IU-Notify will allow university and campus leaders to reach thousands of students in minutes 
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. --[EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION NETWORK]-- September 25, 2007 - Indiana University announced it has selected the Connect-ED® communication service by the NTI Group Inc. (NTI) to provide a notification system that will be capable of reaching faculty, students and staff on all eight campuses within minutes. The service, part of the broader "IU-Notify" initiative, will be implemented with limited capabilities in October, tested in phases through fall, and should be fully functional by the end of the calendar year.
"This system provides a much-needed tool to reach the entire IU community with important information on short notice," said IU President Michael A. McRobbie. "It can be used for everything from weather delays to other administrative news. It is essential that we be able to notify students immediately in emergency situations because up-to-date communication helps minimize the spread of misinformation, maintain order and provide direction."
"We recognized the important role that immediate communication plays in keeping members of our community safe and have been looking at these services for some time. Of course, the post-event reports of the Virginia Tech incident absolutely served to verify our thinking and speed our process," said Mark Bruhn, associate vice president, information and infrastructure assurance. "As a main component of our critical incident communications plan, IU-Notify with its multimodal capabilities will allow us to keep individuals informed, whether they are in their dorms or offices, sitting in front of their computers, or on their way to class."
Bruhn added, "This system allows IU to load contact information for all students, faculty, staff and for others who may be physically on one of our campuses for an extended period, such as IU Foundation employees, volunteer faculty, visiting scholars, and contract employees. We also provide for parents who may wish to subscribe to certain types of communications." The data will come from central student, employee and faculty databases, and from an online self-service form in IU's OneStart portal (onestart.iu.edu). The online form is scheduled for release in early October. A strategy/policy group has been formed to address issues, policies, standards and procedures for IU-Notify.
About Indiana University
Indiana University enrolls 99,122 undergraduate and graduate students on campuses in Bloomington, Indianapolis, New Albany, South Bend, Kokomo, Fort Wayne, Richmond and Gary. It employs more than 16,000 faculty and staff.
Source: Vendor Press Release
NTI Group Announces Indiana University Selects Connect-ED(R) for Campus-Notification
Send Word Now and BNET Partner to Deliver Emergency Notification for Corporate Emergency Access System Members
System Members Successfully Notified During Manhattan Steam Pipe Explosion Emergency
LAS VEGAS --[EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION NEWS]-- September 24, 2007 - Send Word Now, a provider of on-demand alerting and response services, has announced a partnership with Business Network of Emergency Resources Inc. (BNET) a to integrate BNET’s CEAS with Send Word Now’s real-time mobile alerts via text and voice messages on cell phones, BlackBerry and Treo devices.
Created by BNET, the Corporation Emergency Access System (CEAS) uses a “critical employee access card” system to mitigate the economic loss incurred through unforeseen emergencies such as the recent steam pipe explosion in Manhattan, which resulted in travel and access restrictions. By enabling business to initiate a re-entry and recovery process as quickly as possible, CEAS allows companies to maintain core IT systems, meet regulatory requirements and secure critical data and records in the aftermath of an emergency; all with the aim of continuing the functions of business throughout or soon after a disaster.
During this summer’s steam pipe explosion on Lexington Avenue in New York City, steam and mud were forced from the ground near Grand Central Station on East 41st Street from Third to Lexington Avenue forcing people to evacuate the area. With the Send Word Now service, BNET was able to send text or voice alerts to CEAS members’ cell phones and PDAs. They were notified immediately when CEAS was activated by the City and were given status updates on the situation.
“We were extremely impressed with the deployment of the CEAS program at the site of the Manhattan steam pipe explosion, and were pleased that the Send Word Now on-demand alerting and response service was such a vital part of our communications,” said Peter Picarillo, Executive Director of BNET, Inc. “Response to an emergency is clearly more than just evacuating people; it is also about getting people back in. This emergency situation demonstrated to us and to all the CEAS participating businesses that the City of New York takes business recovery very seriously.”
In addition to New York City, BNET’s CEAS program has also been implemented in Buffalo, New York, Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Stamford, Connecticut. More cities like Philadelphia, Pennsylvania are expected to participate in the near future. Any city, county or state can adopt CEAS through a written agreement with BNET. Once adopted by a municipality, any business can elect to participate in the program, assigning a designated number of CEAS cards to critical employees or contractors, prior to any emergency or disaster.
