For more information on this event, see upcoming Industry Events below.
Winbourne Consulting’s Tom Klaban and Kirby Beyer will be in attendance at 2019 CALNENA 9-1-1 Mission Critical Training March 10, 2019 – March 13, 2019 in San Diego (La Jolla), California. Tom Klaban is scheduled to present two sessions for the attendees: Essential project management skills for PSAP personnel, and CAD to CAD best practices for successful deployment. See upcoming Industry Events below for additional details about this event.
Winbourne’s VP of Business Development and Emerging Technologies, Lisa Madden attended the 911 Goes to Washington and continued the annual tradition of Valentine’s Day with 911 friends in DC. Several of the notable events and discussions are highlighted below.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai noted his commitment that all public safety communications fees need to go to strengthening the 911 system. However, according the latest reports on fee diversion, in one year, six States syphoned off more money than was spent on all NG911 projects combined.
Chairman Pai spoke about his recent visit to our client, Orleans Parish Communications District (OPCD) last week, and how impressed he was with their center’s excellence. Specifically, he spoke of their commitment to increase location accuracy services for callers, improve well-being for their call takers, and establish a partnership with Uber. The Commissioner specifically mentioned OPCD Director Tyrell Morris, and his efforts to work with the Mayor on educational public safety initiatives. The Chairman mentioned a new SHOW-UP sign that was displayed prominently at OPCD, indicative of OPCD’s commitment to the public safety community:
- Sincere
- Honest
- Optimistic
- Well informed
- Upbeat
- Procedurally complaint
Another notable speaker at this event was Maryland Senator Cheryl Kagan, a nationally-recognized advocate for “Next Generation 911”. Senator Kagan spoke of the need to “shift” to newer technology to bring our 9-1-1 system into line with modern technology, saying clearly, “when 9-1-1 fails, people die”. She advised the 911 GTW attendees to not speak in “tech jargon” but instead provide memorable stories of how this upgrade will save lives. She told us that it was the death of a Maryland environmentalist and activist who was struck by lightning and didn’t receive timely medical assistance due to a 9-1-1 failure that has made her so passionate on this topic. Senator Kagan has passed multiple pieces of 9-1-1 legislation in her state. She is the chair of the Maryland NG911 Commission, and spoke of their November 2018 report “Commission to Advance NG911 Across Maryland” with 23 unanimous recommendations for improvements in the state. This report can be accessed here.