MASS NOTIFICATION
Ready to Respond:
IP-Based Emergency Mass Notification

Security directors at university campuses and hospitals must be increasingly ready to confront and manage threat scenarios that range from extreme weather, major accidents and a pandemic such as H1N1 to bioterrorism and deliberate sabotage. Today’s emergency managers are under enormous pressure to deploy scalable, next-generation mass notification systems that can alert all their personnel, regardless of location, within very short time frames. The answer to this challenge is in the emerging technology of 3rd generation emergency mass notification systems–the Network-Centric Mass Notification System (MNS).

Third-Generation Mass Notification System–Network-Centric MNS

Third-generation network-centric technology leverages the power and reach of computer networks
and the Internet to deliver emergency alerting capabilities far beyond existing traditional systems.

Mass notification systems have come a long way from such traditional first-generation alerting systems as blaring sirens and flashing lights. Innovative third-generation network-centric technology leverages the power and reach of computer networks and the Internet to deliver emergency alerting capabilities far beyond existing traditional systems. Third-generation systems leverage existing IP networks to (a) communicate emergency information rapidly to all connected devices; (b) integrate and unify disparate existing mass notification capabilities; (c) provide bi-directional communication, allowing collection of feedback from all personnel; and (d) achieve enterprise- level scalability and processes. The result is the most effective enterprise-wide mass notification capability with the best cost-to-benefit ratio.

Third-generation network-centric emergency notification systems are currently being used to protect people and property in some of the most challenging environments in the world. In fact, during a recent earthquake in California, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) used its network-centric notification system to alert students and staff and provide relevant information about the incident.

IP-based emergency alerting supports security efforts by communicating the right information at the right time to ensure that organizations are able to support their missions during emergencies.

This proven technology uses a unified enterprise-class platform that allows emergency managers to quickly and efficiently deliver alerts to multiple devices simultaneously, including computers, IP phones, traditional landline phones, mobile phones, pagers, BlackBerry devices, land mobile radios, sirens, public address systems, push- to-talk devices, digital displays, radios, television and e-mail; and receive feedback from alert recipients confirming their status.

Leveraging your IP network for emergency mass notification offers significant advantages for organizations. This
includes:
• Alerts can be tailored to individuals based on their roles in an organization
• Alerts can be delivered to very large, geographically dispersed populations in short time frames
• Alerts can leverage bi-directional network communication to provide real-time delivery feedback to the operator as well as capture responses from the recipients
• Alerts can simultaneously send to a wide variety of devices, all from a single interface
• Legacy alerting systems can be integrated with the IP interface so all alerting channels are managed centrally through a single system.

Interaction via Social Networking
The use of IP-based alerting in 3rd generation notification systems is an integral part of systems interoperability and connectivity—  both critical attributes necessary to ensure the widest possible reach of any message. These systems can also leverage “IP aware media gateways,” such as websites (commercial, public, government), social networks (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn) and other non-traditional channels. Adoption of standards such as Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) can further aid with communication to the appropriate audience by incorporating information feeds from sources such as the Centers for Disease Control and the National Weather Service.

In light of emergency events impacting universities in the last few years, campus officials throughout the country have begun implementing emergency mass notification systems to help protect the people and property under their watch. Texas A&M University and UCLA are among the colleges that are realizing the benefits of third- generation mass notification systems.

Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University, College Station, has decided to deploy an integrated mass notification solution to help to protect students, faculty and personnel in the event of an emergency. This software will enable Texas A&M to send out emergency alerts to its campus populace through multiple devices, including campus computers via pop up alerts, Emergency Alert System radio broadcast, cable TV, telephones, mass email and text messages, all from a single webbased console.

By unifying multiple forms of alerting through a single integrated system, Texas A&M simplifies its notification process while attaining a high percentage of population reach through redundant systems that alert people campuswide. Additionally, it will provide the university with a significant cost saving by using the university’s existing on-site communications infrastructure. Texas A&M’s solution addresses one of the biggest challenges of deploying an emergency notification system—the seamless integration of disparate communications channels.

The university’s emergency managers with alerting authority can trigger alerts from their browsers and send out information through a wide variety of communications channels. They can select from predefined alerts or create a custom alert and quickly notify students and staff about the emergency. Alerts that reach personal devices are all tracked in real time for response and accountability reporting. At the same time, alerts also reach the campus TV and radio station.

UCLA
UCLA uses a unified, network-centric alerting solution that turns its existing IP network into a reliable and effective mass notification system. UCLA’s BruinAlert is used to protect more than 60,000 people across campus and consistently reaches more than 99% of target populace. The system provides UCLA with significant cost savings by leveraging the university’s existing alerting infrastructure. Its network-centric approach uses the campus’ IP network to enable faster mass notification over a large and geographically-dispersed area.

UCLA’s emergency alerting system has been used successfully many times in real-life situations. These include:
• BruinAlert alerted and provided follow-up information to the UCLA population during a 5.8 magnitude earthquake that occurred near Los Angeles
• BruinAlert effectively alerted the UCLA population about a wildfire near campus
• BruinAlert successfully notified the campus community of a suspicious package found in a parking structure
adjacent to a medical office.

In addition to educational facilities, medical facilities are also benefitting from network-centric mass emergency alerting.

Irwin Army Hospital
In June, Irwin Army Hospital, Fort Riley, KS, announced the deployment of an IP-based mass notification system to protect its personnel. As a hospital located on a fort, Irwin Army Hospital could confront a variety of emergencies such as attacks, pandemics, antibiotic-resistant bacteria outbreaks, HAZMAT spills, and other health and safety concerns. The hospital’s third-generation alerting system significantly increases its ability to contact personnel on- and off-site when an event occurs. Alerts are rapidly delivered through the IP network to all computer workstations using pop-up visual alerts, and the computer speakers broadcast the message. The system also delivers alerts as SMS text messages to cell phones and can send emails to computers and mobile devices. Alerts sent by the hospital can reach geographically dispersed people through multiple devices in a matter of minutes.

The hospital benefits from tiered operator permissions, Active Directory integration and multi-unit support. Emergency operators have the ability to alert all personnel in times of emergency.

Wilford Hall Medical Center
Wilford Hall Medical Center serves as the Air Force’s largest medical facility and is a national resource, providing complete medical care to military health care beneficiaries in the south central United States as well as specialized care to patients referred from all over the world.

As a military medical facility, Wilford Hall Medical Center uses a network-centric alerting system to alert personnel to the types of situations that most domestic military installations would expect –threats posed by weather or man-made sources. Because most people in a hospital cannot be mobilized easily in response to a threat, however, early warning is critical to enable Wilford Hall to respond to emergency situations effectively.

Besides mobility challenges, Wilford Hall faces a different set of emergency scenarios. These emergencies can range from biological or chemical contamination to a large influx of patients coming into the hospital due to an accident.

Additionally, the Medical Control Center serves as the eyes and ears for the medical community and if an emergency situation arises, the group is responsible for alerting Wilford Hall personnel. When an emergency situation arises, the Medical Control Center uses an IP-based mass notification system to alert the more than 5,000 computers distributed across the five-building medical facility.

In Perspective
These university and medical facility examples demonstrate the value of a unified, network-centric mass notification system. The ability to alert thousands of individuals within minutes about a crisis— and deliver clear instructions for action—ensures an effective and safe response.

Ramon Pinero serves as director of professional service for AtHoc, Inc. For more information, visit www.athoc.com.