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UK police forces count on Stratus for efficiency and smarter working
As a central information hub, Vantage is required to interface with a range of other internal and external systems and databases such as the Airwave national digital communications system and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems.
Stratus has a long history of working with Police Forces across the world, supplying the applications and server platforms that enable them to support their communities and safeguard the vulnerable. Stratus also has a strong track record in working with Police Forces across the UK, providing them with continuously available solutions over the past 16 years.
During this time, Stratus has developed a comprehensive, UK Police specific, development and support organisation that pro-actively takes responsibility for the operational effectiveness of these systems. The Company works with Operational Police teams to provide ever improving levels of service, with a broad range of functionality and services demanded by the UK Police Forces. Stratus works collaboratively with its Police customers developing, deploying and supporting the systems they need to achieve their goals.
Stratus is currently working with five Police forces across the UK deploying and managing everything from the core platform to the application services delivered. The Vantage Command and Control application sits at the heart of Police operations and acts as the central point for gathering information, co-ordinating Officer and staff activity and providing information sharing across the Force.
Vantage acts as the main point of contact between the Police and the public, with the Dynamic Call Handling module managing interaction between the caller and the call taker in accordance with best practises. The Vantage system makes assignment of Officers both more accurate and more efficient, as it allows users access to all the relevant background information for any call that is received. Force resources can be dispatched to incidents based on the incident priority, location and the skills required from attending Officers.
As a central information hub, Vantage is required to interface with a range of other internal and external systems and databases such as the Airwave national digital communications system and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems. Other systems which Vantage integrates with include:
• Criminal intelligence
• Firearms
• At-Risk Registers
• The Police National Computer (PNC)
• GIS Mapping applications
• Human Resources
• Telephony and Automatic Call Distribution (ACD) systems
• Automated Vehicle Location Systems (AVLS)
• Automated Resource Location Systems (ARLS)
• Mobile Data Systems
By linking to other systems, Vantage can automatically transfer relevant data from the command and control system into these applications. This means that Officers can be more efficient in their working practises and avoid having to duplicate their efforts in entering information.
availability and support for all eventualities – disaster recovery and business continuity
Command and Control is a vital application to all Police Forces. Ensuring that it is protected against system and site failure is therefore a critical consideration for the design and implementation of any Command and Control system. With Vantage linked to so many other systems throughout the Police IT infrastructure, any outage would represent a massive loss for both workers at the control centres and also Officers out on the beat. The consequences of an unplanned outage could be catastrophic for any Force.
This means that planning for all eventualities is crucial to maintaining the availability of the Command and Control application. Stratus’ experience in designing continuous availability solutions includes a Managed Disaster Recovery Service specifically designed for the UK Police command and control environment. The Managed Disaster Recovery Service, which includes a replicated, geographically remote, Command and Control system on the Forces existing network, can be invoked within seconds to ensure that Officers always have access to the functionality provided by Vantage.
The Vantage Managed Disaster Recovery system is maintained and managed as part of the overall solution with fully redundant hardware to protect against component failure, and a disaster recovery infrastructure at a physically separate location to guard against the effects of power outages and site failure. This Managed Disaster Recovery Service is provided by Stratus during the entire contract period. The Force’s financial outlay for this extra level of availability can be modelled to take into account the Force’s revenue or capital budget requirements.
on demand services – command and control provided as a managed service
The Vantage On Demand Service for UK Police Forces provides all the functionality and features of the complete Vantage Command and Control solution including Disaster Recovery, plus a financial model that can be built around a monthly, quarterly, Annual or single capital purchase model.
The Vantage On Demand Managed Service is a solution for those Forces that need to replace an existing Command and Control system with a modern, lower cost, high functionality Command and Control solution.
extending functionality - evolving the command and control system
Vantage’s level of integration offers UK Police Forces a wider range of functionality on top of existing standard Command and Control features extending its usefulness to officers out in the field and automating tasks for greater efficiency. An example of this extra functionality is the connection of Vantage and the Airwave communications system so that police officers can use their Tetra handsets far more effectively.
By building up a Dynamic Personal Database associated with the officer’s handset ID, individual ID and call-sign, officers can securely sign themselves in as active and ready for duty without physically going into a Police Station. This saves valuable time and makes Officers more efficient as they do not have to find a terminal within a Station to sign on to. Information is automatically sent into the Command and Control system showing the status of the officer and their availability for answering requests. By using the Tetra handset’s GPS tracking system, Vantage can also include real-time information on Officers locations. This facility allows Police Forces to build up a complete picture of how an officer is being deployed at all times along with how to communicate with the Officer based on their current tasks.
New functionality within Vantage also allows Officers to request information from central systems using a Voice User Interface. By using speech recognition technology and integrating with the PNC, officers can request information automatically and have it delivered to their handsets through the VUI. This makes processing requests for information more efficient, as it does not rely on interaction with the control centre. The VUI facility provides Officers in the field with the information they require faster, while staff in the central control rooms can respond to greater numbers of incoming calls from the public.
Additional Vantage functionality is being developed in collaboration with our Police Customers to provide the integration of mobile devices such as the Blackberry and other small screen based devices. This will allow Officers to access Command and Control data remotely. For example, to check incident status or queues without the Officer having to return to base or to be in direct contact with the control room.
command and control - the “life blood” of the force
Command and Control is at the centre of any Police force’s IT infrastructure and so much depends on the information contained within this system that supporting this critical application and the key functionality it provides along with integration into other systems is essential. Stratus support the complete Vantage Command and Control solution installed within the Police Force, 7days a week, 24 hours a day, 365 days per year, guaranteed.
