Author: SWPhil

The firefighters of Cali, Colombia are the newest addition to the StreetWise CADlink family and our first client in Latin America. The Bomberos Voluntarios de Cali is made up of brave men and women protecting the busy city of Cali from ten fire stations. Now, they’ll be using StreetWise CADlink, Responder and SmartBoard to help their resource management and response. StreetWise will also integrate with their new Emergency Reporting RMS account to auto-create incident reports and record unit status changes. Thanks to Fernando Castillo for the photos.

Cali firefighters conduct a live training drill using StreetWise CADlink.

Cali firefighters responding to a reported fire with StreetWise in action.

Cali Fire Department’s Operations Center with StreetWise SmartBoard front and center.

We are excited to announce that a new version of StreetWise CADlink Tablet MDT Software was released for download on August 14, 2017. This new release includes several new and useful features that users have been asking for. We highly recommend that our clients ensure all of their devices update to this new version, or perform the update yourself through Google Play or the Apple iTunes App Store to make sure you have access to all the latest features.

Note that some of the new features require configuration through the Client Administrative Web Portal. Here is a list of all the new features:

Optional Staffing Level Prompt When Going Enroute
If you’re a volunteer or paid-on-call department, you can now choose an option to require users the identify the staffing number on their truck every time they go enroute to a call. Staffing level is displayed to all other users on the Tactical Map or in the Responder Panel.

User-Selectable Notification Alert Sounds
You can now choose from a variety of alert sounds directly on the device.

Multi-Point Distance Measuring Tool
Know exactly how far it is to that fire hydrant! You now have access to a distance measuring tool on the Tactical Map that can measure a multi-point route.

Circle Radius Measuring Tool
Know exactly what area needs to be evacuated. You now have access to a radius circle drawing tool with precise measurement.

Web-to-Device Messaging
Client Administrators can now send administrative messages to any or all devices in their fleet from the Client Web Portal.

Server-Configurable Point De-Clutter Feature
Client Administrators can now adjust the tactical map zoom level at which each category of points appear and disappear from their map views

Server-Configurable Auto-Dismiss for Alert Update Notification Text Box
Want that alert update notification box to go away all by itself? You can now set the timeout at which the box auto-dismisses.

Video tutorials for all of these great new features can be found on StreetWise University.

Users of our new StreetWise Responder app have a new update on the App Store or Play Store. We’ve added the ability to select from a wide variety of alert notification sounds. Enjoy!

Several new features will be coming with the next release of StreetWise CADlink full MDT version. Here’s a list of some of the ones folks have been asking for:

• Selection Of Notification Sounds for New Alerts: this will allow the user to choose from the many notification sounds on their device (or available from the Internet) for use as their new alert notification sound.

• Multi-Point Distance Measuring Tool: this new map tool, available soon from the Map Action menu, allows a user to measure accurate distances between just two, or even multiple points. Instead of simply measuring “as the crow flies”, a user can get an accurate distance for a hose layout down a driveway, up a street, and around a corner all at once.

• Radius Distance Shading (Hot Zone) Tool: this new map tool, also available soon from the Map Action menu, will allow a user to create a shaded circle around any point (an incident, for instance) and accurately shade it to a specific distance, such as a half mile. Perfect for quickly depicting a hot zone on their map or and evacuation distance.

StreetWise Lite, the new personal notification smartphone app, is in final development stages and expected to roll out for the FDIC Conference in Indianapolis in April. Designed for use by volunteer and off-duty personnel, it is the perfect complement to the full StreetWise MDC tablet version. StreetWise Lite will allow personnel to use the same familiar interface they have on their trucks, but with a feature set designed around the needs of the individual responder. The app will fully integrate with the tablet version, allowing those on the truck, in the station, and other individual responders to always be aware of their incoming resources. We’ve lightened up this smartphone app with only the features an individual responder truly needs, while keeping the multiple map modes, custom icons, navigation, speed and reliability that StreetWise is famous for.

Stay tuned, StreetWise Lite is coming soon!

StreetWise CADlink is pleased to announce the appointment of our new Chief Technology Officer, Glenn Babcock.

Glenn has over 25 years of high-level programming and development experience with companies including General Electric, Oracle and M9 Solutions. He was also a Vice President with Citigroup, where he was lead architect on a shared-services technology team that implemented an enterprise-scale global ERP/B2B procurement and expense management system. Previously, he served as the MIS Manager for Lockheed Martin, where he managed a $14 million annual IT budget and an Enterprise Information Systems group with 3700 users in 12 primary locations. At Oracle, Mr. Babcock’s experience included being both a Senior Solutions Director and Enterprise Solution Architect. He was responsible for delivering major technology projects to Fortune 500 clients in the Strategic Accounts group. In 2007, Mr. Babcock won the Oracle Solution Architect of the Year award.

