Mobile Fire Department Automated Dispatch

[ScannerWayne]

Well, it seems that the city has completed another upgrade to their radio system. Last weekend I noticed that the Fire Department has activated thier Automated Dispatch system. Interesting to say the least. They are using it in conjunction with the regular dispatcher at the moment. Maybe MFRD8539 can tell us how long that will last?

I have noticed that the Auto Calls don't always match the dispatcher. As an example, this morning there was a callout for a wreck. The Auto system said "Auto Collision" while the dispatcher called it a "Wreck".

The voice used in the Auto system seems to be easy to understand and the information clear and fairly concise. But what I don't understand is where the cost savings come in. There still has to be a live person to answer the questions and calls of units out in the feild. So where is the advantage of the computer generated callout?

The new Talkgroup is 18480 on the Mobile City System.

Wayne...

 

[alabamarailfan]

We were in Mobile (Fairhope actually) last weekend on a short vacation and I noticed the automated dispatch system also. Interesting - I had never heard such a thing!

 

[MFRD8539]

Oh sure I can help...... We are currently testing it on a talkgroup we don't use very often. It's also simulcast on a ProVoice talkgroup. We still have some tweaks to make. The system has no intent of 'cost savings.' The system is for clarity and uniformity of dispatch. It takes a lot of the workload off dispatchers especially during heavy call volume. That's why most of the big cities in the country use it.

 

[ScannerWayne]

Thanks MFRD8539, for the input.

What really got my attention was "... a talkgroup we don't use very often". Just how many talkgroups do we not have identified (lol)?

I guess it would help if I understood the call process a bit better.

The way I see it now, an operator gets the original call and asks all the questions while inputting the info into the computer system. The operator then forwards that info to the proper dispatcher who would (I presume) look it over and then key the radio dispatching the proper units while also sending the info to the stations involved.

And the new system fits into this chain of events at what point?

Wayne...

 

[MFRD8539]

After the dispatcher assigns the proper units to the incident CAD sends the data to the server, configures the dispatch and alerts the station, then copies the dispatch over to the radio. All this occurs seemlessly with no additional action by the dispatcher. That's where the time savings come in and helps improve response reliability. The automated dispatch also prevents mispronounciations and field personnel hears the exact same rate and tone of speech every time....................

 

[morganAL]

Any idea who the software vendor is?

 

[MFRD8539]

Here's a small story Fox10 did on the new system ....

Mobile Fire-Rescue using automated dispatcher Fox10tv.com