911 Services

In an emergency, it is essential that the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) dispatcher receives the address for the 911 caller, no matter how frantic or distressed the caller. Unfortunately, the data often provided is the organization’s main billing address, which in many cases is simply not enough information to quickly locate the caller. We all know in an emergency, every second counts.

Current E911 legislation requires many states to implement systems that provide PSAP dispatchers with comprehensive location information to help emergency responders on the scene rapidly establish the caller’s location. In fact, 21 states currently have E911 legislation enacted or pending for organizations to execute a 911 services solution that protects the safety of employees, students and visitors.

911 Enable (News - Alert), a partner of Avaya, fully understands the importance of meeting E911 regulations, and offers its Emergency Gateway solution, an on-location appliance that both simplifies and automates 911 administration for IP telephony systems such as Avaya’s Aura Communication Manager and Session Manager.

The Emergency Gateway (News - Alert) can automatically track IP hard phones, soft phones, and wireless phones using layer 2, layer 3, and wireless LAN discovery. Unlike other available E911 solutions, the Emergency Gateway can track Avaya (News - Alert) SIP phones using layer 2 discovery so organizations have the ability to assign specific locations, such as a room or floor level, to specific switches and switch ports. This enables organizations to provision highly precise locations to endpoints.

911 Enable’s Emergency Gateway solutions provides a comprehensive suite of features, including on-site security desk routing and notification for optimized coordination among first responders; reporting and management capabilities for user accountability purposes; and a virtual appliance option for SMBs.

Tammy Wolf is a TMCnet copy editor. She also writes articles for TMCnet on a wide range of topics, including IP communications and information technology. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.

Edited by Tammy Wolf