Have you seen any geese flying overhead lately? As the weather turns colder and the first snowflakes fall, many migratory bird species are making their way to warmer climates. Geese, with their iconic V-shaped flying formation, know a thing or two about efficient migrations. See, they don’t just fly in that pattern for fun. The V-shaped pattern helps to decrease air resistance over the birds’ wings, making the flight much more efficient than flying solo, opens in a new tab. This helps them save precious energy and caloric resources as they make their long journey south. Geese give us a good example of how all migrations should be: efficient, time-saving, and resource-conserving. So, when we talk about software migrations, we ought to take a page out of the avian book.
Software migrations generally don’t take us to sunnier places, at least not intentionally (if you’ve ever migrated to a new software and found yourself capable of teleportation, please let us know. We’d like to try it!). But migrating to new software can increase efficiency and open up new possibilities for everyone involved. Having the best possible software is especially important in emergency management, which is why UGRC has partnered with Utah’s Public Safety Answering Point, opens in a new tab (PSAP) communications centers to upgrade the software they use to handle 911 calls across the state.
Every time you dial 911, your call is routed to a specific PSAP communications center depending on your location. There are a variety of facilities that serve as PSAPs in Utah, such as sheriff’s offices, police departments, and other communications centers. Each PSAP has a defined area of responsibility as shown in the map below:
These PSAPs are responsible for ensuring emergency responders get to where they need to be as fast as possible. In the past, this was accomplished without any GIS involved. Each PSAP maintained their own records of addresses and locations in their dispatch area and used these to tell first responders where to go. This system relied on the knowledge the PSAP and local responders had of that area.
Today’s 911 systems involve GIS in a variety of ways. Each of Utah’s 28 PSAP centers uses different methods to best serve the people in their jurisdiction. Many of them have been using ArcGIS Desktop, a GIS software program that is no longer supported by the developer. With changing software support comes the need for implementing new programs. That’s why Motorola and UGRC are working together to help many PSAPs in Utah migrate to ArcGIS Pro, opens in a new tab.
Migrating to ArcGIS Pro provides many benefits to PSAPs. With ArcGIS Pro Tasks, opens in a new tab, we can help PSAPs to automate workflows in a streamlined, user-friendly program. ArcGIS Pro also includes a number of tools for mapping, spatial analytics, and address routing. UGRC supports this migration by providing technical assistance and maintaining several datasets used in emergency management, such as the Address Points and Roads layers. Backed by these statewide datasets and GIS-enabled systems, dispatchers can greatly speed up the time it takes to handle a 911 call and respond to an emergency situation.
This effort not only improves emergency response times for Utah residents, but also bolsters communication between PSAPs and other government authorities. It means simplified workflows, faster response times, and ultimately, more lives saved because of 911 and all the incredible people who make it possible.
UGRC’s supportive role in this software migration is just one of the many ways we are fulfilling our mission to “facilitate programs and activities to implement GIS technology across the state.” You can learn more about our other projects on our blog. For questions regarding NG911, PSAPs, and emergency management data in Utah, please reach out to Hank Chou from UGRC at hchou@utah.gov | 435-319-0307.