Source: Vendor Press Release
New Canaan Adopts Connect-CTY® Service to Improve Emergency Preparedness and Communication
Testing to Ensure Residents are Ready to Receive Important Messages
NEW CANAAN, CT--[EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION NEWS]-- September 24th. The Town of New Canaan announced it has arranged with the mass communication provider Connect-CTY for a service that provides town officials the ability to communicate with all residents regarding time-sensitive matters, such as emergencies and important planned and unforeseen events.
This important tool allows town officials to send and track personalized voice messages to thousands of residents, businesses, and local officials in just minutes. The service requires no additional hardware; it can be used from any computer with Internet access or telephone, ensuring that officials can send vital messages from wherever they are located. Messages can be sent by email, text-messaging-to-cell-phones as well as by voice to the recipient’s primary phone. The town also can track homes that were reached with a report on the results of outgoing messages. The system is provided by the company that provides a similar alert notification service for the New Canaan School District.
“Quick, accurate communication in an emergency situation has an impact on safety,” said James Cole, Emergency Management Director and Chair of the New Canaan Police Commission. “Having a fully-featured system that allows us to send messages to the community through several modes of contact will enhance our likelihood of reaching all residents, whether they are at home, work or out of town.” “With Connect-CTY, we have the capacity to immediately inform the entire community, or just affected neighborhoods, regarding time-sensitive matters of public interest, such as flooding, a gas leak or missing person,” Cole said.
Town administrators can target messages to an unlimited number of groups – everything from mobilizing emergency response teams to notifying necessary department heads. Authorized users also can use a map on the Connect-CTY system to contact specific geographical locations, sending messages only to select neighborhoods when needed.
Primary residential and business phones in New Canaan will automatically be included in the system. However, residents can opt-in to provide their complete information (up to three phone numbers and two e-mail addresses for each registered user) by visiting the New Canaan Web site (www.newcanaan.info) and clicking on the indicated link to enter their information into the secure database. Families can make each member a registered user. Those without Internet access can have their information added into the system by calling the Emergency Operations Center at (203) 594-4100 and leaving a recorded message. Residents with call blocking services can ensure they can receive the town’s time-sensitive calls by adding (203) 594-3000 to their approved number list.
“The best way to keep residents safe is through communication, and this service makes it easy,” reported Mr. Cole. “With the Connect-CTY service, administrators have a powerful tool for mass communication without having to purchase new computers, software and telephone lines.”
New Canaan will be conducting its first test-call on Sept. 28, in order to ensure all residents who would like to be included in the system are given a chance to correct their phone numbers. If residents do not receive the call, they should visit the town’s Web site at www.newcanaan.info and click on the indicated link to enter their contact information into the Connect-CTY database.
Residents without Internet access can have their information added into the database by calling (203) 594-4100 and leaving a recorded message.
Jim Cole, town director of emergency preparedness and chairman of the Police Commission was quoted in The Norwalk Advocate on October 6, 2007 as saying "New Canaan contracted with NTI for one year at a cost of $17,500."
Source: Town of New Canaan Press Release
University of Missouri Expands Emergency Notification Capabilities with 3n’s InstaCom Campus Alert
64,000-Student University to Rely on 3n to Ensure the Safety of Campuses.
All State of Missouri Agencies Eligible for Emergency Notification Services Under State-Wide Contract.
GLENDALE, CA--[EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION NEWS]-- September 24, 2007 – 3n (National Notification Network), a mass notification system provider, today announced that the University of Missouri’s four campuses will expand their emergency notification capabilities using 3n’s InstaCom Campus Alert.
The University and 3n announced Monday that the 3n InstaCom Campus Alert system has been selected to automate emergency communications with students, faculty, staff and administration on the UM campuses in Columbia, Kansas City, Rolla and St. Louis. Under a three-year contract, the 3n system will be installed during the coming weeks.
Using 3n’s InstaCom Campus Alert system, the University of Missouri plans to communicate during emergencies using a variety of modes of communication, including phone, e-mail, text messaging, instant messaging, pager, fax and BlackBerry devices.
