Island Tech Services (ITS) Provides Guidance and Direction for Firefighters as they Purchase New Technology
Integrated Technology Solution Provider Identifies Ways Firefighters Can Get the Most from Next Generation Rugged Devices While Increasing Efficiency and Safety
RFirefighters are often looking to get more out of their gear and tech – anything to stretch tight budgets and increase firefighting efficiency and firefighter safety. However, they are not always able to fully integrate the latest technology for maximum impact, according to the team at Island Tech Services (ITS) (www.itsg.us.com), a leading provider of advanced technology, mobility and vehicle solutions. That’s why ITS consults directly with fire chiefs and their crews – from Maine to Florida, and into the Central States, Great Lakes, and Southeast regions – to help them understand the latest tech and trends, and how to get the most from those solutions. This lets them focus on their missions without worrying about their tech gear. For more information or to schedule a consultation with ITS firefighting specialists, call 888-615-2770 or visit http://www.itsg.us.com/.
“During a fire, firefighters must have the ability to quickly locate FDC connection panels, fire alarm panels, radio alarm boxes, floor and building exits and avoid elevator shafts in a commercial property. They may also need to look up hazardous material spill protocols before they arrive at a scene,” says Shawn Krulder, a firefighting technology specialist at ITS in New York. “That requires a fully-rugged device that has been pre-configured with the necessary communications connectivity and software to get the job done. That’s where our customer partnership with ITS comes in.”
Doing Double Duty with Durable Devices
Lack of experience installing and integrating the latest tech gear can impede a fire department’s ability to get the most from today’s solutions. This includes fully-rugged devices – laptops and tablets built to withstand the greatest amount of use and abuse in critical, high-stress environments. The latest generation of rugged devices, combined with the appropriate software, can provide critical fire scene information before firefighters enter a commercial building. Evaluating the cost difference between processor options, for example, impacts how quickly the laptop or tablet can return results with critical information before being on-scene.
This same device can then convert a heavy rescue apparatus into an incident commander’s on-scene command post with the addition of a set of inexpensive rear-mounted monitors to display integrated, body-worn camera feeds from fire crews.
Software plays a big part in enabling firefighting crews to improve their abilities on the scene of a fire. The industry relies on software from a range of vendors to provide fire emergency response, crew scheduling, mapping and GIS, and fire records management. The ability to integrate the necessary software and access the internet for mapping tools is critical to firefighters when rolling up on the scene of a fire.
In addition, the selection and installation of the right fully rugged device for the job may not always be an obvious choice. For example, in Massachusetts and New York, where fire fighters are often also EMS responders, ambulances may prefer laptops while fire apparatuses may prefer tablets.
“ITS helps fire crews make sense of the available technology choices, then we can pre-configure and install the required software for them. This eliminates guesswork and reduces the time to get tech tools into the field where they’re needed,” says Kory Koster, a firefighting technology specialist at ITS in Massachusetts.
For more information or to schedule a consultation with ITS firefighting specialists, call 888-615-2770 or visit http://www.itsg.us.com/.
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