Texas A&M Implements Integrated Emergency Notification System

  • Apr 07, 2009

Texas A&M University selected AtHoc Inc., a network-centric emergency notification system manufacturer, to provide an integrated mass notification solution for its campus. AtHoc's IWSAlerts software will enable Texas A&M University to send out emergency alerts to its campus population through multiple devices, including campus computers, via pop up alerts, Emergency Alert System radio broadcasts, cable TV, telephones, mass e-mails and SMS text messages, from a single Web-based console.

By unifying multiple forms of alerting through a single integrated system, the university achieves simplicity while reaching a high percentage of the school's population through redundant systems.

IWSAlerts will provide the university with a significant cost savings by using the its existing on-site communications infrastructure. The software will leverage Texas A&M's IP network to communicate with desktops and mobile devices, the phone infrastructure, cable TV and campus radio. All of these devices can now be triggered simultaneously.

"Texas A&M University has exhibited uncompromising commitment to protect its students and staff," said Ly Tran, vice president of AtHoc. "The university has demonstrated tremendous vision and technical leadership in building a campus-wide, integrated emergency notification system, and we're excited to be part of the team helping to promote campus safety."

The university's emergency managers will be able to trigger alerts from any Microsoft Internet Explorer browser and send out information through a wide variety of communications channels. They can select from predefined alerts or create a custom alert and quickly notify students and staff about the emergency. Alerts that reach personal devices (computer desktops, SMS text messages and phone calls) are tracked in real-time for response and accountability reporting. At the same time, alerts also can reach the campus cable TV and radio station.

The AtHoc solution addresses one of the biggest challenges of deploying an emergency notification system—the seamless integration of disparate communications channels. To meet this challenge, IWSAlerts leverages the AtHoc IP Integration Module, which is based on the OASIS CAP 1.1 industry standard, to maximize interoperability with the campus' existing communications systems.

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