When seconds count, the speed at which your alarm company communicates with 911 can mean the difference between a close call and a tragedy. At CPI Security, we’re committed to using every available tool to minimize response times, and one of the most powerful is ASAP to PSAP. If you’ve never heard of it, you’re not alone. This blog breaks down everything you need to know about the Automated Secure Alarm Protocol and how it benefits CPI Security customers.
What is ASAP to PSAP?
ASAP to PSAP stands for Automated Secure Alarm Protocol to Public Safety Answering Point. Launched in 2011 as a public-private partnership, ASAP was designed to increase the efficiency and reliability of emergency alarm signals sent from alarm monitoring companies to local 911 centers (also called PSAPs or Emergency Communication Centers, or ECCs).
Think of it as a direct electronic handoff between CPI’s central monitoring station and your local emergency communications center, completely bypassing the traditional phone call process. Rather than an operator dialing a 10-digit number and verbally relaying your emergency details to a dispatcher, ASAP to PSAP transmits that alarm signal data electronically in milliseconds.
How does the automated secure alarm protocol work?
To understand how ASAP to PSAP improves alarm signal dispatch, it helps to compare it to the traditional process.
Traditional alarm dispatch
In a standard alarm response, here’s what happens after your alarm is triggered:
- Your alarm monitoring center receives the signal
- A central station operator verifies the emergency
- The operator manually dials your local 911 center
- They wait on hold or for a dispatcher to answer
- They verbally relay your name, address, alarm type, and other details
- The dispatcher enters that information into their Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system
- First responders are notified and dispatched
This entire process can take several minutes and introduces the risk of miscommunication or data entry errors along the way.
ASAP to PSAP alarm dispatch
With the automated secure alarm protocol, the process is dramatically faster:
- Your alarm monitoring center receives the signal
- A central station operator verifies the emergency
- The alarm signal data is transmitted electronically via ASAP through the NLETS network
- The data goes directly into the 911 center’s CAD system in milliseconds
- First responders receive accurate, geolocated information and are dispatched immediately
The Monitoring Association estimates the entire ASAP process takes about 15 seconds, compared to several minutes with traditional methods. Leveraging ASAP with partnering agencies, CPI’s average receipt-to-dispatch rate is 84% faster than traditional response times.
What Is NLETS and Why Does It Matter?
ASAP to PSAP leverages the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System (NLETS): a nationwide, secure message-switching network that facilitates the interstate exchange of criminal justice and related information. Think of NLETS as the backbone infrastructure that carries your alarm signal data safely and securely from CPI’s monitoring center to your local emergency communications center.
This means the information transmitted isn’t just fast it’s accurate, secure, and verified. No dropped calls, no miscommunication, no hold music.
How Much Faster Is ASAP Than Traditional Electronic Alarm Dispatch?
The numbers speak for themselves. With traditional alarm dispatch, operators spend time dialing, waiting for a dispatcher to answer, and verbally communicating information that still needs to be manually entered into a CAD system. With electronic alarm dispatch through ASAP to PSAP:
- Alarm data reaches the 911 CAD system in approximately 15 seconds
- CPI’s receipt-to-dispatch rate is 84% faster than traditional methods
- Errors from voice communication are completely eliminated
- First responders receive an exact, geolocated address automatically
Who Uses ASAP to PSAP?
CPI Security has fully embraced ASAP to PSAP and has seen tremendous efficiency gains across the jurisdictions that have adopted it. CPI is currently working with 18 jurisdictions within our service footprint and is actively partnering with additional emergency communication centers to expand the program.
For a full list of states and jurisdictions currently utilizing ASAP to PSAP, visit the official ASAP to PSAP website.
What Does ASAP to PSAP Mean for You as a CPI Customer?
Simply put: the faster CPI can dispatch authorities to your location, the sooner you receive help during an emergency. ASAP to PSAP is one of several ways CPI Security goes beyond basic alarm monitoring to deliver a genuinely faster, smarter response.
Combined with our Real Time Response℠ technology and other alarm verification methods, ASAP to PSAP is part of a comprehensive approach to keeping our customers and communities safe.
Learn More About CPI Security’s Award-Winning Monitoring
CPI Security is committed to exploring and adopting the latest technologies and protocols to ensure the fastest possible response times and the fewest false alarm dispatches. To learn more about our 24/7 award-winning monitoring center or to get a free quote on a professionally monitored security system, contact CPI Security today.