The Case for E911

Everyone knows how to call 9-1-1 for help. But what if you are in a high-rise or in a multi-building campus? This is where enhanced 9-1-1 (E911) is critical. E911 can pinpoint the exact location of a 911 caller in an enterprise environment. Here are four reasons why E911 is critical to you and your business or organization.

E911 Saves Lives

The facts are simple: E911 saves lives by speeding emergency response to the precise location of a 9-1-1 caller.

Here are two news accounts of situations where E911 was really needed:


9-1-1 Confusion -- NBC story about Maryland E911 Tragedy
Lost on the Line - Fox News report on Chicago E911 tragedy

E911 is the Law

17 states currently have legislation on the books requiring businesses, schools and government agencies to provide E911. Other states are currently considering similar legislation which targets multi-line telephone system (MLTS) operators and includes PBXs, IP call servers and Centrex systems.

Current Legislation

Download the latest state legislation

E911 Liability Risk is Real

Failure to provide E911 protection to employees could result in regulatory fines and expose the enterprise to large damages from civil and criminal litigation. A study by Liability Consultants found the average jury verdict for a workplace death to be $2.2 million.

Mark Lies, a partner in the Chicago office of Seyfarth Shaw with deep expertise representing employers on a national basis in cases relating to occupational safety, health and liability issues, spoke recently about the importance of incorporating E911 into a corporate risk management strategy.


Why incorporate E911 into a Corporate Risk Management Strategy?
4 Steps to Incorporate E911 into a Corporate Risk Management Strategy

Lies has co-written a RedSky whitepaper called “Assessing E911 Liability Risk” that provides a comprehensive overview of the legal liability that enterprises may face and provides a baseline understanding of E911 as a technology.
Download Assessing E911 Liability Risk

 
RedSky has also created a two-minute online E911 Risk Assessment to help you determine your organization’s liability risk.
Take the assessment now.

E911 is Affordable

According to a survey by the Liberty Mutual Group, about two-thirds of employers report a threefold savings for every dollar invested in safety. The ROI on E911 management is consistent with this study.

E911 solutions are available in all price ranges. You can buy E911 as a monthly service, or purchase full-featured enterprise software applications that automate E911 across your organization. Here are two examples of how the right E911 solution can be cost effective:

  1. RedSky’s E911 Manager® automates every aspect of E911 for an enterprise eliminating costly manual administration. E911 Manager® tracks all phone moves, updates all location records and monitors multiple PBX/call servers for 911 calls.
  2. Organizations implementing VoIP with FCE (flatten, consolidate, extend) initiatives can implement RedSky’s E911 Anywhere®  and capture significant cost savings by eliminating the need for local ISDN PRI and CAMA 911 trunks, LEC ALI Gateways and PS-ALI accounts.

For more information on how best to provide E911 protection for your employees, visitors and students, to comply with E911 laws and to manage your E911 liability risk contact RedSky.