Nottinghamshire Police - more flexible, more resilient with APD and Fortek

Nottinghamshire Police has developed a highly flexible and resilient communications, command and control system around its dual control rooms in Nottingham and Mansfield using combined systems from APD Communications and Fortek Computers. The two companies have worked alongside one another with the force since 2003, proving the potential for their two systems to combine effectively in emergency command and control environments.

Since 2008, Nottinghamshire Police has been using the latest VISION PX command and control system from Fortek Computers to manage operations across every workstation in its two control rooms. VISION PX enables forces to map, manage and optimise business processes across their control rooms and public service desks. Fortek Computers has developed data interfaces for the force to support the exchange of data to existing services such as the crime database and the Highways Agency. It has also expanded the VISION PX system to be used outside of the control room, offering a thin client user interface to enable the support of operations from senior management. VISION PX is virtualised across both control rooms to provide a single interface for sharing of contact information, intelligence, and incident and resource management.

In January 2011, the force began the latest upgrade of its APD solutions, starting with the control room hardware and software. Nottinghamshire Police operates two large control rooms in Nottingham (74 seats) and Mansfield (47 seats). All server and client hardware were overhauled along with new touchscreens. Physical peripherals have been replaced with APD’s new software alternatives, improving resilience, cutting down clutter and also saving on power costs.

APD also updated the CORTEX Software Integrated Communications Control System (SICCS) software to the latest version, which offers server virtualisation, enhanced performance and security, merging radio dispatch, call handling, video monitoring and web services, allowing control room operators to conduct their duties effortlessly.

The system enables staff to handle large volumes of calls as well as the monitoring and control of communications across a range of computer systems, TETRA digital networks and analogue systems.

With all of these upgrades, the introduction of a series of new working practices and the upgrade to VISION PX, the force has recognised a reduction in incident numbers over the last 2 years.

“Given the importance of the control room function we have to ensure that systems remain current and robust,” said Dean Langton, technical project manager at Nottinghamshire Police. “We treat the programme of upgrades as a rolling programme that sees almost every component in the control room refreshed every two to three years. The important thing is minimising the impact on users and in this case that has been almost nil. The upgrades have been completed through live operations in both control rooms without disruption, and maintaining the same UI for the software has minimised any training requirements – a big issue when you take into account our 300 control centre staff and 24x7 operations. The upgrade process has been seamless.”

The most significant change in the systems recently has been the upgrade to APD’s new software TETRA port pooling solution. This allows any operator, at any terminal, in any control room to access any talkgroup, via any TETRA port. This allows for a huge amount of operational flexibility while ensuring maximum availability.

Operators can be redeployed around the control room or even to other sites; a whole control room could be shut down with functions maintained through the other. The solution is totally software based with no proprietary hardware or single points of failure. With VISION PXvirtualised across both control rooms, this flexibility is further enhanced.

Using the TETRA port pooling solution from APD, it’s even possible to remotely connect to TETRA ports over a broadband or 3G connection, which is useful when policing sporting events from the numerous sports venues in the county. TETRA selection can be automatic based on the role and talkgroup requirements of the operator or manual through the touchscreen via a very intuitive interface so there’s minimal learning for operators.

TETRA pooling also presents opportunities for cost savings. On top of the licence savings for each port, there are no hardware maintenance, power or cooling charges associated with pooling solutions from many other vendors. Fewer ports managed dynamically can therefore ensure availability while offering significantly less cost.

CORTEX and VISION offer operators a high degree of integration to prevent rekeying of information and allow TETRA and telephony features to be managed from the VISION PX user interface. CORTEX connects to the Force’s Avaya telecommunications switch, to provide efficient call routing and call prioritisation, reducing response times to emergency calls.

CORTEX also automatically provides operators with the location and personal details of the caller as the call is answered. CORTEX immediately passes this information to VISION PX so the operator knows who’s calling and can see where they are on the VISION PX integrated mapping just as the operator says “hello”. For the increasing number of vehicles fitted with systems that automatically call the emergency services when involved in an accident, critical information such as vehicle registration, make, model, colour, direction of travel and whether the vehicle’s airbags have been activated is provided. CORTEX interfaces with both BT’s EISEC and Cable & Wireless’s ALSEC to provide this service for all UK emergency calls.  This enhanced level of information enables operators to vastly improve response times and effectively manage incidents.

Future steps will see further integration between the two platforms enabling even richer data sharing. “We’re very pleased to have such an efficient and robust system in place, combining some of the best hardware and software available to UK Emergency Services,” said Nottinghamshire’s Langton. “But we recognise that there is an opportunity to drive further value from our investment, increasing support for officers in the field, improving our response to the public and increasing efficiency.

