The Challenge
During the tragic events of 9/11, the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) relied on a simple magnetic whiteboard to track where units were deployed; unfortunately this information was lost when the World Trade Towers collapsed. In the years following 9/11, the challenge was to replace traditional magnetic whiteboards that firefighters typically used when responding to an incident, with an updated Electronic Incident Command System (EICS). Raytheon was appointed to develop the system, but this proved to be a difficult task given the many challenges of communicating effectively in the dense, urban environment New York. After many failed attempts, Raytheon invited Edge Velocity to jointly develop a custom solution for the FDNY, that allowed full synchronization of Incident Command posts, ensuring reliable and timely communications with teams responding to incidents in the field.
The Solution
Edge Velocity was able to fully integrate their next-generation solutions by mounting them on vehicles capable of effectively communicating with Raytheon’s Incident Command System solution from any location. Edge Velocity’s solution easily out-performed all other solutions tested, resulting in Edge Velocity’s system being considered for a full rollout across all five New York City Boroughs (Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx and Staten Island).
Source: Raytheon Press Release
Results
The new EICS allows the FDNY to electronically coordinate emergency responses and critical information from a central command post to chiefs distributed in the field. Critical data from the scene is then wirelessly transferred to FDNY’s Operations Center in Brooklyn, NY, ensuring collaboration and teamwork among incident commanders, firefighters on the scene and the FDNY Operations Center. The system also provides teams with real-time access to images, maps, building information and relevant floor plans so they can effectively locate and guide remote teams more effectively than ever.