AristaTek, Inc.
Aristatek, Inc, a leading provider of hazardous materials planning and response solutions, is offering a complimentary service for communities interested in analyzing the self-reported data of fixed facilities storing hazardous materials. The company will offer this service at no cost to EPCRA administrators, Hazmat teams, fire departments/fire marshals, or any other public safety/health professionals to determine the completeness and accuracy of their submitted Tier II forms from facilities. PEAC is the acknowledged `gold standard` for this type of solution and is used by hundreds of municipal fire departments, and many Department of Defense agencies. Recent DOD fieldings include all the NGB�s CSTs, the NGB TAGs in the 54 states and territories, and the Fire and Emergency Services for the USAF bases worldwide.
Company details
Find locations served, office locations and our distributors
- Business Type:
- Software vendor
- Industry Type:
- Hazardous Substances
- Market Focus:
- Globally (various continents)
- Year Founded:
- 1999
About Us
History
Formed as a Wyoming corporation in January 1999, AristaTek is a certified HUBZone small business concern located in Laramie, WY. The four founders are former employees of the University of Wyoming Research Corporation (UWRC) and were the core technical staff of the Hazardous Materials Research Group that conducted field scale research studies at the Nevada Test Site’s Hazmat Spill Center (HSC). The research was mandated in the 80’s when Congress decided to include UWRC in the 1986 Superfund and Reauthorization Act (SARA) to investigate and develop new hazardous chemical technology while developing a Technology Transfer Program to convey these new technologies to the public sector. Again in 1990, UWRC was directed in the Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) to develop calibrated data sets of field-scale vapor cloud dispersion releases of dense-gas stimulants under worst-case scenarios that would be used to establish a basis for the Risk Management Plans (RMPs) to be implemented in 1999. These investigations were funded by industry, DOE and EPA and managed by the UWRC technical staff that eventually formed the AristaTek spin-off.
The field-scale research studies involved source strength studies to validate mathematical model formulations for the evaporation rates of liquid chlorine and liquid anhydrous ammonia in the existing wind tunnel at the HSC. The vapor dispersion studies culminated in the Kit Fox Series conducted in the summer of 1995 that were the first of a kind investigations to document dispersion of heavier-than-air gases under neutral and stable meteorological conditions across multiple surface roughness configurations. The project required management and collaboration with ten petrochemical participants*, DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy, DOE’s Office of Nonproliferation and National Security, EPA’s Office of Research and Development, EPA’s Chemical Emergency Preparedness and Prevention Office, University of Nevada – Reno, and US Army’s Dugway Proving Grounds.
* Petroleum Environmental Research Forum (PERF Pro...
* Petroleum Environmental Research Forum (PERF Project 93-16), which comprised the following ten companies: Allied Signal Corporation; Amoco Corporation; Chevron Research and Technology Co.; CITGO Petroleum Corporation; Clark Oil and Refining Co.; Exxon Research and Engineering Co.; Marathon Corporation; Mobil Research and Development Co.; Phillips Petroleum Co.; and Shell Research and Development Co.
An earlier study under the SARA program undertaken by the UWRC employees was to conduct an investigation of a large number of hazardous material incidents and report on their cause and the resulting emergency response actions taken. The investigation indicated that First Responders had used essentially no prediction tools to develop evacuation zones or consider what portion of the public might be at risk. At a number of these incidents Responders did not have appropriate tools available and those that did, did not have a properly trained individual on site that could operate the software.
PEAC Product
Based upon these findings and the knowledge developed during the field scale investigations, the UWRC employees conceived and developed PEAC® (Palmtop Emergency Action for Chemicals) to provide the First Response community with a field-deployable software solution. The system centers around a comprehensive database of hazardous materials indexed to multiple databases, e.g., chemical/physical properties, toxicities, appropriate respirator recommendations, breakthrough times for chemical protective clothing, and symptoms of exposure. The application also included an integrated plume model to calculate exclusion zones for toxic vapor cloud releases.
The formation of AristaTek by the UWRC employees and transfer of the technology patent rights has led to enhancement of the PEAC product beyond just a resource for dealing with Hazmat response. The database is now comprised of 100K+ hazardous substance names and includes a comprehensive threat matrix to support events with multiple hazardous agents combined with a chemical reactivity analysis feature to assess consequences of multiple substances mixing. The integrated computational tools have expanded to include calculation of safe standoff distances from different types of hazardous events, e.g., explosions, unconfined vapor cloud explosions, radioactive isotope release, radioactive fallout exposure, and detonation of a nuclear device, with the results displayed as polygons on mapping tools.
Today, PEAC is the acknowledged 'gold standard' for this type of solution and is used by hundreds of municipal fire departments, and many Department of Defense agencies. Recent DOD fieldings include all the NGB’s CSTs, the NGB TAGs in the 54 states and territories, and the Fire and Emergency Services for the USAF bases worldwide. The USAF fielding included development of on-line training courseware for DOD personnel with AristaTek staff serving as SMEs to the USAF course development contractor. A civilian fielding in 2008 via the DHS CEDAP (Commercial Equipment Direct Assistance Program) that provided hardware, software, NET (new equipment training) and extended technical support contracts for 89 jurisdictions spread across the USA.
Other Projects
In addition to the enhancement and support of the PEAC COTS product, AristaTek participates in other development projects, such as:
- 1999-2000 - Technical Support Working Group (TSWG) to incorporate the CWAs and their precursors into the PEAC-WMD database and the integrated plume-modeling tool.
- 2004-2005 - CARAT (Chemical Agent Risk Assessment Tool) project for TSWG and funded by DHS that created a software tool to evaluate user selected PPE ensembles for duration of protection based on a user specified contaminated environment and working conditions.
- 2008-2009 - Subcontractor for the NGB J7 JSRTS (Joint State Response Training System) web-based project. AristaTek provides deliverables in the form of software code development for the GUI and digital art development for a virtual Cityscape environment used in the US-Nexus portion of the JSRTS Program. AristaTek also is providing hosting services for the web-based project.
LEPCs & EMAs
Planning and analyzing the hazardous material threats in communities can be a daunting task. AristaTek is dedicated to providing resources for emergency planners to make their critical jobs easier, quicker and more thorough. Our flagship product, PEAC-WMD is an easy-to-use analytical software suite that can integrate Tier II files, analyze the hazardous threats in their inventories and model the possible plume/explosive/fireball hazards. Our in-house experts also provide expert research briefs providing in-depth analysis of certain substances
What is PEAC ?
The PEAC-WMD software is designed for use at the scene to support a First Responder in making informed decisions and provides immediate operational response for HAZMAT and CBRNE incidents when you need to KNOW! During an incident, when seconds count, the right decisions made early in an incident will pay dividends later as the incident unfolds allowing the responder to protect response personnel, the public, and property. Comprehensive information on hazardous substances, chemical reactivity, plus the ability to develop incident specific exclusion zones or safe standoff distances are just a click away and can be easily shared with others.
Why PEAC ?
First Responders are trained to handle a broad range of emergency incidents. However, their effectiveness and their own personal safety are dependent upon them using the best tools available. For Hazmat incidents, the PEAC-WMD tool is the acknowledged leader, providing the critical information management and decision support tools to help the First Responder protect themselves, the public and property. The software provides information and calculations in logical, small, digestible pieces, which simplifies managing data during an incident. Plus the software simplifies sharing data or calculations developed at the scene with remote users to facilitate situational awareness.