June 10, 2005—The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released information about risk assessment software its economists have developed to help building owners and managers identify and guard against terrorist threats to their facilities.
The software was developed by NISTs Office of Applied Economics (OAE) as part of NISTs commitment to homeland security, and is the finished version of a beta program released in 2004 for limited testing.
The software, titled Cost Effectiveness Tool for Capital Asset Protection (CET), Version 1.0, employs a three-step process for developing a risk mitigation plan. Risk assessment, identification of potential mitigation strategies, and economic evaluation are the softwares essential components. According to NIST, CET first allows users to look at possible damage scenarios. Users then can explore strategies to reduce facility vulnerability. Choices include engineering alternatives (such as sensors to detect airborne contaminants); management practices (such as evacuation drills or increased security); and financial mechanisms (such as tax write-offs for capital improvements).
Additionally, the software enables users to evaluate the life-cycle costs of various strategies.
The software is available for free download at the NIST Web site.
