HomeMy WebLinkAbout6. MANAGERS REPORT 11/18/03'~'-'~~~k, Mount Prospect Public Works Department
INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
SUB J:
Background
VILLAGE MANAGER MICHAEL E. JANONIS
DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS
NOVEMBER 6, 2003 ~
REVERSE 91'1 CALLS DURING REFUSE STRIKE
During the refuse haulers' labor strike (10/1 thru 10/9) staff implemented several
initiatives aimed at improving the dissemination of strike-related information to Mount
Prospect residents and businesses. These efforts were intended to help mitigate the
confusion and misinformation that mounted along with the uncollected garbage.
Our communication initiatives included the establishment of a Village telephone hotline,
updates posted to the Village webpage (www.mountprospect.org), press releases to
local media, and utilization of the reverse 911 telephone system.
The reverse 911 telephone system is a mass communication tool purchased by the
Village several years ago to facilitate emergency communications with residents. In the
past, this system has routinely been utilized by the police and fire departments to
communicate with large groups or people impacted by an emergency incident.
The reverse 911 system is hosted by a dedicated personal computer attached to seven
(7) local telephone lines. It utilizes a database of telephone numbers updated by the
telephone company. It can call groups of people listed in a computer file or who live
within a geographic area denoted on our geographic information system (GIS). By
design, this system can simultaneously place seven (7) separate telephone calls. When
each call is answered, whether by a person or a machine, it plays a prerecorded
message. If the call is not answered, no message is played.
Problem Statement
Staff recognized that the reverse 911 system held excellent potential for communicating
the details of the refuse strike as it affected each different refuse collection area
(Monday area, Tuesday area, etc.). Unfortunately, the design limits of the system
effectively precluded its use as a daily update tool for groups as large as the daily refuse
collection areas. For example, a two (2) minute phone call sent simultaneously over
seven (7) phone lines to the Friday refuse collection area, a group of 6,890 telephones,
would have required over 32 hours to complete. Such a scenario would have meant that
calls would have been placed throughout the nighttime hours and many people would
not have received the intended message until after their refuse collection day had
passed.
Page 2 of 2
November 6, 2003
. Reverse 911 Calls During Refuse Strike
Discussion
An obvious solution to this problem was to utilize more telephone lines. Fortunately, the
purveyor of the Village's reverse 911 system, Dialogic Communications Corporation
(DCC) of Franklin, Tennessee, was able to provide the Village with simultaneous and
dedicated access to 140 telephone lines. The solution DCC proffered allowed staff to
create distinct messages and geographic target areas utilizing our equipment and then
send it to DCC's communications center in Tennessee via remote networking. Staff
utilized the DCC solution to place the telephone calls denoted in Table 1. Most of the
call sessions were completed in less than three (3) hours. The cost of these calls was
$14,027.40.
Table 1
DATE CALLS PURPOSE
9/30 4,516 Update Wednesday refuse service area
10/1 3,428 Update Thursday refuse service area
10/2 6,890 Update Friday refuse service area
10/5 25,700 Update entire Village (all refuse service areas)
10/6 4,269 Update Tuesday refuse service area
10/7 4,516 Update Wednesday refuse service area
10/8 3,428 Update Thursday refuse service area
10/9 6,890 Update Friday refuse service area
Total: 59,637
The DCC fee ($14,027.40) includes a $2,500 hosting center set-up fee that allows the
Village to access the telephone trunk lines at their Tennessee communications center.
Should an appropriate situation arise within the next 12 months, the Village could access
the DCC phone lines without incurring this fee again. We would, however, have to pay
for each call at the rate of $0.20 per call. The set-up fee includes 2,000 "free" calls.
The balance of the DCC fee seeks remuneration for 57,637 (59,637 total calls minus
2,000 "free" calls) phone calls at the rate of $0.20 per call.
Pursuant to the emergency provisions of the Village purchasing policy, this expenditure
was incurred on the verbal authorization of the Village Manager pending post facto
affirmation by the Village Board.
Recommendation
I recommend approving a disbursement in the amount of $14,027.40 to the Dialogic
Communications Corporation of Franklin, Tennessee for telecommunication services
rendered between September 30 and October 9, 2003. Sufficient funds for this
proposed expenditure are available in the refuse disposal fu)qd.
Sean P. Dorsey
Director of Public Works
SPD/spd
C:\SOLID WASTE\DCC COVER.doc
DIALOGIC COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION
730 COOL SPRINGS BLVD., SUITE 300
FRANKLIN, TN 37067
PH. (615) 790-2882
FAX (61 5) 790-1329
I~'VOICE DATE 10/15/2003
IR~OICE ,.'~0. 10004502
CUSTOMER NO. 3716
SALES PERSON Randy Bozeman
PAOE I of 1
Attention: Shawn Dorsi
V~llage of Mount Prospect
1700 W. Central Road
Mount Prospect, IL 60056
$0.20
$11,527.40
00001 DCC Hosting Center tails
(Garbage Strike Calls)
57637
00002 Hosting Center Set-Up Fee I
$2,500.00 $2,500.00