Lincolnshire Police is embarking on a cloud-focused technology refresh of its control room environment with Motorola Solutions, having signed a 10-year deal with the firm.
The work will see Lincolnshire Police roll out Motorola’s cloud-hosted suite of CommandCentral Control Room Solution (CRS) products and services, replacing its existing contact management, computer-aided dispatch, mapping and call logging setup.
It is claimed the deployment will mark the organisation out as the first police force in the UK to run its control room environment entirely in the cloud, as it seeks to increase staff productivity while lowering operational costs.
The move to the cloud is also expected to make it easier for Lincolnshire Police’s IT department to manage unexpected peaks in call volumes, as it means they will no longer have to pre-determine how much capacity they may need in advance because the system can scale automatically.
Marc Jones, police and crime commissioner for Lincolnshire Police, said the deployment was geared towards ensuring the service it delivers to the public is as effective and efficient as possible.
“The new command and control system is one important step in that journey and will allow the chief to get assistance to those in need quicker than ever before – and armed with the right information to handle the situation,” he said.
“The new command and control system will allow the chief to get assistance to those in need quicker than ever before – and armed with the right information to handle the situation”
Marc Jones, Lincolnshire Police
The deployment marks an extension of Lincolnshire Police’s existing relationship with Motorola Solutions, as the organisation already makes use of its Pronto suite of mobile working application tools to enable frontline officers to access police IT resources while out in the field. These include the Police National Computer, the Emergency Services Network and the force’s command and control services too.
“It has been a high priority for me to ensure frontline officers can be deployed quickly, with the right equipment, and to spend as much time as possible in the field reassuring communities, preventing and fighting crime,” Jones added.
The contract itself was awarded through Lincolnshire Police’s existing strategic partnership with G4S Policing Services, whose managing director, John Whitwam, said the deal was a good example of what could be achieved by combining public and private sector resources.
“The G4S strategic partnership with Lincolnshire Police will enable Lincolnshire to be at the forefront of technology, supporting officers and staff to make the best decisions by being better informed,” he said.
“This is the best of a private and public partnership, with G4S, Motorola Solutions and Lincolnshire Police working together to provide sustainable and effective policing services to the public of Lincolnshire.”
