In the United States, enterprise 911 management has two core operational requirements: ensure calls placed to 911 from company phone systems reach the correct emergency communications center or public safety answering point, and ensure accurate location information is associated with the phone number or endpoint originating the 911 call.
Organizations that use covered multiline telephone systems should evaluate compliance with two federal regulations: Kari's Law and RAY BAUM's Act.
Kari's Law covers multiline telephone systems sold, leased or installed after Feb. 16, 2020. It requires that all phones can dial 911 directly without needing a prefix, such as 8 or 9, to reach an outside line. It also requires that appropriate personnel, such as on-site security individuals, are notified whenever a 911 call is made. And it mandates that 911 calls sent to an emergency communications center (ECC) or public safety answering point (PSAP) provide a valid callback number so the operator can reach the caller if the call is interrupted.
Section 506 of the Repack Airwaves Yielding Better Access for Users of Modern Services Act of 2018 (RAY BAUM'S Act) requires that calls placed to 911 provide a "dispatchable location." The Federal Communications Commission defines a dispatchable location as "a location delivered to the PSAP with a 911 call that consists of the validated street address of the calling party, plus additional information such as suite, apartment, or similar information necessary to adequately identify the location of the calling party."
A street address alone might not be enough in large, multistory or multi-tenant facilities. Organizations should determine whether they need more specific location information, such as building, floor, suite, room or zone, to help first responders find the caller.
Managing E911 in a multivendor environment
Overcoming multivendor E911 challenges
Most enterprise phone system vendors offer capabilities for E911 location management. Cloud-based services typically offer the ability to route 911 calls to the appropriate ECC/PSAP based on caller location. Those using on-premises phone systems usually rely on PSTN connectivity providers for 911 call management, including the ability to send a 911 call to a national call center when the phone system is unable to accurately determine a caller's location.
However, nearly 40% of companies operate more than one phone system, according to a Metrigy global study of 998 organizations. In a multivendor environment, telecom managers are faced with the challenge of administering multiple different tools for location management and call routing.
To simplify management and ensure compliance, 18% of companies in a Metrigy study of 400 companies use a dedicated 911 location management and call routing platform. These products, available from vendors such as Intrado and RedSky, enable the centralization of 911 location management and call routing across all phone systems in use.
Third-party platforms might also support Next Generation 911 capabilities such as text messaging, real-time location identification and sharing additional information with first responders such as floor plans and access to cameras and sensors.
As NG911 transition rules continue to take effect, telecom teams should ask UC, SIP trunking and 911 management providers how they plan to support IP-based emergency call delivery, location information and interoperability with 911 authorities.
When to consider a third-party E911 platform
A third-party E911 management platform can be useful when an organization needs one way to manage emergency calling across multiple systems, locations and endpoint types. Consider one if your environment includes:
✓ Multiple UC, PBX or cloud calling platforms.
✓ A mix of on-premises phone systems, UCaaS and SIP trunking providers.
✓ Employees who move among offices, shared workspaces and remote locations.
✓ Different tools for location management, 911 call routing and emergency notification.
✓ Call center agents or shared phones that make callback-number management difficult.
✓ Personal or company-provided mobile phones that complicate on-site notification.
✓ A need to test, audit and report on 911 routing and location information from one place.
Additional areas of concern
Beyond call routing and location management, companies face two additional challenges:
Ensuring a valid callback number, which might be problematic for scenarios including call centers where agents do not have an assigned phone number.
Tracking 911 calls made from personal or company-provided mobile devices, which are handled by the mobile service provider and do not traverse the company phone system.
In a multivendor environment, telecom managers are faced with the challenge of administering multiple different tools for location management and call routing.
Here, too, a multivendor phone system environment adds additional management complexity. Vendors including 9Line and 911inform provide management platforms to address these concerns.
Successfully ensuring E911 call routing and caller location is imperative for workplace safety and regulatory compliance. Managing 911 in a multivendor environment can be challenging. But third-party management platforms simplify the process and provide a centralized way of ensuring compliance and 911 call routing.
Editor's note:This tip provides no legal guidance. We recommend those responsible for 911 location and call routing management consult with appropriate legal counsel to determine their organization's risk and potential liability.
Irwin Lazar is president and principal analyst at Metrigy, where he leads coverage on the digital workplace. His research focus includes unified communications, VoIP, video conferencing and team collaboration.
