$1.2 Million Targeted for National Public Security and Safety Projects

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Small Businesses Benefit from Funding to Research and
Develop Intelligent Systems

Ottawa, Ontario – March 27, 2007 – Canadian researchers and developers of intelligent systems have been given a $1.2 million funding boost to accelerate work on national security and safety projects.

The funding was announced today by Ottawa-based Precarn Incorporated – a not-for-profit company representing a national network of corporations, universities, colleges, research institutes and government partners engaged in the development of intelligent information and communications technology (iICT) – which has awarded $600,000 to small Canadian businesses involved in the projects. The remaining $600,000 is being matched by the participating organizations.

Awarded as part of the Precarn Small Company Program, the funding is directed at two specific national projects: a unique disaster management system, and innovative fire threat assessment system. “Both projects – which involve researchers from technology companies, universities, and government agencies across the country – represent a major breakthrough in the development of iICT technologies (technologies that perform human functions such as perceiving, reasoning and action) for Canada on an international scale”, said Paul Johnston, President and CEO of Precarn Incorporated.

Disaster Management Project

The disaster management project, called GIDE (Geo-Intelligent Disaster and Emergency Management) – led by Vancouver-based GEOSYS Technology Solutions Ltd. – includes the development of a system that provides timely, critical information to disaster management professionals. Expected to radically advance Canadian emergency response capabilities and help save lives, the system combines machine vision and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technologies, to capture and process imagery from a disaster area in real-time. Using telecommunications and Internet technologies, it then instantaneously transmits the data to disaster management agencies, whose experts can then collaborate to provide the most effective joint emergency response.

“Emergency management agencies and decision makers need up-to-the-minute information to develop optimal responses in the form of warnings, evacuations, rescue or damage control,” said Babak Ameri,

President of GEOSYS Technology Solutions. “Despite modern technological improvements, up until now, the biggest impediment to delivering effective disaster management solutions has been the inability to provide the right people with the right information at the right time.”

Other participants of the disaster management project include Vancouver-based Universal Wing Technologies, Victoria-based B.C. Provincial Emergency Program and B.C. Base Mapping and Geomatic Services, Brandon University Geospatial Technology and Hazard Mitigation Group, and University of Calgary Positioning and Mobile Information Systems Group.

Fire Threat Assessment System

The second project, called FTAS (Fire Threat Assessment System), involves the development of an advanced intelligent system that dynamically assesses the threat posed by structural fires so that emergency responders can make better informed decisions dramatically earlier, including dispatching the right type and number of resources to a fire. Being developed as the first step in the creation of a real-time expert system for 9-1-1 centres, the Fire Threat Assessment System will be tested live in several months at 11 fire departments across Canada, including: Belleville, Cambridge, Clarington Hawkesbury, Orillia, Pickering, Sault Ste. Marie and Windsor, ON; Moncton, NB; St. John’s, NL; and St. Albert, AB.

The system is expected to result in substantial reductions in the loss of lives and community property, according to Dale Paus, President & CEO of CriSys Limited. “With the new system, emergency situations are assessed on a case-by-case basis, making the response process much more efficient and effective,” said Paus. “Currently, for example, the first fire officer typically arrives at the scene of an emergency four to eight minutes after being called, and if additional ‘second alarm’ resources are required, it’s another four to eight minutes before they appear. In the intervening eight to 16 minutes, lives can be lost, additional injuries suffered, and considerable additional property damage incurred,” he said, explaining that at the same time, the one-size-fits-all approach sometimes over-commits scarce resources that could be better used elsewhere.

“The goal is to not only apply this new approach to responding to fires, but eventually to other disasters as well,” Paus said. Led by Markham-based CriSys Limited, the project also involves partners Ryerson University, York University, and Ajax-based Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs, representing a group of 11 Canadian Fire Departments.

“Safety and security issues are top of mind among Canadians and we’re confident that this extra financial support will translate into increased commercialization of leading-edge technologies that will benefit the Canadian public, and establish Canada as a world-leader in the industry,” said Precarn’s Johnston. “We’re particularly pleased to award the funding to small Canadian firms for whom these resources will go a long way in helping them to bring their products to market faster, both in Canada and internationally.”

About Precarn

Precarn is an independent not-for-profit company that supports the pre-commercial development of leading-edge technologies. Precarn works with Canadian companies who are seeking to commercialize their new ideas to get an edge in global markets. Unlike other research funding programs, Precarn uses a collaborative model that includes a developer, a customer and an academic research partner in every project. This collaboration accelerates development, reduces risk and shares the cost of the R&D. Precarn provides access to an extensive national network of world-class researchers, innovative companies and sources of funding. Precarn receives support from Industry Canada, other federal departments and provincial government agencies, as well as private sources.

About GEOSYS Technology Solutions Ltd. (www.geosys.ca)

GEOSYS Technology Solutions Ltd. is a "next-generation" remote sensing company in the business of delivering geospatial information products, value-added services and systems. It provides large volume, fast-turn-around data processing capacity to the remote sensing industry. The company specializes in digital processing of acquired images using air/space-borne platforms. GEOSYS provides a complete range of Geomatics services for clients around the world. From end-to-end map products generation to project management and modular services that allow clients the flexibility of selecting specific tasks. Data for a wide variety of applications will be delivered in a timely, and accurate fashion.

About CriSys Limited (www.crisys.com)

CriSys offers a range of products and services to meet the needs of private and public safety agencies. CriSys supplies state of the art decision support systems for ambulance, disaster response, fire-rescue, police and security services of all sizes. It provides a complete solution including software, hardware, data services, installation, integration, cabling, testing, training and commissioning of the fully operational system. All systems provide completely integrated call handling, dispatch, communication interfaces, personal scheduling and management, equipment tracking and maintenance, pre-incident planning, online data, detailed event record analysis and online reports.

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