Block Grant 15PBJA24GG05578JAGX

IN THE SPRING OF 2024, THE AVONDALE POLICE DEPARTMENT COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION UPGRADED ITS PHONE SYSTEM TO VESTA, AN AT & T PRODUCT MANAGED BY THE ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION (ADOA). THIS UPGRADE IS BEING IMPLEMENTED ACROSS ALL EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS CENTERS (ECCS) IN ARIZONA TO PROVIDE 9-1-1 CENTERS ACCESS TO NEXT GEN 911 SERVICES. NEXT GEN 9-1-1 SERVICES GIVE 9-1-1 CENTERS THE ABILITY TO ASSIST CALLERS THROUGH FEATURES LIKE VIDEO CALLING, TEXT-TO-911, AND PHONE LOCATION SERVICES. WHILE THESE TECHNOLOGIES SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE COMMUNICATION WITH THE PUBLIC, THEY ALSO DEMAND ECCS EQUIPMENT TO KEEP UP WITH THE NEW DEMANDS. CURRENTLY, THE WAY AVONDALE POLICE DEPARTMENTS COMMUNICATION DIVISION IS SET UP, DISPATCHERS MUST PRESS BUTTONS TO SWITCH BETWEEN THE PHONE COMPUTER AND THE MAIN CAD COMPUTER TO WORK ON BOTH OF THESE SYSTEMS. PUSHING BUTTONS TO COMMUNICATE MAKE IT CUMBERSOME TO MAINTAIN CONVERSATIONS WITH 911 CALLERS. THIS CONSTANT BACK-AND-FORTH SLOWS DOWN THE FLOW OF VITAL INFORMATION TO RESPONDING OFFICERS. A KVM (KEYBOARD, VIDEO, AND MOUSE) SWITCH ADDRESSES THIS CHALLENGE BY ALLOWING USERS TO CONTROL MULTIPLE COMPUTERS USING A SINGLE SET OF PERIPHERALS. IN 911 DISPATCH CENTERS, WHERE OPERATORS HANDLE MULTIPLE SOFTWARE PROGRAMS AND SYSTEMS ON MULTIPLE COMPUTERS SIMULTANEOUSLY, KVM SWITCHES ELIMINATE THE NEED TO MANUALLY TOGGLE BETWEEN DIFFERENT KEYBOARDS AND MICE. DISPATCHERS CAN WORK SMOOTHLY WITH ONE SET OF PERIPHERALS, REDUCING INTERRUPTIONS AND IMPROVING THEIR ABILITY TO MANAGE EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS EFFICIENTLY. THIS STREAMLINED SETUP ALLOWS FOR QUICKER TRANSITIONS BETWEEN TASKS, ENABLING DISPATCHERS TO RESPOND FASTER IN CRITICAL SITUATIONS WHERE TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE.