ASAP Goes Live in Manatee County, FL

Manatee County 9-1-1 recently became the 25th agency in the United States and second in Florida to adopt ASAP, the service that will save emergency responders precious moments when home alarms sound.

The Automated Secure Alarm Protocol (ASAP) allows outside alarm monitoring companies such as Brinks and Vector to send information directly to call takers in the 9-1-1 Call Center, shaving up to three minutes from call processing time. Homes alarms for fires, medical emergencies, burglaries and more will now result in an emergency dispatch more quickly with fewer chances for errors, according to Manatee County Public Safety Director Robert Smith.

“Every second matters in an emergency, so it’s incredibly helpful when a new piece of technology can save on time,” Smith said. “I’m proud of our Emergency Communications team for keeping us moving forward to continually enhance our level of service.”

Half of all Manatee County property owners with emergency monitoring systems — an estimated 75,000 homes and businesses — will benefit from the new technology according to Manatee County Emergency Communications Chief Jake Saur. That number will grow to 75 percent of Manatee County homes and businesses with an alarm system when ADT Alarm Monitoring joins the new protocol.

Watch video of Manatee County’s Jake Saur discussing the benefits of ASAP.

“This new technology eliminates the need for alarm companies to physically dial into the Emergency Communications Center to relay alarm information,” Saur says. “They’ll now electronically send alarm info to the ECC, reducing call processing times and communication errors. We’ll also improve efficiency in dispatching first responders to the alarm.”

Not all Manatee County alarm monitoring companies are part of the new program but as the technology grows, Saur expects more monitoring stations to participate.

ASAP is a computer-aided dispatch system for processing information from alarm monitoring stations that require an emergency dispatch. It was designed by The Monitoring Association (TMA) and the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials (APCO Int’l). For more information, visit www.tma.us/asap.

Media coverage: 

Fox 13: New system helps alarm companies communicate with 911
http://www.fox13news.com/news/local-news/265897784-story

Bradenton Herald: Changes at Manatee County 911 will save minutes in emergencies, officials say
http://www.bradenton.com/news/local/article159756704.html

News 10: Technology speeds up alarm calls to 911 by 2-3 minutes in Manatee Co.
http://www.wtsp.com/news/local/technology-speeds-up-alarm-calls-to-911-by-2-3-minutes/454436232

ABC 7: Faster response times to some Manatee County home alarms
http://www.mysuncoast.com/news/local/faster-reponse-times-to-some-manatee-county-home-alarms/article_80a29de4-61ba-11e7-a6a5-8b9f7a9fabf0.html