Clemson emergency management project a finalist in Computerworld awards competition

Published: July 1, 2011

CLEMSON — A Clemson University project that will enhance emergency response capabilities was selected as a finalist in competition for the Computerworld Honors Program's 21st Century Achievement Awards.

The awards recognize "visionary applications of information technology promoting positive social, economic and educational change." Clemson was among 262 Laureates honored at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., and was recognized as one of five finalists for the top award in the safety and security category.

Clemson’s project, led by Clemson Computing and Information Technology (CCIT), is creating a data management and visual display system for use in responding to emergencies. Known as a Common Operational Picture (COP), the system is being developed with a consortium of four Upstate South Carolina counties: Pickens, Anderson, Greenwood and Abbeville.

“We were surprised to be named a finalist,” said David White, CCIT’s director of environmental informatics. “This is still a young project, but it has a lot of potential for solving real-world problems. We’re excited to be able to help first responders and emergency management officials with this project.”

The COP will give emergency personnel a real-time visual display of critical information and data involved in an emergency incident. Using Google Earth Enterprise as a software platform, the COP incorporates existing data, such as address information from E911 call centers, location of fire hydrants and utility lines, and data from the National Weather Service. Additional tools such as 3-D models, video, plume and storm-surge models, and human communications can be integrated into the system.

“Ultimately, we can have first responders using mobile technology to push critical data and information onto the COP and emergency managers in the command center providing information to the responders in the field, and all of them will be able to access data and information in a real-time mapping system,” White said.

Development of the system began last year and is continuing.

“We are very proud of David's team's accomplishments,” said Jim Bottum, Clemson’s chief information officer. “It is inspiring to see the team partnering with first responders using university-developed technology to address serious societal challenges.”

The Computerworld Honors are presented annually by Computerworld magazine and the Computerworld Information Technology Awards Foundation. This year’s Laureates were selected from more than 1,000 nominations from around the world.

The top award in the safety and security category went to the U.S. Army Research Development and Engineering Command for a system that blocks detonation of radio-controlled improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

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