OMAHA, Neb., March 06, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- West Corporation, a leading global technology enablement company, today announced positive and encouraging results of a wireless 9-1-1 location trial using its Wireless Dispatchable Location Services (“WDLS”) and Google’s Android Emergency Location Services (“ELS”) technologies.
While existing carrier-based location is highly reliable, it is typically slower and less precise than newer commercial or handset-based location technologies like ELS. The purpose of West’s trial was to determine if WDLS utilizing ELS could improve upon the carrier-based location provided to the 9-1-1 call center through faster delivery of the location, improved accuracy of the location or both.
Coordinating with several public safety answering points (“PSAPs”) in Florida, Georgia and the state of Washington, West conducted their test using actual 9-1-1 call data from a population of more than 2 million residents. West compared the existing carrier location data with the handset-based location information generated by ELS. Comparing the two datasets, West was able to evaluate whether the PSAPs would have benefited from the handset-based location from ELS in addition to the location from the wireless carriers.
West concluded that at the time the 9-1-1 call was answered by the PSAP, WDLS utilizing ELS would have provided a significantly more accurate location to call takers 46% of the time. Even more impactful, West determined that 34% of the time, the WDLS/ELS solution would have provided a more accurate location earlier in the call process.
The FCC estimates that a decrease in emergency response times by one minute correlates to 10,000 lives saved each year. The earlier that location information can be delivered to public safety, the quicker it can be used to dispatch emergency services to assist 9-1-1 callers.
For nearly four decades, West has provided trusted, public safety-grade 9-1-1 solutions to telecommunications service providers and public safety answering points. “Our trial was rigorously conducted, and we were able to fully evaluate the effectiveness of WDLS and ELS without impacting 9-1-1 callers, the carriers or the PSAPs,” said John Snapp, Vice President of Technology, Carrier Services at West.
The value of WDLS lies in its agnostic approach to aggregate all valid forms of location data, including carrier-based location, handset-based technologies like ELS, plus other reliable sources. At the time of a 9-1-1 call, the platform then validates and optimizes this data while determining the most precise location of a 9-1-1 caller for carriers and public safety answering points.
“West’s experience and expertise was evident during our WDLS/ELS testing, which had no impact on live 9-1-1 calls,” said John Kearney, Senior Vice President/General Manager, Carrier Services for West. “We are actively involved in partnering with service providers and technology innovators alike, and working with industry organizations to ensure that we are collectively developing and evaluating solutions that meet or exceed the highest possible standards of availability, reliability and performance, with the ultimate shared goal of helping public safety respond to the needs of emergency callers quickly and with the best location information available.”
About West Corporation:
West Corporation is a leading technology enablement company that connects people around the world, making companies more efficient and improving lives. West helps its clients more effectively communicate, collaborate and connect with their audiences through a diverse portfolio of innovative solutions.
For over 30 years, West has provided reliable, high-quality voice and data services. West has sales and/or operations in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific, Latin America and South America. For more information, please call 1-800-841-9000 or visit www.west.com.
At the Company:
Dave Pleiss
Investor Relations
West Corporation
(402) 963-1500
DMPleiss@west.com