It is also evaluating tender responses for the provision of an emergency call answering service to deal with all 999 and 112 calls. At the moment each emergency service has its own separate arrangements and emergency calls are dealt with from over 100 different points.
Mason (a division of Analysys Mason) is continuing its long track record of supporting blue-light projects, by assisting An Garda Síochána (the Republic’s police force).
Mason’s Dublin-based consultants are project managing the change for the Garda and its control room strategy. In particular, Mason is involved with aspects of the project plan for the changeover to TETRA: the fitting out of vehicles; a comprehensive communications and information plan; and user training for field and control room staff.
Mason is also advising on the optimum number of control centres, bearing in mind that they have to accommodate all the services and how they communicate with each other, as well as how the public requests assistance.
The issues range from appropriate levels of staffing to contingency plans – if there are far fewer control centres, arrangements have to be in place for the others to take over a centre’s operations in the event of a fire, flood or other incident that closes it down.
The projects will ensure greater flexibility and reliability for emergency service communications in Ireland, in line with similar projects in the UK.