LEXINGTON, S.C. – June 13, 2019 – Avtec LLC, Command 1 LLC and Jasper County Emergency Services have completed a major upgrade of the county’s emergency communications system in Carthage, Missouri.

The new communications system includes:

• 10 Avtec Scout™ dispatch console positions and two additional console positions that are configured for operation as a backup dispatch center or for mobile operation.
• Radio interfaces including a direct IP integration to the county’s KENWOOD NEXEDGE® multi-site trunked radio system and interfaces to approximately 20 other radio systems via Avtec Outpost™ radio gateways.
• An application programming interface (API) for integration with the county’s computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system to provide dispatchers with the information needed to make decisions quickly and reliably.

According to Jasper County Emergency Services Executive Director April Ford, dispatchers had been using the same radio consoles to coordinate with first responders for 12 years.

“Our old system was antiquated and lacked the ability to easily adapt as our business practices changed,” said Ford. “Migrating from a hardware-based system to a software-based console solution provides us with communications that are crystal clear, which helps improve officer safety and reduce response times.”

The county also wanted a redundant system that they could easily self-maintain.

“The frequency of tornadoes and severe weather in the region made us realize that we needed our new emergency communications system to be resilient in a disaster, and to have more mobile dispatching capability with contingency plans for backup sites – which our new Avtec Scout system provides,” said Ford.

“We worked with Command 1 and Jasper County Emergency Services for several months to fine-tune the design of the system,” said Avtec Regional Sales Manager Jeff Ziegler. “We delivered a highly configurable, easy-to-use system that will meet the needs of the dispatch center now and in the future.”