analyst license.

Custom data in Business Analyst allows you to work with your own data in mapping and analysis and to define how your data is apportioned and aggregated.

The primary component of custom data is the Statistical Data Collection (SDCX). A .sdcx file is a set of variables that you create from any polygon data source that can be used with Business Analyst tools.

Statistical Data Collection

Statistical Data Collections store custom data in Business Analyst and are built from proprietary, third-party, or selected Esri-provided variables. These custom datasets extend the locally installed Business Analyst dataset that is set as the data source. Statistical Data Collections can also be created from any polygonal feature class or Business Analyst data source (BDS) file created in ArcGIS Business Analyst ArcMap.

Statistical Data Collection variables are categorized and accessed in Business Analyst through the Data Browser window. The Statistical Data Collection variable properties can be interactively edited, enabling control of apportionment, weighting, and formatting. For example, you can define a population variable as a percent or a quarterly sales variable as an average. The following geoprocessing tools support Statistical Data Collection variables:

• Enrich Layer—Extract custom variables from a base polygon layer and append to an overlay layer. You can combine your organization’s SDCX variables with standard Esri demographic variables in the same analysis.
• Color Coded Layer—Create a thematically shaded map layer from a custom variable.
• Suitability Analysis—Create suitability criteria from custom variables in the Add Variable Based Suitability Criteria tool.

Create a Statistical Data Collection

You can create a Statistical Data Collection from a polygonal feature class or from a Business Analyst data source (BDS) file created in ArcMap.

Note:

If you do not have a locally installed Business Analyst dataset, you can create a Statistical Data Collection using the Custom Data local dataset.

Create a Statistical Data Collection from a feature class

To create a Statistical Data Collection from a feature class, complete the following steps:

1. Set the Business Analyst data source by clicking the Business Analysis drop-down menu on the Analysis tab under the Workflows group and clicking Change data source.
2. In the Business Analyst data source window, click Computer and choose from the locally installed datasets—for example, USA_ESRI_2022—or choose Custom Data. Click OK.

   Note:

   The locally installed dataset that you select should match the schema and boundary vintage of the input data.

3. Open the Business Analysis drop-down menu again and click New Statistical Data Collection .

   The Create Statistical Data Collection window appears.

4. Click the Input Data folder button, and browse to and select an input feature class. Click OK.
5. Click Create.

   The Edit Statistical Data Collection window appears. It has the following tabs:

   • Source—Contains general information about your data, including the performance index status.
   • Variables—Contains controls for variable settings, such as Precision, Field Format, and Apportionment Method.
   • Properties—Contains text boxes for providing metadata about a custom dataset. You can also select a custom icon for the Statistical Data Collection.

6. Optionally, build a performance index by clicking the Build Index button.

   Note:

   Building a performance index is not required but highly recommended to ensure the best performance while using custom data in workflows.

7. Click OK to save all changes.

   The Edit Statistical Data Collection window closes. The Catalog pane appears, and the newly created Statistical Data Collection is displayed. To manage settings, right-click the Statistical Data Collection and click Edit.

Create a Statistical Data Collection from a BDS

To create a Statistical Data Collection from a BDS, complete the following steps:

1. Set the Business Analyst data source by expanding the Business Analysis drop-down menu on the Analysis tab under the Workflows group and click Change data source.
2. In the Business Analyst data source window, click Computer and choose from the locally installed datasets—for example, USA_ESRI_2022—or choose Custom Data. Click OK.

   Note:

   The locally installed dataset that you select should match the schema and boundary vintage of the input data.

3. Open the Business Analysis drop-down menu again and click New Statistical Data Collection .

   The Create Statistical Data Collection window appears.

4. Click Import Legacy Data (BDS).
5. Click the Input Business Analyst Datasource (BDS) folder button, and browse to and select an input BDS.
6. Click Import.
If the BDS contains dynamic joins or calculations, you must create a feature class, which will be the input for the new Statistical Data Collection.
7. To create the output feature class, do the following:

   Note:

   In this scenario, an output feature class conditional parameter displays in the New Statistical Data Collection window. The text box for the parameter is empty because the geodatabase that should contain the feature class does not yet exist. You must create a geodatabase and browse to it, or use an alternate format, such as .shp.

   1. Create a geodatabase in ArcCatalog and select it as the location to store the output feature class.
   2. Give the output feature class a name and click OK.
8. Optionally, build a performance index.

   Note:

   Building a performance index is not required but highly recommended to ensure the best performance while using custom data in workflows.

