Equipment Committee Develops Plan for Improving 911 System

The Effingham County 911 Board's Equipment Committee Wednesday developed a strategy that begins to upgrade the aging system.

Committee members reviewed prices for new consoles, a record unit, a phone system and furniture. 911 does not have enough revenue on hand to pay for the entire upgrade all at once, so the committee made decisions on what changes should come first. The decisions are the outgrowth of information that the current system and equipment is moving beyond the stage where repairs can be guaranteed.

New consoles at each dispatching point would cost $1,024,653. The cost of a new phone system can't be finalized since officials want to purchase a system with Next Generation technology. The upgrade would allow people to text or even Tweet 911 with information. New furniture would cost $187,000. A new recording system is also being sought so calls can be documented at both sites at a cost of just under $65,000.

Effingham City Police Chief Mike Schutzbach, a member of the 911 Board and the equipment committee, said he doesn't think new phones should be purchased until the Next Gen technology is locally available. However, there was discussion of a particular piece of equipment in the phone system that, if it goes down, can't be replaced. At that point, the phone system would have to be replaced and Schutzbach, who is Treasurer for the 911 Board, said they wouldn't be able to afford new consoles.

Effingham Fire Chief Joe Holomy, also a 911 Board member and equipment committee member, asked 911 System Administrator Jodi Moomaw and County Telecommunicator Supervisor Tina Daniels to check locally on what it would cost for modify the current 911 furniture to accommodate the new equipment, in an effort to cut the furniture cost. Holomy also asked Motorola, the vendor for the equipment, to provide the cost of a time sync device so there would be standardization as to when calls are dispatched.

The upshot of the discussion is that the Equipment Committee will recommend to the full 911 Board to consider purchasing the new consoles, the recorder and the time sync device. They will also review a lease/purchase contract with Motorola in an effort not to deplete available reserves. Holomy said bank financing will also still be an option for the Board.

The new equipment would have a two-year warranty. 

The committee plans to revisit the issue of a new phone system in the next six to nine months to see whether Next Gen technology is available locally. A new system utilizing such technology just went into operation in southern Illinois.