Meeting user needs in designing oil spill information management systems

To be effective, an oil spill information management system must be targeted to specific functions, address the key needs of the primary user groups, and be compatible with other information management and decision support tools in use. This was the design challenge faced by researchers at the University of Miami´s Ocean Pollution Research Center (OPRC) in developing the Oil Spill Information Management System (OSIMs). In designing OSIMs, a procedure was followed whereby the key user groups were identified and involved in the development of the system. This paper describes the design and development process showing how it was employed to identify and refine the architecture, content, and presentation format for OSIMs. Plans for expanding the functionality and geographic scope of OSIMs are outlined