LAPD is the nation's first Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) to deploy TCS' enhanced VoIP E9-1-1 technology using TCS' Master Street Address Guide (MSAG)-based routing solution. All other providers of VoIP E9-1-1 services rely upon Geographic Information System (GIS) technology to determine routing for emergency calls. This LAPD deployment showcases the advantages of TCS' MSAG-based solution.
When an emergency call is received by a PSAP, TCS passes the caller's location and callback number to the PSAP. The caller's location typically is displayed as a specific street name and number. TCS' technology ensures the address is compliant with specific addressing formats as specified by the MSAG. TCS then uses the MSAG to match the caller's address with the Emergency Service Zone (ESZ) and provides routing instructions accordingly.
First responders are dispatched based on the ESZ and the MSAG-compliant address. Until the deployment at LAPD, call routing determination was accomplished by converting an address to latitude/longitude (lat/lon) coordinates and then plotting these coordinates on a map. TCS' ability to overcome the limitations of GIS conversions for more accurate call routing greatly improves the capability of first responders to reach the correct location.
The LAPD deployment allows TCS to provide MSAG addresses for a high percentage of the VoIP calls, as well as to use the same MSAG to provide the actual Emergency Service Number (ESN) specific to the caller. The unique TCS feature allows LAPD to dispatch the closest first responders to provide rapid assistance to the 9-1-1 caller.
Sergeant Matthew Mulvihill, Wireless/VoIP E9-1-1 Project Manager for LAPD, stated, "TCS was the first VPC to employ MSAG table-based routing to deliver E9-1-1 calls to LAPD. TCS' advanced testing tools and techniques also resulted in the completion of all testing within two hours."
Jon Croy, Senior Director, TCS VoIP Business Unit, stated, "The data provided by TCS results in greater certainty of the caller's accurate location and allows the correct jurisdiction to respond rapidly. This approach lowers response times by critical seconds, which can result in lives being saved. This is a major improvement to the current practices used across the nation."
"The MSAG-based routing capabilities demonstrated in TCS' deployment of E9-1-1 in the Los Angeles Police Department deliver on what the PSAP community has been requesting," stated Christopher Peters, vice president of strategic alliances for 8x8. "TCS continues to lead the way to better public safety technology, and the winners are America's citizens."
