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Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service improves information security and accessibility
With the need to increase public safety by tracking and improving fire information across the UK’s regions, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) is leading the country with the announcement today of a new management system.
Based on Microsoft Dynamics 2011, Active Solutions’ Connect eliminates the variety of problems caused by legacy systems in individual departments, leading to separate workflow processes and information silos. Set to be the largest implementation in the fire service, it will be available to approximately 2,000 staff and used on a daily basis by 200 plus staff.
Paul Sharples, Head of Business Intelligence & Knowledge at GMFRS says, “As a service we need to reduce our costs utilising innovative technology based on our Microsoft ICT strategy. It’s possible to reduce overall operating costs by consolidating technology around these products and platforms to provide an improved more efficient service. However, to do this requires a change of approach; Connect from Active not only provides an excellent solution to meet these demands now, it also delivers world class technology which will remain flexible in the future.”
Once implemented Active Solutions’ Connect system will replace several outdated legacy systems and integrate with GMFRS’s remaining IT infrastructure to provide a more centralised data management platform that increases the accessibility and security of all information relating to Community Fire Safety, Technical Fire Safety, and Fire Investigation. As the solution evolves areas for potential further development include risk information to the fire ground, asset tracking, resource utilisation and scheduling.
Connect also provides a complete mobile solution by working fully through Microsoft Outlook, allowing users to work on or offline without interruption.
Steve Ainsworth, Active CEO says, “All Fire services in the UK are having to change. We responded to this need by developing Connect, based on Microsoft Dynamics 2011, to provide a strategic approach to information management and performance reporting. Having information that is always up to date and a solution that replaces multiple databases and systems from across key departments enables a fire service to modernise, save money and improve services for the public.”
Invited by Microsoft to be one of its twelve high potential ISV’s, Active has developed Connect as an on site or cloud based solution dedicated to dynamically managing information within the UK fire and rescue service.
Andrew Hawkins, director of Public Sector Solutions at Microsoft explains, “Fire services provide crucial and valuable services to protect communities around the world. Connect offers an innovative way to help ensure these organisations have the tools they need to complete all the functions of a modern day fire service.”
