Versaterm

Versaterm is a Canadian company based in Ottawa, Ontario that develops computer-aided dispatch (CAD) and records management systems for police, fire, and other public safety agencies. Former Royal Canadian Mounted Police employees established the company in 1977; the group had previously developed the Canadian Police Information Centre, a national police database. Versaterm and its rival Niche Technologies, also based in Canada, have "cornered much of the market" for records management in North American police forces, according to The Globe and Mail.[1] Despite its dominance, many of its systems have been criticised by officers for their unwieldiness and unreliability,[2][3] and several police agencies have abandoned their use.[4]

Versaterm Inc.
Founded1977
Headquarters2300 Carling Avenue
Ottawa, Ontario
K2B 7G1
Websitewww.versaterm.com

Products

CAD software

Police agencies that have employed Versaterm's CAD system include Austin, Portland, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, and Seattle.[5] An inquiry by KXAN News into Austin's use of the system found that several critical hardware and software failures between 2008 and 2010 disabled the system for hours at a time, forcing operators to instead handwrite information when receiving emergency calls.[6][7]

Portland adopted Versaterm's system in 2011, at a cost of $14.5 million. Officers made hundreds of complaints in the months following the launch; reported problems included "system-wide crashes", incorrect dispatches to calls outside officers' jurisdictions, failures in tracking officers' locations, and issues with the font size and functionality of the user interface.[3][5] Agencies were also irritated by the $2.5 million annual maintenance costs they were required to contribute,[5] and, in a "near-mutiny", some considered not paying to employ the system, due to its reported problems. However, most of the issues had been fixed by 2013, and Portland defended the launch, pointing out that issues were to be expected in such a new system. Versaterm said "very few" of the reported problems were related to its software.[3]

Records management

Versaterm's record management software has been used by police forces from Austin,[8] British Columbia,[9][10][11] Minneapolis,[12] Portland[5] and Seattle.[8]

References
  1. Hoffman, Kristy; White, Patrick; Webb, Danielle (17 August 2015). "Carding across Canada: Data show practice of 'street checks' lacks mandated set of procedures". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  2. VanderHart, Dirk (23 November 2016). "Portland Cops Have Issues With Their New Crime Reporting Software". Portland Mercury. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  3. VanderHart, Dirk (19 June 2013). "Skipping Record". Portland Mercury. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  4. VanderHart, Dirk (5 July 2017). "Hall Monitor: Jumping Ship". Portland Mercury. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  5. Bernstein, Maxine (10 January 2019). "Multnomah County's new 9-1-1 computer dispatch system puts officers and public at risk, police say". OregonLive.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  6. Hernandez, Sally (15 November 2010). "911 computer glitch led to police delay". KXAN News. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  7. Liebelson, Dana (5 August 2013). "8 Cities Where 911 Systems Recently Failed". Mother Jones. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  8. Kroman, David (6 September 2016). "A 'trade secret': SPD's record-keeping system?". Crosscut.com. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  9. Crawford, Alison (17 July 2009). "RCMP costs soar with special B.C. computer system". CBC News. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  10. "Public safety minister downplays allegations of waste at RCMP". CBC News. 28 April 2009. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  11. Cardoso, Tom; White, Patrick (20 September 2019). "How The Globe tried – and failed – to find the source of Canada's crime guns". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  12. Jany, Libor (13 June 2018). "Minneapolis Police Department unveils new records system to help it keep up with modern crime". Star Tribune. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
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