Decision and Information Sciences - EMTools and SharePoint Services®: Collaborative Emergency Response Planning

Research Areas:

   Energy, Environment, and    Economics

   National and Homeland    Security

   Infrastructure Assurance

   Emergency Preparedness

   Social Dynamics

   Policy Analysis

Core Capabilities:

   Systems Analysis

   Modeling, Simulation, and    Visualization

   Complex Adaptive Systems

   Decision and Risk Analysis

   Information Sciences

EMTools and SharePoint Services^®: Collaborative Emergency Response Planning

Effective emergency response planning and management depend on successful collaboration and information exchange among key emergency management jurisdictions, departments, and supporting organizations. Argonne National Laboratory’s EMTools suite takes collaboration to new levels with the support of Microsoft® SharePoint Services 3.0.

The EMTools plan designer uses color-coded action cards to designate a jurisdiction’s responsibilities and depict relationships. (view as a high resolution image)

The EMTools suite is a compilation of four all-hazard software programs previously developed by Argonne (Synchronization Matrix© and SM Reader©, eXercise Management Tool [XMT]©, and Watchboard©). Together, these tools are designed to assist emergency preparedness planners, decision makers, and responders in all phases of the emergency management cycle (planning, training, and exercising). The suite provides a collaborative work space for emergency managers to develop, exercise, and analyze emergency plans.

Selected Features–EMTools

Supports documentation through a centralized repository
Incorporates the familiar look and feel of software through an intuitive user interface
Includes a centralized database structure
Depicts resources and actions in graphical and tabular displays
Includes a "thread builder" capability that saves common action and relationship sequences for reuse

One of the primary outputs of EMTools is a graphic depiction of a response organization’s plans and exercise design components. Upon detecting a hazard, emergency planners can refer to the emergency plan in EMTools. Planners can then review and modify the plans under an interjurisdictional planning process based on real-world experience from various incidents. The Watchboard functionality provides a “run-time” display of each component’s associated activities.

EMTools hosts its data in a customized Windows SharePoint Services backbone that is integrated with Microsoft Office products for easy data transfer between applications and enhanced project planning and coordination.

For more information, contact:

William C. Metz
Co-Director, Center for Integrated Emergency Preparedness
Decision and Information Sciences Division
Argonne National Laboratory
9700 South Cass Ave., Bldg. 900
Argonne, IL 60439
Phone: 630-252-3271
Fax: 630-252-5327
E-mail William C. Metz