   1. If the BDS contains a previously built performance index, you are prompted to build an equivalent index. Click Yes to create the index.
   2. If the BDS does not contain an existing performance index, you can create one by opening the Edit window and clicking Build Index.
9. Click OK to save all changes.

   The Edit Statistical Data Collection window closes. The Catalog pane appears and the newly created Statistical Data Collection is displayed. To manage settings, right-click the Statistical Data Collection and click Edit.

Usage notes

Keep the following in mind:

• A Statistical Data Collection is a file that stores the path to a source dataset and other custom data properties.
• The .sdcx file is stored in the project home folder.
• The .sdcx file is linked to the active Business Analyst dataset and references its data for apportionment and aggregation.
• If the source version of the Business Analyst dataset is uninstalled or not available, the .sdcx file becomes inactive.
• If the source Business Analyst dataset—used to create the .sdcx file—is uninstalled or becomes unavailable, an attempt will be made to update to another version of the same country dataset.
• The list of available apportionment methods can vary based on the data source. The default list of these weight fields is referenced from the census block centroid point layer.
• The default .sdcx variable field type is double and is set as the Output Type. Custom calculations and scripts support double, string, and integer field types. For example, specifying a string field allows flexibility to output textual descriptions, such as displaying a Dominant Tapestry Name, attribute properties, or a street name. Learn more about ArcGIS field data types.

Create calculated variables in a Statistical Data Collection

Calculated variables are new fields you can add to a Statistical Data Collection to build custom expressions for analysis. Custom expressions can include simple calculations, complex Python code, or combinations of two or more existing fields. You can import or export calculated variables as a label expression file (.lxp).

Learn about the fundamentals of field calculations

Complete the following steps to create and edit a calculated variable in a Statistical Data Collection:

1. Start ArcGIS Pro and open the Catalog pane, if necessary.

   Tip:

   To open the Catalog pane, click the View tab on the ribbon and click Catalog .

2. On the Project tab, right-click the Statistical Data Collection and click Edit.

   The Statistical Data Collection editor appears.

3. Click Add to create a calculated variable.

   The Calculate Variable dialog box appears.

4. Build a calculation in the Expression box.

   Here you can combine fields, insert values, import scripts, or write a custom expression.

5. Click Verify to verify the expression.
6. In the Name text box, type the field name.
7. In the Title text box, type the alias.
8. When you are finished, click OK.

   The new Calculated Variable field is added to the Statistical Data Collection.

   • To modify any of the field properties, such as Vintage, Field Format, or Category, right-click the field and click Properties.
   • To edit the calculated variable, select the field and click Edit Calculation or right-click the field and click Edit Calculation.
   • To remove the calculated variable, click the field and click Delete.

SDCX indexes

You can create Statistical Data Collections with indexes to improve the performance of analysis. By default, locally installed Business Analyst datasets and online data are indexed. When using custom data, building an index is recommended for optimal performance. The Statistical Data Collection editor dialog box is a convenient way to update and manage performance indexes associated with custom data.

You can create and rebuild an SDCX index from the Statistical Data Collection editor or from the Generate SDCX Index geoprocessing tool.

Tip:

Modifications made to an .sdcx file, such as apportionment layer or weight value changes, are automatically detected and the index should be rebuilt.

Usage notes

Statistical Data Collection (SDCX) files can contain references to standard Esri data variables for use in geoprocessing tools, such as Enrich Layer.

• Standard variables are added using the Add Variable command in the Statistical Data Collection editor.
• If the input BDS contains a performance index, a new one will be generated for the Statistical Data Collection when it is created. This will take several seconds to complete.
• Added standard variables are not hard-coded—for example, an added variable references the current year of the active Business Analyst dataset. If you switch to the previous year's dataset, the variable reference will automatically update to reference that year.
• You can add any standard variable accessible from the Data Browser window to the .sdcx file.
• Variables from other .sdcx files are not supported.
• Added standard variable aliases are supported in the Data Browser window and tool output—for example, 2022 Total Population. Field names are used in the SDCX Variables view—for example, populationtotals.TOTPOP_CY.
• Online data variables are not supported.
• Standard variables are not supported when sharing an SDCX. These variables will be removed when shared.

ArcMap BDS layers

Business Analyst data source (BDS) files are a type of custom data that is created with Business Analyst for ArcMap. Through a limited set of tools, BDS variables are available via the Custom Data node in the Data Browser window. Although BDS variables are available for selection, you can choose to convert them to their ArcGIS Pro equivalent, Statistical Data Collections. You can convert .bds files to Statistical Data Collections by selecting them as inputs in the new Statistical Data Collection workflow.