M-10 - Public Protection Classification Report - ISO Rating

Item 432 - Credit for Dispatch Circuits (3 points) The third item reviewed is Item 432 “Credit for Dispatch Circuits (CDC)”. This item reviews the dispatch circuit facilities used to transmit alarms to fire department members. A “Dispatch Circuit” is defined in NFPA 1221 as “A circuit over which an alarm is transmitted from the communications center to an emergency response facility (ERF) or emergency response units (ERUs) to notify ERUs to respond to an emergency”. All fire departments (except single fire station departments with full-time firefighter personnel receiving alarms directly at the fire station) need adequate means of notifying all firefighter personnel of the location of reported structure fires. The dispatch circuit facilities should be in accordance with the general criteria of NFPA 1221. “Alarms” are defined in this Standard as “A signal or message from a person or device indicating the existence of an emergency or other situation that requires action by an emergency response agency”. There are two different levels of dispatch circuit facilities provided for in the Standard – a primary dispatch circuit and a secondary dispatch circuit. In jurisdictions that receive 730 alarms or more per year (average of two alarms per 24-hour period), two separate and dedicated dispatch circuits, a primary and a secondary, are needed. In jurisdictions receiving fewer than 730 alarms per year, a second dedicated dispatch circuit is not needed. Dispatch circuit facilities installed but not used or tested (in accordance with the NFPA Standard) receive no credit. The score for Credit for Dispatch Circuits (CDC) is influenced by monitoring for integrity of the primary dispatch circuit. There are up to 0.90 points available for this Item. Monitoring for integrity involves installing automatic systems that will detect faults and failures and send visual and audible indications to appropriate communications center (or dispatch center) personnel. ISO uses NFPA 1221 to guide the evaluation of this item. ISO's evaluation also includes a review of the communication system's emergency power supplies. Item 432 “Credit for Dispatch Circuits (CDC)” = 3.00 points PPC is a registered trademark of Insurance Services Office, Inc. Page 11