By Auggie Brown
Glasgow News 1
A special called meeting of the 911 governing board was held Friday, July 31, at the Barren-Metcalfe Emergency Communications Center to work out details of a new 10-8 CAD system.
Board members focused on how much participating agencies would pay per user and whether to add a separate maintenance fee.
The board agreed that each agency using the 10-8 CAD will pay 250 dollars per user per year.
Members also considered an additional 250 dollar per-user annual maintenance charge but decided that extra fee was unnecessary.
911 Director April Dunbar said the 10-8 CAD system will provide more thorough descriptions than the computer-aided dispatch software 911 is currently using.
Dunbar said the new platform will allow Barren and Metcalfe County dispatchers and field responders to operate on the same system rather than using separate applications.
She said 10-8 CAD can share information in real time with other counties that use the same system.
As an example, Dunbar said a police pursuit originating in another county could be seen by dispatchers and officers in Barren County as it crosses county lines, improving coordination and situational awareness.
Dunbar said that implementing the 10-8 CAD will mean an initial cost increase for user agencies because it is a brand-new system. However, she said those costs are expected to level out after implementation.
Dunbar added that she has been told agencies are paying more per person now under the current CAD setup than they will under the new 10-8 arrangement. She said that over time, the new CAD system is expected to save money compared with the higher costs of the existing software.
Key Facts
– Special called 911 governing board meeting held Friday, July 31 at the Barren-Metcalfe Emergency Communications Center
– Board discussed interagency agreements for the 10-8 CAD software sub-license
– Agencies will pay 250 dollars per user per year for the new CAD system
– Proposed extra 250 dollar per-user maintenance fee was rejected as unnecessary
– 911 Director April Dunbar says the 10-8 CAD offers more thorough descriptions than the current system
– Dunbar says the new system will connect dispatchers and field responders across Barren and Metcalfe counties on one platform
– She says the system can share information with other counties using 10-8 CAD
– Upfront costs for agencies will be higher but are expected to level out after implementation, according to Dunbar
– Dunbar says the current CAD system is more expensive than the 10-8 CAD in the long run
