The following post is a PRESS RELEASE describing new Capabilities from Catalyst, announced at the APCO 2018 Conference in August 2018.
Traffic Patterns, call volumes, data analysis and activity insights are tracked by Gateway / Radio Site and across systems
Catalyst Communications Technologies, Inc., a leading developer of Radio Control over IP Dispatch, Interoperability and Incident Command solutions for the mission critical / first responder community, has developed an Analytics Engine for it’s IP|Console™ and Propulsion™ line of Dispatch solutions that provides insights into dispatch operations to aid first responder dispatch centers. This new tool, included in new installations and for customers upgraded as part of their annual maintenance program, delivers a data and graphs package to help Dispatchers and Dispatch Center managers better understand their environment today, and how it evolves over time.
The primary statistical data is call volume over time. Call volume can be tracked for each Gateway on a Catalyst Radio Control over IP system, or for the entire system. (Catalyst Gateways connect to radio resources, either directly to donor/mobile radios or to radio infrastructure through wireline P25 or DMR interfaces). Calls are measured at user defined intervals including calls per minute, calls per 60 minutes, etc. Typically, calls are captured over 24 hours, and each session can be archived for historical analysis.
The meta data can be applied to chart rendering tools (Like MS Excel® chart tools) which also allow for color and design configurations for different presentations and to simplify the visual understanding of the information provided to the user.
These powerful controls provide simple visual indications for understanding changes in radio traffic over time. As a tool that tracks call volume over time, this information can help Dispatch Centers load balance their work environment, identify resourceful dispatchers, and provide insight for planning additional (or reduced level) resources. These analytics can highlight radio system degradation before failures shut down communications. In addition to the graphic displays provided by the Catalyst Analytics Engine, the meta data can be extracted and applied for custom analysis -percentage change in total call volume by month, for example. Or, calls by hour measured over time (which hour of the day generates the most dispatch traffic). Analytics empower managers with essential information to best re-allocate resources when some Dispatchers are more busy than others.
The meta data from Catalyst’s Analytics Engine can be imported into Graph rendering tools, including Microsoft Excel Graph Tools, where a variety of visual presentations and color and format options can be used.
