BREMERTON, WA - July 28, 2008 - PIER Systems, Inc. today announced that emergency responders will use its full spectrum, on-demand communication management web application in a large-scale drill simulating a radiological terrorist event. The national-level interagency exercise, called Diablo Bravo, includes roughly 500 participants from a wide range of local, state, and federal agencies in a "real time" deployment.  The purpose is to evaluate the nation's emergency response plans, notification processes and ability to communicate with the public.

Emergency responders from Kitsap County Department of Emergency Management (DEM) will use the Public Information Emergency Response System (PIER) for fully integrated communication management during the exercise.

"There is unquestionably the need for collaborative communication in an event like this, whether simulated or real," said PIER Senior Vice President Marc Mullen. "Rapid changes in news technology and how the majority of the public gets its information means that we have to rethink the way we communicate with them. PIER essentially acts as a virtual Joint Information Center allowing multiple responders to communicate fast, direct and transparent to both internal and external audiences and to those who need it most."

PIER will provide Kitsap County DEM the robust capacity to effectively communicate with the public, even in a worst-case event, by providing fast and accurate information and incident updates, facilitating rapid responses to stakeholders' questions, and by pushing information directly to those affected (exercise participants only) via email, fax, telephone and SMS text message notifications.  In addition to providing highly effective stakeholder communication, PIER also enhances  the communicators' ability to gather accurate information, draft effective communication material, obtain rapid approvals and share final products with all other responders.

"PIER takes the walls off the Joint Information Center by allowing communicators to participate from wherever they are," states Phyllis Mann, Director of Kitsap County Department of Emergency Management. "It allows all of us access to important information we can use to protect the welfare of our communities.  I can't imagine effective communication in a crisis without using PIER."

Kitsap County has used PIER since 2003 to ensure their ability to provide effective stakeholder communication in the event of a crisis.

The U.S. Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) will conduct Diablo Bravo from July 28 through August 1, 2008. The full-scale field exercise will simulate a major incident with the potential to release hazardous materials to the environment. No actual hazardous materials will be used.

PIER's capability to support multiple users as they create critical information and distribute it to key stakeholders will be tested to an extraordinary level in this four-day exercise. Actual incidents in which PIER has been previously used include: Hurricane Katrina by the US Coast Guard, multiple industrial accidents and spills by private companies, and most recently, as the Joint Information Center communication tool for the Northern California Fire Response.

The Diablo Bravo Joint Information PIER site will be available for review during the exercise at www.pierjic.com .