“I’m excited to be working with the team at StreetWise,” Glenn commented. “We’re already hard at work on the next major upgrade to the software and have some great things planned for the future. I think the company is well-positioned to take the product to the next level and beyond.”

President and CEO, Phil Kouwe, also commented on the new appointment. “Glenn has done some fantastic work for us in the past and has been a key element of our development team. His background, expertise, and knowledge of complex, enterprise-level data systems are a perfect match for us. Now, with him on board as our CTO, our management team is much better prepared for the expansion of the product to its full capability.”

For this year’s FDIC conference, we cooked up a special treat. Visitors to the StreetWise booth could sit down, don a virtual reality headset, and experience responding on an actual fire call from the officer’s seat of Richfield Fire Department Engine 1 in Ohio. Attendees had a great time responding on this call (in the snow, no less), and those who were experiencing Virtual Reality for their first time were mesmerized.

Now, you can use this interactive embedded video to get the 360 degree view. Or, if you have a VR headset, use the link to download the full virtual reality demo from our friends at Vrideo. If you’re on an iPhone or Android device, head to the App Store or Google Play and download Vrideo. Once downloaded, type “StreetWise” into the search bar and you can view the virtual reality experience we’ve created!

Have fun!

Video produced by Sir William Productions, Stowe, Ohio

StreetWise CADlink® has announces a new strategic partnership with Emergency Reporting® records management software.  StreetWise now integrates live with Emergency Reporting®, making life easier for fire crews and dramatically improving the accuracy of response time analysis.

StreetWise automatically creates a new incident report in Emergency Reporting® before the crews have even returned to the fire station. The incident location, nature, date and dispatch time auto-fill into the NFRIS report, ready for completion. Whenever a responder taps a status button in their StreetWise CADlink® response software on their Android, iPad, or Pierce® Command Zone™ device, the precise time is transferred directly into the appropriate unit status time in Emergency Reporting’s NFIRS incident report unit section. Now, units will be able to reliably record their status times without relying on busy dispatchers, expensive CAD exports, or crowded radio channels.

When an incident commander taps an incident benchmark button in StreetWise, such as “Situation Controlled” or “Patient Contact Made”, the information and precise timestamp is automatically entered into the narrative section of the Emergency Reporting® NFIRS report. Key incident benchmarks provide more precise incident reporting. Waypoints placed during an incident in StreetWise CADlink® are frequently used to identify key tactical actions during an incident. Now, these waypoints and other key incident-specific actions are transferred directly into the narrative section of the Emergency Reporting® NFIRS report, capturing the precise time, action, and even latitude and longitude for more thorough and precise documentation of major incidents.

Even more integration is planned in the future, enhancing the product offerings of both companies and continuing to make the job easier for firefighters.

About Emergency Reporting Systems… “The most trusted RMS solution”

Emergency Reporting® simplifies fire & EMS reporting and records management into one platform-independent solution. We create user friendly software that empowers first responders all over the world with accessible data. Emergency Reporting® puts your whole station online with powerful analytics and reports, accurate incident documentation, and we make it all accessible to your entire department through cloud-based software. Our goal since 2003 has been to help firefighters tell their station’s story with data, and we come to work each day ready to make that happen.

Learn more about Emergency Reporting®- Click Here!

That’s right! Final beta testing has been completed on StreetWise CADlink for the iOS operating system, so users of the iPad and iPad Mini will now be able to enjoy the world’s only third-party MDC response software for fire departments. Responding to a huge number of requests from Apple enthusiasts, we’ve completed development of a dedicated StreetWise client application for one of the most popular tablet operating systems in the world. The initial release will include the progressive features enjoyed by our Android clients, including:

• Instant Incident Notifications
• Tactical Map Views
• Interactive Hydrant Displays
• Preplan Viewing
• Instant Tactical Waypoints
• Unit Location Tracking (AVL)
• Status Buttons

And, just like the existing versions, StreetWise on iOS will NOT depend on Push Notification Services, but will have direct tablet-to-server networking to deliver unparalleled speed, consistency, confirmed communication, and encrypted security.

In addition, as with all StreetWise versions, the devices are completely interactive with any other device in the same agency, meaning a department can choose to mix and match devices of different operating systems.

If you’re an Apple user, contact us today to schedule your demo of the best, most affordable MDC solution for emergency services.

StreetWise CADlink just released the third in its series of humorous whiteboard video ads. The ads will be run on Facebook and other fire service industry venues. Enjoy.