Published: March 26, 2008 12:49 pm         

E911 board hears pitch from firm

Advisory committee to recommend 17-employee package for combined dispatch

The E911 governing board heard a presentation from INdigital, a company wanting the task of combining the Logansport and Cass County dispatch centers.

Mark Grady, general manager of the Fort Wayne-based firm that the board invited to the meeting, said he could save the city and county money through his company’s “low cost, high-value solutions that solve complex problems.”

Commissioner and governing board member Dave Arnold asked Grady how INdigital planned on using existing equipment and software from the two dispatch centers without losing any of the stored information.

“We do not want to lose that database,” Arnold said.

Grady said that he would have to evaluate each department’s systems before giving a definite answer, but he said the approach to compatibility problems was nearly always the same.

“We get the old data out and convert it to a new program so it continues to have its value to the user,” Grady said.

Grady said he was aware of both dispatching systems, but without a site visit, he does not know whether they are compatible. The governing board might have to chose one dispatch system over the other. If so, board members made it clear to Grady that quality of the public service cannot be compromised.

“We don’t want anything that’s less,” Arnold said.

Board chairperson Ron Miller wanted to know if INdigital could get the work done by the tentative deadline of Jan. 1, 2009. Grady said it could, and based on prior experience, the company could also help the city and county avoid the same mistakes others have made.

Since 2000, INdigital has built a statewide 9-1-1 network that handles between 6,000 and 8,000 calls a day and worked with state and local governments on similar consolidation projects. Grady said he prided himself on forming new entities from existing ones.

“I have a knack for getting people to work well together,” Grady said.

The board did not discuss the price for the company’s services and took no action on hiring INdigital.

After the meeting, Mayor Mike Fincher said the board is not set on hiring a consultant firm. Combined dispatch director Lori Forrer and the county’s computer technology department may be able to handle the project. If not, that’s when a consultant would be hired.

Mike Dietrich, the E911 advisory committee representative for the governing board, said he would make a recommendation on the salary package at the April 14 meeting. Dietrich announced that the committee would propose staffing the dispatch center with 17 employees, which includes 15 dispatchers plus a director and assistant director. The cost for wages and benefits is estimated at more than $800,000 per year.

Fincher asked for a financial statement from Forrer so the board would know what money was available and where it came from. The board will soon need to begin figuring the 2009 budget, he said.

The board also said its goal was to consolidate city and county dispatch then eventually expand to a regional dispatch that would include surrounding counties.

“That’s our ultimate goal,” Fincher said.

The regional dispatch concept is expected to reduce E911 operating expenses for each participating county, Fincher said.

Kevin Lilly can be reached at (574) 732-5117, or via e-mail at kevin.lilly@pharostribune.com