About APD Communications

With over 25 years of experience, APD is a global leader in control room, mobile information, resource location and tracking solutions. APD specialises in delivering mission-critical and business-critical solutions to organisations within the public sector, transport, security, logistics and the emergency services. APD’s products are used in over 100 client sites in the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Customers include every UK Police Force (including The Metropolitan Police Service, Merseyside Police and Hampshire Police), the Abu Dhabi Police, the Romanian Government and leading organisations such as The Emirates Group and London Underground Limited.

About Fortek Computers Ltd

Fortek Computers Limited has been supplying Command, Control and Communications system to Emergency Response Agencies for 30 years. Fortek Computers has become a market leader here in the UK as well as delivering large scale solutions to multi-agencies overseas in Australia, Saudi Arabia, Belgium and Norway. The company’s primary focus is delivering control room technology and is a software house supporting innovative product development for COTS delivery. Fortek also provides in house project services capability, implementation, training and support. Fortek also works alongside its strategic partners to provide a breadth of experience and expertise when delivering large scale end to end managed solutions.

Mersey Tunnels Police Adopts APD TETRA Solution Reducing Operational Costs

Mersey Tunnels Police Adopts APD TETRA Solution Reducing Operational Costs - Mersey Tunnels Police now has access to group communications with neighbouring forces and services for the first time, at a fraction of the capital and operational cost of typical systems.

Milton Keynes, UK – 31st October, 2011 - APD Communications, a global leader in mobile information, resource location/tracking and control room solutions, today announced that Mersey Tunnels Police has deployed a highly cost-effective TETRA communications platform based on the CORTEX Software Integrated Communications Control System (SICCS). Mersey Tunnels Police now has access to group communications with neighbouring forces and services for the first time, at a fraction of the capital and operational cost of typical systems.

APD has provided a direct integration between Mersey Tunnels Police’s existing CORTEX software platform and the Sepura SRG3500 Mobile Gateway, which acts as a TETRA base station suitable for the force’s small geographic footprint. The combination provides the small force with all of the required communications functionality:  individual and group calling, text messaging and most importantly the ability to select and scan talk groups from British Transport Police, local forces and other emergency services. However it doesn’t require the purchase and maintenance of any CCI ports for direct access to the nationwide Airwave network, the costs of which run into thousands each year.

Anthony Tierney, Chief Inspector, Mersey Tunnels Police said: “Our remit and location mean that communication with the forces and services around us is vital, but a typical Airwave solution just wasn’t realistic for a force of our size. APD has really taken the need for forces to do more with less to heart and provided a powerful solution with minimal drain on our resources.”

The CORTEX SICCS system is designed for the needs of the modern emergency services, combining radio dispatch, call handling, video monitoring and web services; allowing control room operators to conduct their duties effortlessly. APD’s experience with larger control room operations means the system is known for its ability to scale, but the experience of Mersey Tunnels Police shows that it is equally applicable in more tactical, cost-constrained environments.

Steve Denison, Managing Director of APD Communications said: “Good communications systems are vital to every police force, but they often come at a cost. In this case we were able to work with our partner Sepura to deliver an innovative alternative that saves the force thousands on both the initial deployment and the annual running costs. It’s great to know that money can now go back into policing on the front line.”

The ability to pool radio connections between workstations adds further value to the combined CORTEX and Sepura solution. Users can connect to and control any radio on the network from any workstation, with audio passed over the network using VoIP. This feature appeals to larger forces who can replace little used CCI ports with radio terminals, lowering operational costs. Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service are already using CORTEX's VoIP capabilities to share spare CCI ports freed up through pooling by their neighbour, Wiltshire Police.

About APD Communications

With over 25 years of experience, APD is a global leader in control room, mobile information, resource location and tracking solutions. APD specialises in delivering mission-critical and business-critical solutions to organisations within the public sector, transport, security, logistics and the emergency services. APD’s products are used in over 100 client sites in the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Customers include 80 per cent of police forces in the United Kingdom (including The Metropolitan Police Service, Merseyside Police and Hampshire Police), the Abu Dhabi Police, the Romanian Government and leading organisations such as The Emirates Group and London Underground Limited. For more information please visit:

www.apdcomms.com

APD and ACPO ITS One Box Driver and Vehicle Data Management Day

APD held a Driver and Vehicle Data Management Day on 14th June 2011 at Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire.  Using APD’s DVMS solution, which was selected by ACPO ITS to be demonstrated at the HOSDB Exhibition earlier this year, APD prepared two vehicles and devised a set course for 20 Emergency Services personnel to test their eco-driving skills and to demonstrate how modifying driver behaviour can have huge cost saving potential.

