Resources by Mission Critical Partners

A Blueprint to Help Public Safety Organizations Understand Their Environments

In Summary:

For public safety officials, the task of monitoring and assessing the myriad technological and operational factors that determine the center's success or failure is a big, complicated and time-consuming job.
Leaders need help understanding where their centers stand regarding factors such as cybersecurity, IT and networks, next generation 911 (NG911), staffing, and more.
MCP's Model for Advancing Public Safety^SM, also known as MAPS^SM, is a proprietary assessment program that helps assess a program against standards, best practices, and the collective knowledge of MCP's 115+ specialized public safety professionals.

Topics: Next Generation 911 Networks, Public Safety Technology, Land Mobile Radio, Cybersecurity, Network Management, IT and Network Support, Workforce Optimization, Public Safety Data, White Papers

Infographic: Benefits of Working With a Public Safety Consulting Firm

From migrating to a new facility, acquiring forward-looking, mission-critical technology to integrating data originating from modern, digital-based devices, Mission Critical Partners is helping public safety organizations feel peace of mind and realize greater success during complex initiatives. Learn more about the benefits of working with a consultant in our infographic below.

Benefits-of-Working-with-a-Consultant-Final

Topics: Next Generation 911 Networks, Technology, Land Mobile Radio, Mission-Critical Facilities, Wireless & Broadband, Consulting, Infographics

How to Navigate the Complexities of Mission-Critical Vendor Management

In Summary:

Today's average public safety agency has more than 30 vendor support agreements to manage.
Vendor support agreements have become more difficult to understand given their size and complexity.
Public safety organizations are looking for strategies to help navigate the complexities associated with today's increasingly complicated vendor environment.

It used to be much easier for public safety agencies to manage their vendors compared to a decade ago. At that time they were simple and easy to understand and they generally only involved the radio, computer-aided dispatch (CAD) and 911 call-handling system providers.

Topics: Next Generation 911 Networks, Technology, Land Mobile Radio, Network Management, Vendor Management, IT and Network Support, White Papers

On-Demand Webinar: The Top Strategic Public Safety Trends for 2019

There are several significant, disruptive technology and operations trends that Mission Critical Partners feels will set the stage for the future of public safety over the next three to five years. Public safety agencies must understand these trends, begin preparing for them now, and understand how to adjust their operations in order to adapt. They are trends that cannot afford to ignored.

Topics: Next Generation 911 Networks, Public Safety Technology, Land Mobile Radio, Wireless & Broadband, Cybersecurity, Consulting, IT and Network Support, Workforce Optimization, Emergency Response Ecosystem, Public Safety Data, On-Demand Webinars, Shared Services / Consolidation

Butler County, PA Maximizes the Value of its P25 Radio System While Boosting Coverage, Capacity and Interoperability

In Summary:

Butler County, PA's existing public safety land mobile radio system was facing end-of-life and had begun to experience reduced reliability.
They County worked with MCP to develop a road-map that would replace the system with one that would meet their future needs.
MCP provided a detailed assessment and implementation support and eventually, helped Butler County realize 43 percent cost-savings and long-term maintenance savings.

"MCP has played a key role in helping us meet our project goals by managing multiple vendors on our behalf—holding them accountable for meeting project milestones, managing project risks and ensuring that they meet schedule deadlines and requirements."

Steve Bicehouse, director, Butler County, Butler County

Overview and Agency Challenge

Located 20 miles north of Pittsburgh, PA, Butler County serves nearly 200,000 people across 800 square miles. Their existing radio system was facing the need for end-of-life support and had begun to experience reduced reliability. The ten-site, eight channel system operated in a frequency band that had be reallocated by the Federal Communications Commission as mandated within the Middle-Class Tax Relief Act of 2012.

Topics: Next Generation 911 Networks, Land Mobile Radio, Consulting, Case Studies

Public Safety Should Look Hard at Mission-Critical Push-to-Talk

In Summary:

Push-to-talk over celluar (PTTOC) and mission-critical push-to-talk MCPTT services are provisioned over broadband wireless services and replicate the walkie-talkie functionality of traditional land mobile radio (LMR) portable radios.
Through gateways, these services can be interfaced with LMR networks to allow audio to be transmitted from LMR channels to the broadband application, and vice versa.
They offer a good alternative for personnel who have no need for a digital radio on a daily basis but need to be provided situational awareness and coordinated incident command.

This whitepaper examines push-to-talk over celluar and mission-critical push-to-talk technology, explaining why they may be a better choice than LMR in some cases, and how they provide significantly more flexibility regarding application, device and network choices. The biggest benefit of MCPTT service is that it replicates the PTT functionality of traditional LMR systems on devices that are smaller, lighter and much less expensive than portable radios traditionally carried by first responders. Also examined are important factors to consider when deciding whether to implement the technology.

Topics: Next Generation 911 Networks, Land Mobile Radio, Wireless & Broadband, Consulting, White Papers

What's the Future of Land Mobile Radio in a FirstNet World?

In Summary:

Many public safety agencies have pondered whether the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN), being implemented by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) will someday replace the land mobile radio systems that have traditionally provided mission-critical voice services.
Agencies should continue to invest in their LMR systems, even to the point of replacing them if necessary.
Government agencies should continue to track the progress of FirstNet, for the day will eventually come when the NPSBN has developed to the point that it is a viable alternative for LMR.

Many public safety communications officials are wondering if they should replace their land mobile radio (LMR) system now that FirstNet has become a reality. This whitepaper makes the case for why agencies shouldn’t abandon their plans to replace their LMR system.