The system is planned to allow rapid communication with an array of devices on or off campuses, expanding the University’s capacity in delivering quick and reliable crisis notifications to the entire UM community or to targeted audiences on a specific campus.
“The University of Missouri is committed to providing a safe and secure environment to learn, live and work,” said Dr. Gordon H. Lamb, Interim President of the University of Missouri. “By partnering with 3n for its mass notification services, the University builds on that commitment in a significant and strategic way. This will help us to quickly and efficiently communicate with our students, faculty, staff and others using an array of technologies.”
Prior to selecting 3n, the University of Missouri relied heavily on phone trees, voice messages and e-mail, which may not reach all necessary audiences with the appropriate messages in a timely manner.
With about 64,000 students plus thousands of faculty and staff spread statewide across four campuses, the University of Missouri’s crisis notification and communications needs are far-reaching and complex. The University needed the capacity to issue event-based alerts tailored to specific, targeted audiences as well as the ability to communicate rapidly across a single campus or system-wide for large-scale emergencies.
The University identified several key criteria in its notification system selection process: ease of use; ability to integrate with existing systems; guaranteed infrastructure security and reliability; and ability to address challenges specific to a campus environment, including delivering messages using student-friendly contact paths, such as instant messaging and true two-way Short Message Service (SMS) text messaging.
About the University of Missouri
The University of Missouri is the state’s land-grant, research and doctoral-granting public higher education system, with campuses at Columbia, Kansas City, Rolla and St. Louis. The University was founded in 1839 as the first public university west of the Mississippi River and the first state University in Thomas Jefferson’s Louisiana Purchase territory. For more information, log onto the University of Missouri System homepage at www.umsystem.edu
Source: Vendor Press Release
MIR3 Announces International SOS OEM Medical Alerting Agreement
MIR3's inWebServices integration to provide Intelligent Notification to International SOS global network of Medical Assistance Alarm Centers
SAN DIEGO, CA --[EMERGENCY NOTIFICATION NEWS]-- September 19, 2007 – MIR3™, the technology leader in Intelligent Notification (IN®) solutions for global enterprises, has signed an OEM agreement with International SOS, the world's leading provider of medical assistance, international healthcare, security services, and outsourced customer care to deliver MIR3's Intelligent Notification technology--two-way phone, cell, SMS, email, and pager capability at any time, any where - to clients globally through International SOS Online Services.
"When combined with the International SOS global network of Alarm Centers, the joint solution ensures the accuracy and availability of the latest client information, such as medical condition, family contact details, and certification for air evacuation." Todd Schofield, chief technology officer of International SOS, said, "At International SOS, we are constantly looking for innovations that can further improve our emergency response infrastructure. Delivered through our Online Services tools, the coupling of the MIR3 intelligent notification engine with our global network of 27 Alarm Centers will enhance the speed and cost efficiency of our emergency response infrastructure."
“The MIR3 fast, secure communication platform is a natural solution to the demanding notification requirements of a leading global enterprise operation such as International SOS,” said Dan Long, chief technology officer at MIR3. “Our global infrastructure ensures the success of our partners.” MIR3’s inWebServices™ product allows OEM partners to tightly integrate MIR3’s communication engine into their applications and infrastructure. Built on secure, enterprise-grade technology, inWebServices bridges the gap between all standard forms of communication to enable high-speed two-way communications to tens of thousands of users and devices across all modalities, including email, wireless pager, PDA, landline, mobile phone, satellite phone, TDD/TTY, fax, and two-way SMS. MIR3's notification capabilities can also be used for routine high- volume messaging and all-purpose broadcasting such as administrative notices to employees, messages for coordinating staffing and schedules, and delivering important, auditable information to customers.
About International SOS
International SOS is the world's leading provider of medical assistance, international healthcare, security services and outsourced customer care. With 5,000 professionals operating in over 70 countries, International SOS helps organizations manage the health and safety risks facing their travelers and global workforce. Working in some of the most inhospitable places on earth, International SOS offers international standards of medical care where it is not available or where cultural and language barriers exist. For more information , visit www.internationalsos.com, phone Petrina Ong at +65 6330 9826 (Singapore) or email petrina.ong@internationalsos.com
Source: Vendor Press Release