The Test

The object of the exercise was to monitor current driver behaviour and fuel economy, suggest how improvements could be made, use in-vehicle technology to give real-time driver feedback and then analyse the improvements achieved through the use of the technology.  Each vehicle was equipped with the APD DVMS solution and a Millbrook instructor with each driver being given their own individual Driver-ID token which was used on each of the sessions to identify the driver of the vehicle.  This information was captured and stored so that individual performance improvements could be monitored and reported upon.  Whilst driving around the pre-determined route, live information was relayed from the vehicle and points for poor driving (excessive acceleration, braking, cornering and engine revs) were displayed on the reports screen.  Progress of the vehicle location around the circuit was also shown in real time on the Co-Ordinator Map Client screen.

In the first driving session, our delegates were asked to drive the vehicles in the manner in which they believed the majority of police vehicles to be driven and their driver behaviour and fuel economy were recorded.  In the second session the delegates were asked to drive the vehicles in accordance with eco-driving practices and use the in-vehicle DVMS feedback (an iPhone displaying driver behaviour using a red, amber, green warning system) to adjust their driving style and keep within the thresholds of acceptable driver behaviour.

The results of both sessions were then compared to illustrate the benefits that the DVMS solution is able to deliver in terms of improved fuel economy, reduced vehicle wear and tear, and enhanced driver safety.  The cost saving benefits of these improvements were then investigated, with particular emphasis on the potential savings that can realised by increasing fuel economy.

The Results

The following charts and graphs detail overall fuel usage and MPG, as well as individual driver comparisons.  It should be noted that not every driver improved on their second run!

Overview of Run 1

·         Total number of points scored in run 1 was 1677 (average of 83.85 per driver)

·         Total fuel used in run 1 was 11.56 litres

·         Cost of run 1 (at 139.9 per litre) was £16.19

·         Average mpg for run 1 was 26.77

Overview of Run 2

·         Total number of points scored in run 2 was 71 (average of 3.55 per driver)

·         Total fuel used in run 2 was 7.05 litres

·         Cost of run 2 (at 139.9 per litre) was £9.88

·         Average mpg for run 2 was 44.26

Comparison of Fuel Used and Cost

·         Run 2 used 4.51 litres (39%) less fuel than run 1

·         Run 2 cost £6.31 (39%) less than run 1

·         Average improvement in fuel economy was 17.49 mpg

APD to announce CISCO Partnership at TETRA World Congress 2011

APD to Announce CISCO Partnership at TETRA World Congress 2011

Mobile information and control room leader to showcase range of

TETRA products at the conference

Milton Keynes, UK – 24th May, 2011 – APD Communications will showcase at this year’s TETRA World Congress conference its latest TETRA based mobile information, resource location/tracking and control room solutions. At the show APD will also announce an innovative agreement with CISCO. The deal will enable APD to provide increased resilience and intelligent call routing, allowing organisations with high-volume call centres to make substantial efficiency gains.

One such organisation to benefit from the new cutting-edge service is Gloucestershire Police, which supports over 200,000 households. Once deployed, the new combined service will leverage APD Communications’ TETRA enabled CORTEX ICCS across two of the force’s control rooms, allowing the force to increase the efficiency of emergency and non-emergency call handling.

APD’s CORTEX ICCS is completely software based, and is the only ICCS in the market to be officially approved by CISCO’s stringent A2Q (Acceptance to Quality) assessors to handle emergency calls.The delivery of the new CISCO telephony solution to Gloucestershire Police is currently underway, with APD scheduled to deploy its new CORTEX software upgrade in September.

Discussing the company’s attendance at the show Steve Denison, Managing Director, APD said: “TETRA World Congress is the perfect platform to showcase the latest additions to our product portfolio and demonstrate to attending organisations how they can use technology to cope with the worldwide economic downturn. With recent pressure to increase productivity while adhering to strict spending policies, our TETRA based technology can help organisations save money while still maintaining service levels.”

The show on the 24th – 27th May 2011 at the Hungexpo Centre, Budapest, Hungary, will also see APD representatives demonstrate the company’s suite of TETRA services and products. These include CCI Pooling and CT Connect software, which are helping public and private organisations worldwide ensure service levels remain high despite challenging market conditions.

