OS Vectormap GML files into PostGIS

Question

I am having difficulty in efficiently dealing with OS Vectormap data that comes in GML format. In the past I used the Plugin for QGIS (OS GML Tools) to batch convert folders of compressed GML (.GZ) to shapefiles which are then merged and added to the QGIS as a layer. As I now have a lot more data (~150 GML files) and using Shapefiles directly loaded into QGIS is a very slow and inefficient way of displaying/editing the data I have decided to get the data loaded into a PostGIS database.

The first issue is that the plugin doesn't seem to work. When I choose an input folder with only .GZ files (For Example - Vectormap/SP) and then pick the output as an empty folder I created (Vectormap/SP Shapefiles) the process runs and completes but fills the folder with shapefiles only a 1kb in size. When loaded into QGIS these shapefiles appear to do nothing. I have uninstalled the plugin and re-installed to no avail.

If anyone has a better or alternative suggestion for getting GML files into a PostGIS database then I would appreciate it. Surely there musty be an easier way for people using Open Source GIS software to load in Ordnance Survey Vector data?

Thanks for your time.

Answer 1

I would give Loader from Astun Technology a go. Its open source and is available through their github site here.

The Ordnance survey actually use it themselves to load the data for their OnDemand Web Map Service

It has a few dependencies and is mostly command line driven but is very effective. I've used it to load a variety of GML datasets (90+ files) including OS Mastermap and Vector Map Local into Postgis.