Now that the public safety sector is contemplating the implementation of an IP-based network known as the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN). Although this network was intended from the beginning to ramp up the public safety’s data capabilities in the field, a question was raised whether the NPSBN someday will replace the land mobile radio (LMR) systems that traditionally have provided mission-critical voice service.

The NPSBN eventually could one day satisfy all of public safety’s voice and data needs—the big question is when. Many public safety agencies have legacy LMR systems that are approaching end of life today, raising the question if they should burn up already limited financial resources on an LMR system that could obsolete in a few years. MCP recommends that public safety agencies not abandon the replacement of the LMR system for several reasons:

Talkaround still will be an issue.
System hardening still will be an issue.
Coverage and capacity concerns will note go away, and public safety agencies need to have complete visibility into their LMR systems regarding capacity requirements and how they are achieved.
User fees are expected to be much higher than today’s LMR systems.
Download this whitepaper on land mobile radio replacement to learn more

Download this whitepaper to read more about if, and why, agencies should not abandon an LMR replacement project in the foreseeable future.

Topics: Next Generation 911 Networks, Land Mobile Radio, Wireless & Broadband, Consulting, White Papers

On-Demand Webinar: Radio Interoperability and the Role of FirstNet

This on-demand webinar explores the concept of radio interoperability, which is an essential and fundamental component of effective first responder communications. Topics of discussion include interoperability tools and methods, technologies available on the market today, as well as what agencies should should consider when improving interoperability. Also discussed is how interoperability doesn't stop with technology, and the role that operations, training and planning plays in achieving true interoperability.

In this webinar we discuss:

Why the industry isn't there yet from an interoperability standpoint
What has been done to date
Roadblocks to interoperability
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Interoperability Continuum
The role of FirstNet

Topics: Land Mobile Radio, Wireless & Broadband, Consulting, Emergency Response Ecosystem, On-Demand Webinars

MCP Provides Vendor Support Services in Cobb County, GA to Drive Service Excellence and Cost-Savings

In Summary:

Cobb County, Georgia public safety officials wanted to assure they were paying a fair price for support of their land mobile radio (LMR) system.
Working alongside MCP, they completed a fair market pricing assessment and data-driven analysis for the LMR system maintenance costs.
Armed with this information, the partnership was able to negotiate more favorable cost targets, enhanced system performance reports and significant savings on costs.

Overview and Agency Challenge

Looking to lower expenses without sacrificing support, Cobb County, Georgia, began exploring the possibilities of renegotiating their Project 25 (P25) land mobile radio system maintenance agreement with the vendor. They wanted to better understand the services, terms and conditions, and the associated costs included with the maintenance contract. With limited knowledge of how their fees compared to similar-sized systems in the public safety sector, they sought assurance they were paying a fair price for the support provided.

Topics: Next Generation 911 Networks, Land Mobile Radio, Vendor Management, IT and Network Support, Case Studies

The Mission-Critical Resource Center

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In Summary:

For public safety officials, the task of monitoring and assessing the myriad technological and operational factors that determine the center's success or failure is a big, complicated and time-consuming job.

Leaders need help understanding where their centers stand regarding factors such as cybersecurity, IT and networks, next generation 911 (NG911), staffing, and more.

MCP's Model for Advancing Public SafetySM, also known as MAPSSM, is a proprietary assessment program that helps assess a program against standards, best practices, and the collective knowledge of MCP's 115+ specialized public safety professionals.

In Summary:

Today's average public safety agency has more than 30 vendor support agreements to manage.

Vendor support agreements have become more difficult to understand given their size and complexity.

Public safety organizations are looking for strategies to help navigate the complexities associated with today's increasingly complicated vendor environment.

In Summary:

"MCP has played a key role in helping us meet our project goals by managing multiple vendors on our behalf—holding them accountable for meeting project milestones, managing project risks and ensuring that they meet schedule deadlines and requirements."

Overview and Agency Challenge

In Summary:

Push-to-talk over celluar (PTTOC) and mission-critical push-to-talk MCPTT services are provisioned over broadband wireless services and replicate the walkie-talkie functionality of traditional land mobile radio (LMR) portable radios.

Through gateways, these services can be interfaced with LMR networks to allow audio to be transmitted from LMR channels to the broadband application, and vice versa.

They offer a good alternative for personnel who have no need for a digital radio on a daily basis but need to be provided situational awareness and coordinated incident command.

In Summary:

Many public safety agencies have pondered whether the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network (NPSBN), being implemented by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) will someday replace the land mobile radio systems that have traditionally provided mission-critical voice services.

Agencies should continue to invest in their LMR systems, even to the point of replacing them if necessary.

Government agencies should continue to track the progress of FirstNet, for the day will eventually come when the NPSBN has developed to the point that it is a viable alternative for LMR.

Download this whitepaper to read more about if, and why, agencies should not abandon an LMR replacement project in the foreseeable future.

In Summary:

Cobb County, Georgia public safety officials wanted to assure they were paying a fair price for support of their land mobile radio (LMR) system.

Working alongside MCP, they completed a fair market pricing assessment and data-driven analysis for the LMR system maintenance costs.

Armed with this information, the partnership was able to negotiate more favorable cost targets, enhanced system performance reports and significant savings on costs.

Overview and Agency Challenge

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MCP's Model for Advancing Public Safety^SM, also known as MAPS^SM, is a proprietary assessment program that helps assess a program against standards, best practices, and the collective knowledge of MCP's 115+ specialized public safety professionals.