New Vistas for Firefighter Information Systems? Towards a Systematic Evaluation of Emerging Technologies from a Task-Technology Fit Perspective

During the response to an emergency, firefighters inevitably have to make critical, context-dependent decisions on site. To improve the ability of firefighters to comprehend both the situation at hand and the capabilities of the available resources, it is frequently proposed in literature to use new and emerging information technologies to gather, share, and present real-time information in so-called on-site emergency response systems. In this paper, we present the results of a survey-based study, in which we asked representatives of German fire brigades to assess the potential of seven emerging technologies from a user-oriented task-technology fit perspective. The results indicate that digital maps, indoor navigation support, the continuous transmission of the air supply status, and integrated on-site emergency response systems indeed might have the potential to expedite the emergency response process. In contrast to the expectations, the potential of drones, on-ground robots, and intelligent clothing was found to be limited, though.