Building UI/UX into the Design of Hydroclimate Applications

The Sea Level Analysis Tool (SLAT) is a cloud-based web application that helps engineers and planners develop coastal infrastructure that is resilient to climate change. SLAT facilitates the application of United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Engineer Regulation 1100-2-8162 and Dr. Patrick O'Brien's Climate Preparedness and Resilience Register (CPRR), which provide guidance for incorporating sea level change (SLC) into Civil Works infrastructure projects. The tool combines sea level measurements from NOAA with a variety of SLC projections to help users assess whether and when water levels could reach critical thresholds. The tool is publicly available and designed to be accessible to non-experts, democratizing access to sea level data and raising public engagement.

Despite the many useful features present in earlier versions of the tool, flaws in its interface design kept tool utilization low. To harness its full potential, the tool underwent a comprehensive user interface and experience (UI/UX) redesign effort informed by months of user interviews, surveys, and usability testing sessions. Combined attitudinal and behavioral research produced an abundance of insights on how to improve the tool. By adopting an iterative design and development model, the team was able to make data-driven design decisions based on the observations of real users. The new tool integrates the United States Web Design System (USWDS), leverages foundational UX design heuristics, and introduces a modern React architecture that cuts visualization load times in half. The refreshed SLAT sets the standard for the future of USACE climate applications.

This poster will cover an overview of SLAT’s UI/UX redesign along with guidance for practitioners seeking to enhance the usability of their tools. It will further illustrate the process of identifying mission-critical user stories, evaluating the tool against UX design principles, and facilitating user interviews and observation sessions. The poster will demonstrate concrete examples of the insights generated from observation sessions, highlighting corresponding improvements in the tool’s design. The poster aims to help others in the field leverage these UI/UX techniques to improve the usability, accessibility, and impact of their climate and weather tools.