Berg, 2006-03-03

Disaster Managment

GIS Tool for disaster control saves human lives and lowers costs

EMI develops a solution for sections and industrial enterprises based on 3D Software from
Bitmanagement / Both the ability to easily intergrate into applications and to run on the
internet makes the software an outstanding tool for crisis management

Berg near Starnberg. Considering the unbelievable number of victims during the last Tsunami storm tide and the high damages in South East Asia or the century inundation in New Orleans, one can imagine how massive damages of natural disasters can sum up when trashing states, cities and municipalities. However, there are not only the mega destructions, which lead to trimendous economic costs, but also the comparatively smaller natural disasters - such as floods from thaw in mountain areas or forest fires. They all weigh heavily too in the damage balance. It must be therefore the aim – beside life saving efforts - to limit the costs of disasters and of disaster management.

The French software company EMI, Port the Book, now has developed a software tool, which may help to detect disasters earlier to take steps for rapid and effective counter measures. It will contribute to speed up the evacuation of endangered people or save victims much faster, without loosing faith of costs. France is afflicted from year to year of substantial forest fires like on the island of Corsica or of the Cotè Azur.

The crisis handling solution is based on a geographical information system (GIS), which has been extended by an interactive 3D visualisation software, which also runs on the internet. This enables the GIS System to dissimminate life saving and damage limiting information.The application is dedicated to manage major fires, flood destasters, earthquakes and similar catastrophies. A software, which is ready for setting of tasks, which guarantees a high integration of all datas and applications, has been the “conditio sine qua non”. Moreover the software had to ensure, that in praxis the user has an interactive access to all genuine data of the GIS system.

The French EMI for instance integrated the visualization software BS Contact VRML from Bitmanagement Software GmbH, Berg near Munich, in its disaster control program. This software offers a freely configurable program surface and can be integrated in different 3D applications. So depending on current operations the user interface can be adapted to different situations. In principle components from graphic information systems are visualized on different 3D display systems, which support open process communication interface (OPC) and supports a complex communication system.

Bitmanagement’s 3D software offers different functionalities, like interactivity and real time rendering,as well as internet ability. In addition, life videos can be integrated in this 3D software and can be shown.

Because in general whether conditions can have serious impact on most of crisis situations too, the 3D software also carries out dressing of current meteorological data. A crisis in a special region thus can be illustrated, one can intervene interactively during the process in operation, and all data can be provided - due to the internet ability of the software, wherever needed.

Material GIS data can also be simulated which make it ready also for training programs. Moreover crisis can be rehearsed virtually. In case of emergency the operational planning can better prepared,employment of rescue forces and the employment itself can be coordinated in a much more effective way. EMI has been marketed the tool for disaster control to a number of French counties and enterprises, for example to the raw material industry.

 Norbert....

For your contact:
Norbert Böcker, Press and PR

Norbert Böcker
Bitmanagement Software GmbH
Oberlandstrasse 26
D-82335 Berg

Phone: +49 8151 97170-8
Cell: +49 (0)171 3337719
norbert.boecker@bitmanagement.de
www.bitmanagement.com