APD’s efficiency-driven solutions are increasingly being deployed nationally across the world. The company attend the show off the back of a number of recent successes in the Middle East, with revenues secured by its division in the region exceeding £8 million. CORTEX is utilised by the Swedish State Police, APD’s Mobile Identification Units are in use by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) Terrorism and Allied Matters (TAM) Police Liaison Team, the Icelandic Government and Romanian Ministry of Interior use APD’s INCA communications terminals, while Abu Dhabi Police use INCA, CORTEX and POLARIS, a mobile data solution for tablet PCs, PDAs and in-vehicle touchscreens.

Attendees at the event will also be able to review APD’s portfolio of cutting edge products such as the CORTEX Software ICCS The innovative system provides operators with control of a range of communication systems through one simple and intuitive touch screen interface. Police control rooms can also upgrade this with CT Connect software, giving staff access to further functionality and allowing them to respond to incidents more efficiently.  With police forces under pressure to increase productivity despite budget cuts, this time-saving technology allows forces to ensure service levels to the public are maintained.

In addition, APD is showing the portable control room solution CORTEXremote – used successfully at last year’s Ryder Cup.  This portable workstation provides operators with full control room functionality outside the control room.

Also on display will be APD’s INCA2 in-vehicle communications hub and Co-Ordinator Reports, a tool allowing officers to locate vehicles and carry out reporting from any computer, both of which have recently been chosen by the Home Office for a demonstration of the police car of the future. Used together these solutions can help police forces manage fleets more efficiently and reduce overheads.

Senior members of the APD team will be available to answer questions, as well as demonstrate products, systems and applications.

About APD Communications

With over 25 years of experience, APD is a global leader in control room, mobile information, resource location and tracking solutions. APD specialises in delivering mission-critical and business-critical solutions to organisations within the public sector, transport, security, logistics and the emergency services. APD’s products are used in over 95 client sites in the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Customers include 80 per cent of police forces in the United Kingdom (including The Metropolitan Police Service, Merseyside Police and Hampshire Police), the Abu Dhabi Police, the Romanian Government and leading organisations such as The Emirates Group and London Underground Limited.  

Wiltshire Police - Cutting Communication Costs by Half a Million Pounds

APD has been chosen to help Wiltshire Police save more than half a million pounds on its communications costs over five years through enhancements to the CORTEX Software Integrated Communications Control System (SICCS). The move will give the force even greater flexibility to support the county’s communities.

The force is able to make significant savings from cutting the number of CCI (Communications Control Interface) Ports required for its Airwave radio communications system. By allowing the force to ‘pool’ ports and allocate them as required, APD’s second generation CCI Port Pooling solution has allowed Wiltshire to cut the number of Airwave CCI Ports they require by 22.

The software also supports greater flexibility of staff deployment and operational efficiency: forces can collaborate or even share control rooms as the Airwave ports are not stuck with one desk. Users can sit at any CORTEX workstation, in any control room, select any CCI port and thus use any combination of TETRA talkgroups – known as ‘true free seating’.

“Wiltshire has always been a force at the forefront when it comes to the deployment of new technology. This is a prime example of how we can leverage the latest systems to reduce costs while enhancing our operational capabilities,” stated John Flynn, Programme Manager, Wiltshire Police.

“Our confidence in the APD system meant that we cancelled the excess ports in March, having only completed the deployment in February. The deployment took just a week and caused no disruption to our team.” The APD solution is totally software based, with no reliance on any 3rd party applications providing a low cost and ensuring ease of future upgrades. APD’s unique software VoIP technology means that CCI Ports can be located anywhere – they simply advertise their availability over the network. SICCS supports CCI port ‘Categories’ or ‘Modes’, allowing CCI ports to be selected intelligently and audio routed to the relevant location automatically. Almost uniquely for an ICCS, CORTEX’s 2nd generation CCI pooling solution does not require the CCI ports to connect via a central switch so there are no single points of failure.

Steve Denison, Managing Director of APD Communications said: “This solution is inexpensive and quick to deploy but presents forces with immediate opportunities for significant savings. The fact that it supports more flexibility within the organisation, and collaboration between forces, makes it particularly attractive, which is driving demand. We expect to complete a number of additional deployments in the coming months.”

APD in the Middle East

APD Communications, a global leader in control room, mobile information, resource location and tracking solutions, today announced that its Middle East division has secured record revenues. To date APD has deployed its CORTEX, STORM, POLARIS and INCA solutionsin some of the region’s most respected organisations including the Abu Dhabi Police and the Emirates Group, allowing APD to secure revenues in excess of £8 million.

