SAVER Program Assesses Equipment for First Responders

The SAVER, System Assessment and Validation for Emergency Responders, is administered by the First Responders Group of the DHS Science and Technology Directorate. This web-based service provides information to users at no cost. The SAVER program offers information on commercially available equipment for first responders that falls under DHS Authorized Equipment List categories. This includes information technology; medical; personal protective equipment; decontamination; explosives device mitigation and remediation equipment; and chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosives operational and search and rescue equipment. The SAVER program bases its information on the results of testing and evaluation of each product on the website. The performance evaluation process is described in this article. Assessment reports can include a comparative analysis of tested equipment based on focus group criteria, an overview of tests conducted, results, and weighted scores. In addition to assessment reports, the program includes a number of other informational publications that provide details on the technology. Summary documents are also available. The SAVER program does not perform an assessment on a technology that is produced by only one manufacturer.