With the help of Vector Security Inc., the provider of security and automation solutions for homes and businesses across North America, Bradley County, Tenn. became the 50th public safety answering point (PSAP) in the nation to go live with Automated Secure Alarm Protocol (ASAP).
ASAP is technology that automates communication between alarm monitoring central stations and public safety dispatch/ 911 centers. With ASAP, alarm users in Bradley County will benefit from faster, more accurate emergency response.
Electronic data transmission results in the following benefits for alarm users and first responders: less phone calls to emergency response centers, quicker processing times and greater accuracy of information transmitted.
With ASAP delivering alarm notification information directly from central stations to public safety answering points and public safety dispatch centers via computer rather than by phone, all pertinent data goes directly to first responders and the process takes only about five seconds. Many agencies using ASAP can expect alarm response times to potentially drop to as little as a minute and a half or less.
“Vector Security is excited to offer this technology to our customers in Bradley County,” said Anita Ostrowski, vice president of central station services for Vector Security, adding that Richmond, Va. is where the company first introduced ASAP in 2012.
ASAP was developed following a partnership between The Monitoring Association (TMA) and the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO), with Vector Security President and CEO Pam Petrow co‐chairing the committee.
“We are glad to see the technology make its way into more communities across the nation and we are proud to be part of this effort to improve first responder dispatches across the country,” Ostrowski said.
Vector Security assisted with the implementation by helping to conduct extensive testing prior to the system going live in Bradley County, which is located in the southeastern portion of Tennessee.
Nationwide, nearly 60 agencies have implemented, or are in the process of implementing ASAP. For a current list, go to https://tma.us/asap/.
For more information on the benefits and features of ASAP, visit www.vectorsecurity.com/asap.
