The role of integrated modeling and simulation in disaster preparedness and emergency preparedness and response: The SUMMIT platform

The Department of Homeland Security, Science and Technology Directorate (DHS S&T), in partnership with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and in collaboration with Sandia National Laboratories, has developed the Standard Unified Modeling, Mapping, and Integration Toolkit (SUMMIT) as a geo-agile platform that enables users to discover and reuse models, integrate them quickly and economically, and apply them in analyses to improve the planning and execution of large and small exercises, planning efforts, and eventually response operations. The SUMMIT technology is innovative and promises to reduce the exercise cycle time by more than an order of magnitude. SUMMIT has been deployed to support National Level Exercises, regional exercises, and international exercises in Sweden, revolutionizing how exercises are designed and conducted. SUMMIT is now in the transition stage, from DHS S&T to the FEMA National Exercise and Simulation Center (NESC), where it will become available to the emergency management community. It will support the National Preparedness System[1] and integrate with the NESC Technology Platform in support of local, state, regional and national level exercises.