Tokyo, Japan, September 4, 2025 — NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE: 6701) today announced that it will begin a proof of concept (PoC) for introducing an Earthquake Early Warning System (EEWS) in Colombia. This follows NEC’s selection to undertake the "Project for Conducting a Feasibility Study on the Introduction of ICT-Based Early Earthquake Detection and Analysis Technology in the Republic of Colombia," for which Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications had issued a public solicitation for proposals.

With the ultimate goal of providing an EEWS overseas for the first time, NEC plans to conduct this PoC in Colombia between September 2025 and March 2026 to verify the effectiveness of the EEWS and identify any potential issues.

Background

Colombia is a seismically active nation located along the circum-Pacific Ring of Fire. Extensive human and material damage were reported following a magnitude 6.2 earthquake in Colombia’s Department of Quindio in January 1999 and another that shook the nation’s capital of Bogota in August 2023 with a magnitude of 6.3. Since then, calls have grown for the establishment of a system to swiftly provide the government and the general public with earthquake information.

NEC has a proven track record for reliable operation of its EEWS, which it has been providing for the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) since 2007. NEC now seeks to contribute to earthquake preparedness in Colombia with the introduction of a new EEWS.

Introduction of EEWS

EEWS is a system that calculates the epicenter and magnitude from the initial tremors (P-waves) detected by seismometers, enabling it to warn of strong shaking before the main tremors (S-waves) arrive (though in some cases, it may not arrive in time for the strong shaking). Applications include alerting the public via mass media and mobile phones, automatically shutting down infrastructure, and controlling elevators, thereby contributing to the reduction of human and material damage.

PoC overview

Leading up to this PoC, NEC was selected by Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in the public solicitation for proposals it issued in fiscal year 2024 for the "Project for Conducting a Feasibility Study on the Introduction of ICT-Based Early Earthquake Detection and Analysis Technology in the Republic of Colombia," and conducted a preliminary survey from January to March 2025. In this preliminary survey, NEC input seismometer data from 12 past Colombian earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.0 or larger into EEWS for analysis. This historical earthquake data from Colombia was then run on EEWS to confirm that results predicting the epicenter and magnitude could be produced.

Building off this preliminary survey, NEC will be connecting existing seismometers installed in Colombia with EEWS online to conduct real-time analysis of the acquired data in the upcoming PoC.

Seismic observation point and epicenter data used in the preliminary survey (Left)
Screenshot of EEWS monitor (Right)

Leveraging the outcomes of this PoC, NEC will move forward with its feasibility study for introducing EEWS in Colombia, aiming to contribute to the improvement of earthquake preparedness in the nation.

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Related Link

Disaster preparedness: Products & Solutions | NEC
https://www.nec.com/en/global/solutions/disaster-management/index.html

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