By Kathryn Kretschmer-Weyland
December 8, 2003

SentryPoints, a Fort Wayne (IN) software development firm, unveiled its command and control system for homeland security at the Conference of Mayors Fall Leadership Meeting in Miami on October 10. The presentation team was led by Paul Helmke, a former mayor of Fort Wayne and past president of the United States Conference of Mayors, who serves as counsel to SentryPoints. He was joined by Donald R. Willis, the founder of the high-tech company that created the software for its initial application in the military environment. Now partnered with General Dynamics to distribute the software for real-time management of emergency responders in the nation's cities, SentryPoints offers a suite of technology tools that permit interoperability across all communication systems for seamless messaging capability.

Thomas J. Teague, president and CEO of SentryPoints, explained the reason why the company chose to unveil the product through sponsorship of the Friday luncheon event in Miami. "As the former chief of Staff to the mayor of Fort Wayne, I recognize that the challenges faced by senior city officials in the critical area of public safety in the aftermath of 9-11 require integrated technology solutions," Teague said. "This forum allowed us to let the mayors of 40 key cities across America know that the same proven software that managed military operations in Iraq is now available to command and control first responders in the event of a terrorist incident. It delivers unmatched capabilities as well for day to day operations and training," he continued. "The U.S. Conference of Mayors was clearly the most appropriate organization to get this initial briefing," Teague added, "because it is the nation's mayors who will be called on first to manage any emergency situation."

In addition to the Command and Control software, SentryPoints is developing a new package of Threat & Vulnerability Assessment solutions that will integrate with the original system. Developed in conjunction with another partner, Critical Incident Solutions of Cincinnati, this innovative software will allow cities to evaluate risk for each critical facility in the community. Each site receives an "R" score that describes the level of risk, compares it to other sites, and assigns values for each option available to reduce that risk.

The company now plans to schedule regional workshops to demonstrate the software and its attributes. Teague suggested that the primary benefits of the system are: interoperability with any legacy system, robust scalability, ease of implantation in phases, real-time display of a common operating picture, replay of events for training and reports, cost-effectiveness and citizen satisfaction.