| Company | Finnish Geospatial Research Institute |
| Country | Finland |
| Website | https://www.jyu.fi/en/projects/fireman-unmanned-aerial-systems-based-solutions-for-real-time-management-of-wildfires |
| Category | Protection & compliance › Remote sensing & mapping |
Unmanned aerial systems based solutions for real-time management of wildfires
FireMan is a fire management decision support and situational awareness system designed to integrate data from multiple fire detection, weather, and resource tracking sources into a unified operational picture for forest fire managers. The system functions as a command and coordination tool that aggregates inputs — including satellite hotspot data, camera network detections, weather station feeds, aircraft and crew locations, and fire behaviour model outputs — and presents them on a common operating map accessible to incident management teams, whether at a fixed command post or in the field via mobile devices. The core value proposition of FireMan is its ability to reduce the information fragmentation that has historically hampered fire management operations, where data from different agencies, systems, and sources existed in incompatible formats or was communicated through slow and error-prone voice channels. By providing a common recognised picture in near real time, FireMan enables faster and better-informed decisions about resource deployment, evacuation of at-risk areas, and the prioritisation of suppression efforts. In the Australian forestry context, where large plantation estates may be managed by private companies in close proximity to public land managed by state fire agencies, a shared operational platform like FireMan can facilitate the cross-tenure coordination that is essential during major fire events. The system has relevance across the full fire management cycle — in pre-season planning to assess asset risk, during active fire events to coordinate suppression, and post-fire to support damage assessment and recovery planning. Integration with prescribed burn planning tools allows managers to use FireMan to schedule and monitor planned burns, track weather windows, and manage crew safety. As Australian fire agencies move toward greater data integration and interoperability following lessons from the 2019-2020 bushfire season, platforms like FireMan represent a key element of the modernised fire management technology stack.
A useful system for preserving forest assets and reducing wildfire risks, though its productivity benefits are indirect rather than achieved through operational efficiency.
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Company | Finnish Geospatial Research Institute |
| Country | Finland |
| Type | Company |
| FWPA RD&E | 2.2 |