Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER)

Workshop Prepares Water and Power Officials to Use Decision Support Software

Hurricane Katrina and the specter of post-9/11 terrorist attacks have focused homeland security officials' attention on protecting critical infrastructure. The Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER), whose work is centered at the University of Buffalo, has long conducted research in this area to look for ways to protect the essential infrastructure, or "lifelines," of cities in the event of an earthquake.

MCEER's lifeline systems research team has developed a methodology and associated software tools to evaluate the seismic resilience of electrical power and water supply systems. The Engineering Research Center used the new software tools to develop case studies using primarily the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power's (LADWP's) water and power systems as a testbed.

The center held a major workshop at LADWP offices to begin implementing the decision support system for the agency's water supply and electric power system. Department personnel and upper management, industry representatives and MCEER lifelines investigators participated in the workshop and toured water treatment and monitoring facilities.

Implementing the software marks an important step forward in providing utility managers with tools for simulating and reducing the impacts of seismic events.

To learn more about this topic:
Visit the MCEER Research page at http://mceer.buffalo.edu/research/lifelines/default.asp.

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Software maps critical infrastructure with census and
other data to give officials tools to help evaluate the
seismic resilience of electrical power and water
supply systems.

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Last modified: April 11, 2007