How Western Wayne County Tracks Their Most Valuable Assets

Customer Background

Western Wayne County Hazardous Materials Response Team (WWCHMRT) was formed in 1987. Their team currently has 45 members that come from Mutual Aid Association fire departments that are located within the Detroit metropolitan area. The team is also responsible for incidents at the nation’s 11th busiest airport, Detroit-Wayne County Airport (DTW) which handles 40 million passengers and 360 million pounds of cargo each year.

In 2005, the Western Wayne County HMRT became one of eighteen Regional Response Teams for the State of Michigan. Since becoming a Regional Response Team, they have had to increase their resources so that they are able to respond to larger incidents, including those related to weapons of mass destruction. By becoming a Regional Response Team they have also increased their response area to the entire state of Michigan.

Challenges and Needs

The team was in search of a solution that would reduce the administrative burden of tracking equipment value and expiration dates. The difficult task of dealing with a HazMat incident requires a large cache of equipment. Regardless of its complexity, each equipment category or type needs individualized attention and management. HazMat team needs don’t stop at equipment; the management of personnel, qualifications, performance, attendance, and availability can be a major undertaking. This is a task often charged to a generic spreadsheet or paper-based process, however, this can be a cumbersome and inefficient process.

The team encountered problems relating to the management of information, with a lack of one centralized location for team comms.

“Before my team acquired specialist software, we experienced many information management issues. Now, I can assign a task to a particular member or post it on the dashboard for someone looking for a project.”
— Captain Michael J. Magda, Hazardous Materials Specialist

Furthermore, members who missed an incident would be in contact after, taking up valuable time with questions about what had happened and how it was resolved.

“Now, those members can review the incident, read my IAP or narrative and see the equipment used at any given incident.”
— Captain Michael J. Magda, Hazardous Materials Specialist

Solution

“D4H is the most valuable tool my Hazmat team utilizes. The program answers every imaginable question you might have about your department, from where a particular piece of equipment is located, to its maintenance status and history and who is qualified to wear an SCBA mask. The program can answer these and many other questions with a few clicks of a mouse.”
— Captain Michael J. Magda, Hazardous Materials Specialist

The D4H Incident Reporting product includes a pre-loaded database of over 700 of the most common chemicals. This allows WWCHMRT to collect valuable data relating to the frequency at which they encounter various hazardous materials. The Equipment Management module also allows the team to manage consumable supply levels, calibrations, inspections, and repairs.

The team uses the D4H Personnel & Training product to easily manage team information, right down to the individual responder. They can now quickly produce team performance reports, and ensure that all qualifications are valid and compliant for the tasks undertaken.