Avoiding Devastation with Information & Communication for Canadian Red Cross

HP customer case

study: Armed with HP's

complete range of

IT solutions be it

workstations or printers,

plotters or networking

switches, CRC gets ready

to respond better and

faster in times of disaster.

Calamities test integrity - Move to build resilience

and capacity

No society is immune to threats from natural disasters. 22 states of India are said to be multi-disaster-prone regions. Devastating natural disasters like the 1998 Super Cyclone in Orissa, the 2000 floods in Assam, the massive earthquake in Gujarat in 2001, Tsunami in 2004, Floods and earthquake in 2005 have adversely affected millions of people. Experiences of these disasters have proved that the best way to lessen their impact is to plan and prepare. To this effect, Canadian Red Cross offers disaster preparedness programmes. A part of the International Red Cross Movement, the Canadian Red Cross operates largely in two states of India. A major part of its activity is in 29 villages of 6 districts of Tamilnadu where it reaches around 60,000 people. CRC is also active in 2 districts of Karnataka.

“We needed a reliable technology platform that would have powerful

processing abilities to support Geographic Information System software from

ESRI, consistent communication capability, very fast on-screen graphic

displays, as well as a family of printers attuned to high resolution map

printing. HP technology platforms fit the bill perfectly”

Harold Arfin, Head of the Indian Delegation, CRCS.

Avoiding Devastation with Information &CommunicationHP helps Canadian Red Cross in building safer, more resilient communitiesby providing appropriate & cutting edge Information Technology.

Objectives: •To deliver reliable and cost-effective IT solutions

which can ensure a combination of faster, power packed processing units, accurate graphic display screens and excellent output capability of the printers.

Approach:

Business benefits: Accelerated growth of information network •Faster processing translates into enhanced

capacity to store and disseminate information.•High resolution graphic display ensures

accurate interpretation of information.

•Offer powerful, affordable and consistently reliable next-generation processing technology of HP workstation xw4550 based on AMD Optron quad-pro processors

•Deliver the benefits of fast and color efficient printing through HP Design Jet 500 plus and Business Inkjet 2800 printers

•Provide crisp, clear and high resolution views of graphics with HP 22” Flat Panel Monitors

Lower costs:

•Savings through low Total Cost of Ownership

•Optimal power requirement

Fully understanding the needs of CRC, HP

suggested a complete set of IT solutions which

were reliable yet inexpensive. As a first measure,

HP xw4550 Workstations were provided which

combines desktop affordability with the

performance, expandability, graphics and

certified to run GIS application from ESRI.

Uniquely designed and engineered, the xw4550

supports AMD's latest quad-core Opteron

processors and professional graphics card with

the new error correcting memory capability. HP

xw4550 includes an 80 PLUS power supply, which

reduces both overall energy usage and the amount

of waste heat released into the environment.

Geographic Information System plays a vital role

in disaster preparedness by mapping the whole

area. In times of emergency, it is important that

exact locations be marked for relief to reach the

right places. This requires crisp, clear, high

resolution views of the maps and other graphics.

To meet this demand of CRC, HP 22” Flat Panel

Monitors were provided. This monitor offers high

quality graphic display, adjustable viewing angles

and vertical tilt for user comfort during long hours

of working in an emergency situation.

Disaster response teams working in the field need

hard copies of the high quality color accurate

maps, brochures and newsletters. To cater to this

requirement, CRC was armed with HP DesignJet

500 plus plotter and HP Business Inkjet 2800. HP

500 plus plotter delivers ultimate photo-quality

with continuous tones, smooth transitions, greater

colour consistency and improved color accuracy.

Though natural disasters cannot be completely

avoided, the resultant sufferings can be minimised

by creating proper awareness of likely disasters by

developing a suitable warning and disaster

preparedness system. Information technology has

the potential to play a critical role in planning and

implementation of disaster management. It was

this realization that led to the setting up of a fully

equipped Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) by

the Indian delegation of the CRC in partnership

with the Indian Red Cross Society.

Harnessing Information Technology for disaster

management

Synergising/Powering Disaster Preparedness

with HP solutions

“We needed a reliable technology platform that

would have powerful processing abilities to

support Geographic Information System software

from ESRI, consistent communication capability,

very fast on-screen graphic displays, as well as a

family of printers attuned to high resolution map

printing. HP technology platforms fit the bill

perfectly”

The Emergency Operation Centre has been

designed to harness recent Information

technological advances in managing natural

disasters.


“We have built this Emergency Operation Centre

so that we can co-ordinate communication and

response structure to the disaster response teams

at various levels. Emergency Operation Centre will

provide the intelligence, information, resources

and co-ordination capabilities as a centralized

resource at the national level”


Through this Emergency Operation Centre, CRC in

alliance with the Indian Red Cross plans to provide

viable, robust and reliable solutions in disaster

preparedness to other states as well. With its full

array of equipments and next generation

technology that provides adaptability and

scalability, HP will continue to partner CRC in

incorporating long term disaster risk reduction

strategies to build safer, more resilient

communities

Moving forward to building a safer future

“HP provided us with end-to-end solutions that met

our need. As was expected, it was a seamless and

effective installation right from the consultancy on

the equipments to the actual provision and

installation. In fact HP helped us meet our

deadline and the whole process was over within

30 days” .


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without notice. The only warranties for HP products and services are set forth in the express warranty statements

accompanying such products and services. Nothing herein should be construed as constituting an additional

warranty. HP shall not be liable for technical or editorial errors or omissions contained herein.

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Fact Sheet

Company: Canadian Red Cross

•

Head of the Indian Delegation: Harold Arfin

Number of Employees: 200

HP CRCS Account Team:

- Name- Account Manager

- Name- Business Manager - Workstations

- Name - Business Manager

HP Product Details:

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- HP xw4600 workstations




- HP Proliant BL460c G5 blade servers

- HP Dreamcolor monitors

Clients:

Text Text Tex Text Tex Text Text Text Text

Key Projects:

- Floods in Assam - 2000

- Earthquake in Gujarat - 2001

- Tsunami - 2004

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