IRRIS_® Used During Emergency Preparedness Scenario

(Jan. 4, 2008/Harrisburg, Pa.) GeoDecisions’ IRRIS technology was recently used during the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA’s) participation in the Top Officials 4 (TOPOFF 4) terrorism preparedness exercise. Involving top officials at every level of government, as well as representatives from the international community and private sector, TOPOFF 4 featured thousands of federal, state, territorial, and local officials that engaged in various activities as part of a robust, full-scale simulated response to a multi-faceted threat.

The exercise required participants to make quick decisions and carry out essential functions by using a common operating picture (COP) during an incident. For this simulated response, IRRIS was used at the National Response Coordination Center (NRCC) to view simulated disaster outcomes as well as track FEMA’s mobile disaster recovery vehicles. Data for the exercise was coordinated through FEMA’s GIS Solutions Branch within the Office of the Chief Information Officer, responsible for the overall mapping support for the NRCC. The use of IRRIS helped FEMA decision makers visualize and comprehend activities taking place in response to the disaster scenario.

IRRIS was developed in partnership by the U.S. Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command Transportation Engineering Company (SDDCTEA) and GeoDecisions, an information technology company specializing in geospatial solutions. Today, the Web-based portal is used by SDDCTEA and other military and homeland security agencies to rapidly deploy resources and equipment worldwide and respond to emergency and crisis situations.

The patented IRRIS technology incorporates the latest advances in information technology (IT), GIS, and location-based services (LBS) to aid decision makers in coordinating response, managing assets, and tracking equipment or personnel through a COP. It incorporates and displays worldwide infrastructure data, live-vehicle tracking, near-real-time weather, and active route conditions in a map format.

 

GeoDecisions’ experienced staff of professional consultants, analysts, and developers supports clients across the United States. Fundamental to the company’s award-winning approach is the integration of spatial information to empower existing systems and processes. GeoDecisions’ philosophy is based on an enterprisewide approach to the integration of diverse information technologies, data formats, and systems.

GeoDecisions is ISO 9001:2000 certified for its operations nationwide.