Symbol's technology, which is also used by the Red Cross to track blood supplies, was assessed by New York firefighters who determined which tools would work best and fastest. Symbol sent Luciano down to its warehouse to dig through existing inventory and find the most rugged handhelds -- the industrial-strength PPT 2800 -- that could withstand heat, dust, and long hours.
Links Point, which usually takes three months to create a unique application, began working 24 hours a day to create database software that would allow searchers simply to tap on the description of an item needing a bar code. The machine would do the rest -- log in the location of the evidence within one to three meters, stamp the date and time, and create a record to be updated wirelessly as evidence leaves the scene.
Links Point's software also had to translate the GPS latitude and longitude readings into the crime scene's grid system. Pfiefer hopes that the information will help investigators visually map the site and reconstruct just what happened as the towers collapsed. Within three days, Links Point's engineers created a system that took into account the searchers' needs and that required just one hour of training. Such ease of use is essential for firefighters who don't often use computers and who have to work with and in bulky equipment, including cumbersome gloves.
"I'll be the first to admit that I wasn't certain that this was a great time to introduce a new technology," says Greg Fucheck, Links Point vice president of sales and project integrator. "These guys were tasked with a horrible job. But the firefighters immediately saw the value. It made them feel as if they could do an even better job."
Fara Warner (fwarner@fastcompany.com) is a Fast Company senior writer.
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