Locution Systems, Inc. Receives Commissions To Provide Automated Dispatching and Fire Station Alerting Technology To Seven US Cities & Counties

Seven 911 communications centers and 152 fire stations to be outfitted with Locution Systems’ life-saving technologies; Locution Systems’ products already used in Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, more

GOLDEN, Colo., July 11, 2007 – Locution Systems, Inc., a provider of advanced, automated public safety dispatching, zoned dispatching, and fire station alerting and control technology, today announced that it has been commissioned to provide CADVoice®, its automated dispatching and fire station alerting system to seven US-based cities and counties.

Locution Systems has been awarded commissions to provide its automated dispatching and fire station alerting technologies to the following cities and counties in the United States:

• City of Fort Worth, Texas;
• Montgomery County, Penn.;
• DeKalb County, Ga.;
• West Metro Fire Rescue District, Lakewood, Colo.;
• Clark County, Nevada;
• City of Newark, New Jersey; and
• City of Bellevue, Wash.

The total number of fire stations that will be installed with various combinations of automated dispatching and fire station alerting technologies with these seven commissions is 152, with Locution Systems’ advanced audio alerting system installed in 149 existing fire stations.

An additional three fire stations will feature installations of CADVoice® ZoneTracker™ -- Locution Systems’ fully zoned audio/visual dispatching system which is ideal for multi-unit fire stations. In zoned fire station alerting systems, dispatches and audio/visual alerting are routed directly to the unit targeted for response, rather than waking up the whole fire station.

“Public safety agencies are more and more discovering the benefits of automated alerting and dispatching,” said Glenn Neal, Locution Systems’ president, founder, and chief technology officer. “Departments that implement automated dispatching and alerting systems both reduce stress for 911 dispatchers and emergency responders, while also resulting in dramatic improvements in response times for fires, medical emergencies, and more.”

Locution Systems: Offering advanced, automated dispatching technology

Locution Systems offers one of the most highly advanced voice technology and automated dispatching systems on the market today, according to Mr. Neal. “Locution Systems’ voice technology is based on concatenated speech technology, which results in clear, crisp, accent-free dispatches that are critical for fast response times and accurate location of the actual emergency,” he explained. “Because of the clarity of the system’s voice, emergency responders don’t have to call back and ask for a repeat of the dispatch; they can get on the road to the emergency immediately.” The computer voice is so natural sounding, with natural cadence and inflection, because it is based on a real human voice.

The sophistication of the system also allows for the entire emergency dispatch to be spoken by the computer (including unit being dispatched, type of emergency or incident, street address, and landmarks near the emergency). Response time savings that can occur from implementing automated dispatching have ranged from 20 seconds to more than three minutes during high call volumes – which can significantly improve the outcome of an event when someone is having a heart attack, or is pinned under a car.

Locution Systems: Open-platform fire station alerting and control technologies

In addition to automated dispatching, Locution Systems also offers a broad array of automated alerting and control technologies for fire stations that also are designed to improve response times and reduce stress. Locution Systems’ product are written to today’s industry standards in both hardware and software, allowing for more cost-effective implementations both in the short-term and the long-term.

The variety of alerting technologies offered by Locution Systems which help alert the specific units in a fire station being dispatched to an emergency include:

• Automated zoned dispatching (ZoneTracker™): dispatches from the 911 communications center automatically are routed directly to the unit in the fire station being dispatched, allowing the rest of the crews to sleep through the night;
• Visual alerting components that quickly tell the responders which unit is being dispatched for an emergency call include color-coded unit indicators, LED reader boards, ramped (or graduated) lighting that more gently wakes responders from a deep sleep thus reducing stress; and more;
• Audio alerting components that help cue the fire house crew as to which unit is being dispatched include special sound systems that provide exceptional clarity in high-noise environments such as the apparatus bay of a fire station, tone-specific alerts, ramped, or graduated, tones and dispatches that more gently awaken crews in the middle of the night; and more.
• Automated fire station control technologies from Locution Systems include automatic opening and closing of apparatus bay doors, automatic TV muting when a dispatch is coming through, automated shut-off of gas stoves, and more.

“The staff of engineers, project managers, trainers, and administrators at Locution Systems are deeply honored to be chosen by the city of Fort Worth, Montgomery County, DeKalb County, West Metro Fire Rescue, Clark County, Newark, and Bellevue to assist them in their quest to keep their respective publics safe,” said Mr. Neal.

How Locution Systems’ automated dispatching works

The dispatching portion of the CADVoice® system automatically creates and sends a clear, accent-neutral dispatch announcement about a fire or medical emergency to designated fire rescue and emergency medical stations and/or rescue units in the field. This announcement is created when 911 dispatchers “commit” the incident – which occurs after they have reviewed and approved the emergency information generated by the emergency communications center’s Computer-aided Dispatch (CAD) system. This automated dispatch (assembled and spoekn by the computer) then is sent to the designated units that will respond to the fire, accident, or medical emergency – and tells them the nature and location of the emergency, and well as which crews are assigned to respond. This process typically happens in milliseconds. Simultaneous with the CADVoice® dispatch announcement at the designated fire station, the system also can automatically activate alarms and display status information on display devices in the fire station, activate garage bay doors, and more.

About Locution Systems, Inc.

Founded in 1986, Locution Systems, Inc. offers a comprehensive suite of automated dispatching, zoned dispatching for multi-unit fire stations, and fire station alerting and control technologies for public safety applications (fire and EMS). Locution Systems’ CADVoice® automated dispatching and alerting products are based on the most advanced public safety technologies on the market today. Locution Systems’ products feature software-driven technology that’s more cost-effective to maintain than traditional hardware-based systems. The CADVoice® product line integrates with standard Computer-Aided Dispatching (CAD) systems operating in most 911 communication centers. Locution Systems’ products are being used in many major cities and counties throughout North America, and have been proven to speed response times, as well as reduce 911 “call stacking”, stress for dispatchers & responders, and operational costs. Locution can be reached at (303) 932-0014, or www.locution.com.