|
| |
|
| Emergency Management |
| |
| Disaster Management – myths and reality |
Many a time, disasters - natural, intentional and unintentional are unpredictable. Natural disasters could be earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, volcano eruptions, landslides, or fire. Intentional disasters are caused by disgruntled humans and range from virus/hacker attacks, bombings, vandalism, militancy, terrorism to nuclear attacks. Then there are other causes that may be unintentional, e.g. collapse of man made structures due to aging or dilapidated nature or poor structural design, industrial hazards, poisonous gas leakages, epidemics and business disruption due to human errors, software, hardware, and communications failure.
Globally, in the present mind share on disaster/emergency management, the traditional view of the natural disasters as the only source of major disasters has been replaced by the view that human intent too can cause irreversible damage to human life, public and private property – which results in extended interruptions to personal, government and corporate activities.
Due to increasing number of disasters and the ever increasing use of sophisticated ideas and technologies, the abilities of emergency management systems have become strongly rested on the technology levels of their components. A concerted effort from the stakeholder community on improving the technology levels, sharing best practices and to be aware of the advancements and applications of state-of-the-art systems has therefore become imperative worldwide. |
| |
| |
| Business Continuity Planning – need of hour |
In the corporate world, various aspects of safety and security were historically addressed, separately, notably by distinct and often non-communicating departments for IT security, physical security, and fraud prevention. Today there is a greater recognition of the interconnected nature of safety and security requirements - an approach variously known as holistic security, “all hazards” management, disaster management, and other terms.
In the past, there has been minimal interest in Business Continuity Planning. Presently, there is a dire need for our businesses to have continuity plans. When business is heavily dependent, all risks and threats need to be considered. A well structured Business Continuity Plan must ensure that data and infrastructure are covered. A holistic business continuity plan covers People, Processes and Technology to ensure continuing availability of business support systems and minimize disruption risks.
Business Continuity Plans (BCP) are at times referred to as Disaster Recovery Plans (DRP) and the two have much in common. However a DRP should be oriented towards recovering after a disaster whereas a BCP shows how to continue doing business until recovery is accomplished. Both are equally important and are often combined into single plan. Business enterprises need to create a system that fosters continuous improvement of business continuity management.
With high levels of automation and increasing reliance on technology, the costs of disrupted access to systems, data, people and infrastructure can have a catastrophic effect on the individual and organizational functional ability to continue business as usual. Contextually, enterprises need to have a holistic approach towards adopting technologies and best practices. |
| |
| |
| Technology - perspectives |
Technologies that were available even ten years ago have become irrelevant today. This is due to the rapid improvement in information and communication technologies and material sciences. Electronic systems form the majority components of all safety and security systems today.
The wide usage of wireless technologies for home security, automated systems, infrared and microwave communication have the potential to create systems that can be omniscient. Surveillance has today widened its scope to social network surveillance, biometric surveillance, aerial surveillance and likewise.
Data mining has been another key area where huge developments are expected to happen in the immediate future. The advancement in safety and security systems technologies would definitely strengthen the efforts towards securing people, wealth and business continuity. |
| |
| |
| Morrow Suss offerings |
| Morrow Suss team has a vast experience in research, development, and implementation of safety and security products/services and provides overall technology solutions and system integration support for complete emergency lifecycle management. |
| Top |
|
|
|
|
|
|