APD has successfully operated in the region since 2003. To strengthen its position and to ensure customers receive a high level of support, APD opened an office in the region in 2008, staffed by skilled local specialists. As one of the first organisations to offer control room, mobile information, resource location and tracking solutions to organisations in the Middle East, APD is regarded as a trusted specialist.

This heritage and local knowledge will position APD positively in the coming years. While the UK’s public sector suffers budget cuts, IDC predicts a 10% annual growth in ITC spend across the Middle East. 1Springboard Research, a leading innovator in the IT market research industry estimates that public sector IT spending in Saudi Arabia alone is expected to grow from $1.6 billion in 2009 to $2.4 billion in 2013 (a compound annual growth rate of 10.9%).2

APD’s reputation in the region has seen the company chosen to support a programme of modernisation across Abu Dhabiby his Highness Lt. Gen. Sheikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Minister of Interior. APD worked with the Abu Dhabi Police to develop a state of the art contact centre and tracking solution, providing both officers and public with a resilient and flexible communications system.

To ensure officers have access to the very latest technologies, APD deployed a suite of: CORTEX Integrated Communications Control, STORM CAD, mobile data and INCA vehicle location systems. The deployment of the CORTEX and STORM systems ensures seamless communication and incident handling between operators and front line officers. CORTEX removes the need for operators to manage several telephones, various intercoms and a number of radios, as all incoming and outgoing communication can be managed using simple touchscreen monitors. This in turn has reduced noise in the control room meaning it is a better environment in which to work.  

Currently the force has approximately 500 vehicles with INCA installed. The in-vehicle units not only provide real time tracking but also deliver historical data for reporting purposes. Combined with a STORM map client, control room staff can now accurately track and map vehicle movements, while front-line officers can leverage POLARIS to receive incidents from control room staff. This access to in-house information and databases on the move has enabled the force to improve the service offered to the public.

Another major deployment in the region was with one of the world’s major travel organisations Emirates Airline, whochose to deploy APD’s CORTEX system in the heart of two control centres at the Dubai International Airport. The deployment allows control room operators to manage all communication and web services, linking 6,500 ground staff from Dnata (the company responsible for all the ground handling facilities) throughout the airport. This allows staff to better manage over 200,000 aircraft movements, more than 37 million passengers and 1.5 million tonnes of freight for 120 airlines and their customers.

Jon Conway, Divisional Senior Vice President of Airport Operations, Dnata commented: "APD's CORTEX system will become a key part of our communication infrastructure. Working with APD will allow us to further streamline our processes, while offering customers and our airline partners the very best service possible. The flexibility of CORTEX will allow us to cost effectively leverage our existing infrastructure whilst meeting our needs today and in the future. We anticipate that this agreement will be the beginning of a successful long-term relationship between the Emirates Group and APD."

APD Communications has also been selected to work with DDIT, a Saudi ArabianIT, Mapping and specialist in-vehicle video solutions company for a project with the Saudi Highway Patrol. The agreement has seen APD provide an innovative in-vehicle location solution to the emergency services in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The deployment will enable the Saudi Highway Patrol to capture live video, use number plate recognition techniques and view vehicle locations in real-time, enabling staff to better serve the public across the region.

Discussing the expansion in the region, Steve Denison, Managing Director of APD Communications said: “Our 25 years of experience in the public safety and transport sector combined with our local expertise allows us to deliver a service to our customers that perfectly meets their needs. Our innovative technologies are helping to evolve the way policing and airport management is conducted. With many emergency services both in the UK and Middle East under pressure to increase productivity and improve service levels, technologies like our CORTEX, TETRA-enabled Software Integrated Communications Control System (ICCS)are quickly becoming a necessity rather than a luxury.”

About APD Communications

With over 25 years of experience, APD is a global leader in control room, mobile information, resource location and tracking solutions. APD specialises in delivering mission-critical and business-critical solutions to organisations within the public sector, transport, security, logistics and the emergency services. APD’s products are used in over 95 client sites in the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Customers include 80 per cent of police forces in the United Kingdom (including The Metropolitan Police Service, Merseyside Police and Hampshire Police), the Abu Dhabi Police, the Romanian Government and leading organisations such as The Emirates Group and London Underground Limited.  

References:

1 September 22, 2010 - Springboard Research, Public Sector Market Analysis - Saudi Arabia

2 February 17, 2011 – IDC, CIO Middle East Summit

 Click below to read this article in Arabic.