Gilbert, SC – During the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO) international conference held in Philadelphia, Aug. 7-10, 2011, The City of San Luis Obispo communications center received the Horizon innovation award for technological achievements in the public safety industry. The APCO Horizon award is presented to one large and one small public safety answering point (PSAP) each year.
“The City of San Luis Obispo is honored to receive this award,” said Kerri Rosenblum, communications and records manager for the San Luis Obispo police department. “The Tait [radio] and Avtec [console] partnership was a winning combination for us.”
The City of San Luis Obispo won the award in the small communications center category for implementing a technologically advanced system that includes: new Tait city-wide emergency simulcast/digital radios, Clear Cube blade PC technology, nine Avtec radio dispatch consoles, cat6 data cable and fiber wires, AT&T Viper 911, Pano Virtual PCs, virtual server clusters, Spillman CAD, Text to Voice Fire Station Alerting system, and Russ Bassett console furniture. “The Tait radios replaced our former analog system and allow us to provide more reliable coverage to our first responders. The Avtec Scout VoIP console is fully customizable, so we have the flexibility to integrate NENA headsets, legacy radios, Push-to-Talk technology, foot pedals, touchscreens, and fire station alerts, all from the desktop. It also provides three layers of redundancy so that we have increased reliability and no downtime,” said Rosenblum.
Miguel Guardado, network services supervisor for the City of San Luis Obispo, said, “We knew Project 25 (P25) compliance was an important initiative for our city, so we selected a console that would allow us to keep our traditional analog radios running and scale to incorporate our digital network when it became available.”
“The City of San Luis Obispo Communications Center showcases the highest technologic enhancements and demonstrates efficient operational procedure. They serve as a role model to the public safety industry and APCO is happy to recognize their success,” said Bill Carrow, president of APCO International.
Michael Branning, president of Avtec, congratulated the winners and said, “By selecting Avtec’s Scout public safety console with Tait P25 radio integration, the City of San Luis Obispo demonstrates its commitment to innovation and open standards. We look forward to supporting this partnership for many years to come.”
About Avtec Incorporated
Avtec, Inc., is the leading provider of mission-critical console systems in North America. With a worldwide customer base, Avtec serves customers in public safety, transportation, utility, business, and government markets. Based on open standards, Avtec offers migration paths from legacy platforms to VoIP systems and has installed more than 1,000 Scout consoles. Since the delivery of our first console in 1981, Avtec has earned a 30-year unblemished record in providing innovative, reliable console solutions focused on compatibility, serviceability and a robust feature set. Visit www.avtecinc.com to learn more.
About APCO International
APCO International is the world’s largest organization of public safety communications professionals. It serves the needs of public safety communications practitioners worldwide — and the welfare of the general public as a whole — by providing complete expertise, professional development, technical assistance, advocacy and outreach.