Skip to main content

November 18th, 2020

By November 18, 2020December 3rd, 20202020 Speakers

Mark Jasper of GHD made a presentation on Virtual Exercises and the Technology Used. The key points were:

How to run exercises while social distancing and limiting travel during the pandemic.

  • The Success of an Exercise in a virtual environment is dependent on: exercise planning; a strong exercise package; trained facilitators; leveraging existing communication technology platforms; and integrating innovative technology for participants.
  • To design a Virtual Exercise you need: objectives; a participant list; scenario selection; and a Master Scenario Event List (MSEL) that lays out the exercise play. He used an example of a virtual exercise in Winnipeg indicating that there is a need to interact with government agencies as if there is a real emergency.
  • To create a MSEL you need to consider: how you deliver the inject; who receives it; and what do you want them to do.
  • The evaluator of the Exercise needs to: observe the completion of objectives; clarify what may have been completed; and coach the participants. The results should not only have negatives, but focus on the positives as well.

There are various Digital Tools available for modelling, augmented reality, virtual reality and live drone feed integration. He showed examples of: graphics on top of air photos, drone images & plant schematics; modelling spills, transport and air dispersion; and camera tracking, photogrammetry and augmented reality.

Kevin Wallace of Spartan Response made a presentation on Decontamination & Disinfection Services

Kevin talked about Spartan’s programs and work plans to disinfect facilities per Covid- 19 recognized best practices, resulting in an efficient process while ensuring the safety of the Spartan staff and respecting client assets. They provide detailed verification that are protecting client’s employees from virus contact. The Standard Pre-Service client engagement includes: a site visit; identifying key client contacts, layout drawings and general operational details.  Upon engagement, Spartan would work with the client to identify the specific at-risk areas to disinfect (contacted by suspected carrier).

Spartan summarizes the key information is a responder database, making it readily available to personnel for 7/24 call support. Spartan developed a specific training indoctrination for its employees to ensure best practices are understood and followed with respect to decontamination and PPE requirements. Kevin showed examples of incident reports and certificates are typically posted on Health & Safety billboards.