New software helps Fire Service tackle false alarms
Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service is using a dynamic new software system to reduce the time it spends responding to false alarms.
The system provides Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service with a central resource for all information related to automatic fire alarm systems, offering instant access to data at the click of a button.
“It will enable us to improve our response to genuine automatic fire alarms,” said Richard Buxton, fire safety support officer for Warwickshire. “Forty five per cent of the calls we receive are false alarms which prevents us from using our resources effectively.”
“TOCSIN helps reduce the likelihood of our fire engines being sent to false alarms when they may be needed at real emergencies and helps give us a better picture of what we can expect to find when we arrive.”
“If alarm systems are unreliable and building owners refuse to maintain them to the required standard they are more likely to have a false alarm. In these circumstances it may not be appropriate to send several fire engines under emergency blue light conditions immediately to the building, putting road users and firefighters at unnecessary risk and wasting valuable resources.”
He continued: “Reducing the time spent responding to false alarms also means that we can spend more time promoting fire safety in the community and educating businesses and organisations about the risk of fires and how to prevent them occurring in the first place.”
County Fire Officer William Brown said, “Attending false alarms is very draining on our resources. By using the data that will now be available to us we can continue to reduce the number of false alarms and so increase the time we can spend on delivering community safety initiatives that further reduce risk in Warwickshire”.
Developed by Bristol-based WPC Software, TOCSIN enables UK fire services to manage various record types including information about alarm systems, receiving centres, installer and false alarm calls. The system provides easy access to key performance indicators and its powerful and user-friendly querying facilities save users time and effort.
The system has been developed from WPC Software’s successful police version of TOCSIN, which is designed to help constabularies manage their response to monitored intruder alarms.