KCI Assisting National Capital Region Publish and Share Emergency-Related Data

June 21, 2011

Washington, DC

KCI Associates of DC, a subsidiary of consulting engineer KCI Technologies Inc., and joint venture partner Photo Science are working with members of the county, district, state and regional governments across the National Capital Region (NCR) to publish and share data across jurisdictional boundaries to effectively respond to weather, security, recreation and emergency events. The NCR Council of Governments Chief Information Officers’ Committee and Geographic Information Systems Subcommittee initiated the project using a grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

KCI’s Geospatial Solutions Practice will oversee the design and development of a geospatial data exchange system and procedures to facilitate the secure, flexible and standardized sharing of critical mapped information by all NCR partner jurisdictions and agencies. The KCI/Photo Science team, which includes Touchstone Consulting Group and TechGlobal Inc., will develop the system using “Virtual USA,” a working software product created by the Department of Homeland Security’s Command, Control and Interoperability Division.

“This project will give GIS professionals serving the NCR jurisdictions the ability to share data in real-time,” says Barney Krucoff, Geospatial Technology Manager for the District of Columbia Office of the Chief Technology Officer. “It’s about jurisdictions having the same data and developing the same information at the same time so that we can efficiently plan for and react to critical events.”

The exchange could prove critical in improving both large- and small-scale planning and emergency response efforts that cross jurisdictional boundaries. If a serious accident were to shut down a major thoroughfare along or near the city or county borders, transportation and public safety officials could redirect traffic on a regional scale, while ensuring that detours avoid ongoing construction or other event-related congestion. Data availability could also prove critical in managing annual events like large protests/celebrations, the Cherry Blossom Festival, as well as multi-jurisdictional events like marathons.

More information about the NCR Geospatial Data Exchange can be found at http://links.dc.gov/gde.

KCI is an engineering, consulting and construction firm serving clients throughout the U.S. and beyond. With revenues of approximately $146 million in 2012, KCI is ranked 81 on the Engineering News-Record's list of the top 500 engineering firms in the country. Roughly 1,000 KCI employee owners provide environmental, transportation, telecommunications, construction, facilities, and land development services from more than 20 locations. For more information, visit www.kci.com.

For more information please contact:
George G. Perdikakis, Sr.
georgep@kci.com
410.316.7951