The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) has launched ASAP (Automated Secure Alarm Protocol) Service, the service developed by The Monitoring Association (TMA) to lessen the impact of alarm notifications that typically enter emergency communication centers (ECCs) over nonemergency administrative telephone lines.

The service marks a significant milestone in HCSO’s ongoing efforts to enhance public safety operations and support its emergency communications staff.

By automating alarm data exchange through ASAP Service, HCSO expects to reduce repetitive and time-consuming interactions between alarm-monitoring companies and telecommunicators, freeing personnel to focus on higher-priority voice calls and helping offset staffing challenges experienced by ECCs nationwide.

“Our telecommunicators handle hundreds of thousands of calls every year, and alarm activations alone can involve multiple back-and-forth calls for a single event,” said Tony Martin, director of emergency communications, HCSO. “By implementing ASAP Service, we’re streamlining that process, improving accuracy, and helping responders get to the scene faster.”

ASAP implementation was completed in just over four months.

“Many of our neighboring agencies that launched ASAP Service have seen great results,” Martin said. “We’re proud to bring this to HCSO as part of our broader effort to reduce telecommunicator workload, improve retention and continue modernizing how we serve the community.”

As of go-live, the following alarm-monitoring companies are transmitting alarms via ASAP Service to HCSO’s ECC: Affiliated, Alert 360, Becklar/Avantguard, Brinks, Dynamark, Everon/Protection One, Per Mar, Quick Response, Rapid Response, Security Central, Securitas, Tyco/JCI, Vector Security, Vivint and United Central Control.