Global Distribution Management System (GDMS) is a commercial, non-military asset visibility, force protection, and intelligence support program that has operated continuously, 24x7, since November of 2004 at the Reconstruction Operations Center (ROC) and the Logistics Movement Control Center (LMCC) in Baghdad, as well as many other locations throughout Iraq. GDMS is a battle tested decision support tool that saves American and coalition lives daily by providing near real-time visibility over all movable reconstruction assets, high profile personnel, Iraqi railroad movements, and quick reaction force (QRF) responses. Utilizing low bandwidth data transmission, GDMS is fully functional in challenging wartime environments that use unreliable communications network. In this hostile environment, GDMS provides an alert capability to allow units under enemy attack to notify reaction forces quickly. Tapestry’s rapid response to a critical real-world requirement resulted in the issuance of an order by General George Casey, the Coalition Forces Commander at the time, that all transponders used in the reconstruction effort must be “Tapestry Compliant”. In December 2008, the Combined Joint Task Force (CJTF) in Afghanistan contracted Tapestry Solutions to use GDMS as the in-transit visibility solution for Host Nation Trucking companies operating in this theater. GDMS will provide the Afghanistan Area of Operation with mission critical visibility of movements and assets.
CAPABILITIES
In-Transit Visibility (ITV) - GDMS tracks all convoys and security details used in the reconstruction effort in Iraq, and portrays these vehicles in a map-centric Common Operating Picture (COP).
The LMCC tracks all commercial logistics movements throughout Iraq.
Mapping and Imagery - GDMS comes with both Vector and Raster maps from scales of 1:25,000 to 1:500,000, as well as satellite images down to 10-meter accuracy. Map views can be zoomed in or out at the touch of a button.
Panic Alerts - Each transponder is equipped with a ‘Panic Button’ that can be pushed when the vehicle is under attack, or otherwise distressed or disabled. When a Panic Alert is transmitted, GDMS is already programmed to process that data ahead of any position reports or message traffic that may be in the queue. As soon as received, a Panic Alert triggers three simultaneous events in GDMS: (1) the map display centers on the vehicle in distress (regardless of zoom level), (2) a loud audible alarm is sounded, and (3) a pop-up message and notification banners are displayed containing information such as the date-time group of when the panic alert was activated, coordinates for the exact location of where the panic alert was activated, as well as the transponder hardware serial number and bumper number of the vehicle in distress.
Instant replay - GDMS has a replay capability that allows replay or reconstruction of live events days or weeks after the occurrence. The tracks of any one vehicle, or group of vehicles, can be replayed for analysis. This has proved to be extremely beneficial for white-on-white situations, insurance disputes, damage claims by indigenous populations, or any other situation in which the exact previous locations of security vehicles must be analyzed.
The Replay Tool can be used to produce screenshots and video capture for After-Action Review (AAR) and analysis.
Incident Analysis - Historical analysis of significant events, enemy contacts, and transportation network interruptions such as Road Traffic Accidents (RTAs) can be recorded and displayed using GDMS. All Panic Alerts can be automatically placed into a historical database for future Intelligence Analysis. GDMS is programmed with highly sophisticated analytical tools that enable analysis, prediction, and reporting by area, category of attack, attacker, time of day, day of week, and many other predictive tools.
Private Security Companies use GDMS as their primary tool to monitor live missions in real-time in case of an incident.
Callouts - A callout feature has the ability to anchor important operational information, documents, and/or files to any grid location on the map, as well as attach additional information to transponders, moving with the transponder as it continues to move and update its current location.
Text Messaging - Both One-way and/or Two-way near real-time text messaging from GDMS station to vehicle transponder, GDMS station to GDMS station, and/or vehicle transponder to GDMS station.
Geo-Fencing - Route-based and/or area-based proximity reporting tool which allows the user to be notified upon entry and/or departure of a transponder from a route or a defined area.
OTHER IMPORTANT FEATURES
24-Hour Network Support - The Tapestry Operations Center is manned 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to immediately address, troubleshoot, and repair any network issues that arise anywhere between the AO and San Diego.
COOP Site - Tapestry maintains a complete failover Continuity of Operations (COOP) in Las Vegas. Any network disruption in San Diego, regardless of cause, will automatically failover to Tapestry’s COOP site located in Las Vegas, Nevada, with no interruption of service to the end user.