Real Time Crime Center Control Room - Mission Critical Solutions for Public Safety

Optimizing Your Real-Time Crime Center Control Room for Community Safety

Looking to add a real-time crime center (RTCC) or real-time information center (RTIC)?

Whether adopting or renovating an existing space or building a new one, implementing an RTCC or RTIC requires planning for current demand and future community growth and expansion. Many believe real-time centers are just about fancy video walls, surveillance cameras, and state-of-the-art technology, but it is more than allocating space for large video displays. You need to consider the human factor, both within the control room and the communities, officers, and command staff that you serve. The full functionality of how all the information and key data sources fit together to create not only an efficient operation for command staff but also a quality response time for public safety are all integral to the success of an RTCC or RTIC. Providing critical information, real-time intelligence, and situational awareness, the RTCC supports officers in improving police presence and office safety, effectively helping to solve crimes and improve community safety.

Key Considerations for Real-Time Crime Center Consoles:

Is your real-time crime center designed to handle the stress of real-time decision-making?
Can your RTCC operaators easily access all the critical data they need?
Have you considered future security threats that could impact public safety?

If you're unsure about the answers to these questions, keep reading to explore why ignoring upfront planning and strategic control room design can be costly, not just financially but also in terms of its impact on community safety and officer safety.

With over 40 years of experience designing and installing mission-critical control rooms, Evans provides unique expertise in creating real-time crime centers. Our approach considers all of the key elements that contribute to the ideal RTCC environment, including technology architecture, operational planning, and operational/infrastructure flexibility.

A Word About Real-Time Crime Centers

There are now more than 123 real-time crime centers across the US, and this number is growing.

Think of a real-time crime center as a high-tech hub for law enforcement agencies. Its primary goal is to ensure law enforcement and public safety teams have all the critical tools and real-time technologies at their fingertips. This enables accurate and effective crime reporting to officers on the ground.

Every real-time crime center is unique, yet they share a common purpose: to aggregate surveillance data throughout a city to build a real-time view of criminal activities. RTCCs rely on various technologies, including CCTV, Automic Licence Plate Recognition (ALPR) cameras, gunshot sensors, and social media monitoring. With these advanced tools, the police force can improve their focus on keeping officers, citizens, and the community safer by responding to criminal activity.

Our Real-Time Crime Center Design Experience

Evans builds control rooms for RTCCs, integrating advanced technology such as video feeds, data storage, and real-time information sharing while accounting for operator ergonomics, acoustics lighting, and sight lines.

With our proven methodology, quality standards, and 40 years of experience in mission-driven environments, Evans is the best choice for developing and implementing real-time crime center control rooms. With us, you will get enduring, high-quality RTCCs tailored to stand the test of time, ensuring critical information flows seamlessly to sworn officers, RTCC personnel, and first responders. Whether you are currently operating an RTCC or aiming to build one, Evans offers complete solutions to meet your community safety and public safety agencies’ needs.

Main Factors To Consider When Designing A Real-Time Crime Center

Operational & Technology Infrastructure Flexibility

A key premise of a real-time crime center control room is to respond to real-time situational issues by accessing multiple data sources, involving experts and agency stakeholders. An added variable is that each specific operational scenario may require a different approach or response.

The sources of information within the RTCC can be static and dynamic from an IT perspective. The information sources vary between read vs. write, secure vs. non-secure, and likely vary by agency (stakeholder).

RTCC personnel must be able to view video surveillance tools and search multiple databases, including intelligence resources, simultaneously. Lastly, flexibility of content access should be a key consideration to maximize the flexibility to add or remove operational content.

It is important to map the operational inputs and outputs within the RTCC control room as it becomes a key driver in the planning and design process.

Architectural Design

Lighting is critical in any RTCC control room environment. Improper lighting is one of the biggest factors that contribute to operator fatigue during shifts. The lighting solution should be room-specific and provide uniform illumination levels throughout the RTCC while accounting for AV elements and operator positioning to minimize glare but also allow for future re-configurations without impacting the lighting plan.

At Evans, we offer multiple solutions for complex illumination required in any integrated operations center.

Similarly, acoustics are important key considerations within any RTCC control room. The level of noise can vary depending on operational activity. Verbal communication is important to understand the big picture in an RTCC and makes noise attenuation more critical.

RTCC personnel should be able to communicate easily with each other without interfering with their ability to communicate with field units. This is addressed early in the design process by minimizing noise sources as well as designing and specifying materials that will maximize sound absorption and minimize reverberation.

Audio Visual Considerations

The ability to aggregate multiple systems into a singular pixel space is essential to maximize the situational awareness and cognitive performance of the operator. An example could be large video walls. An RTCC doesn't need to have a video wall, it can be useful for visiting personnel/command personnel, providing a global view of what is occurring and how field units are responding. The size and type of display technology, however, will depend on the specific operational requirements and data distribution (technology infrastructure) of the specific RTCC.

While there are evolving AV options available, it is important to consider the operational and budgetary requirements to design and specify the adequate solution specific to the RTCC operational model.

Ergonomics In A Real-Time Crime Center

The RTCC control room is frequently an open-style room, allowing the operators to engage easily with a person next to them and share information or tasks. In typical 911 environments, operators take calls from their console position and will stay there during the entire shift. In an RTCC, information sharing between operators and the specific console layout will need to reflect this exchange of information. Verbal communication and movement by RTCC personnel are vital, so the environment should support it. Again, your design will vary depending on your specific situation.

Real-Time Crime Center Control Room Security Trends

What data does RTCC collect and store:

IP video monitoring system data
Video surveillance data (also known as CCTV)
License plate readers' data
Automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) data
Intelligent vehicle tracking

Data security is a paramount priority for all real-time crime centers right now. As technological advancements continue to reshape surveillance systems and real-time intelligence capabilities, the need to fortify defenses against potential breaches and cyber threats becomes increasingly crucial. In response to the ever-evolving landscape of cybersecurity, RTCCs are implementing robust measures, from encryption protocols to regular security audits, to ensure the integrity of the data they handle.

How Can Evans Help You Build a Real-Time Crime Center Console?

Our understanding of the vital elements impacting mission-critical operations is unmatched. We apply our industry expertise to consistently provide (RTCC) control room solutions that drive change and process improvements across the industry. Our clients, including law enforcement agencies and public safety agencies, work with us because we keep an eye on market trends, environmental demands, and longevity requirements.

We have teams that deal with the entire range of real-time crime center implementation including consulting, operational planning, control room design, project management, console design, console manufacturing, installation, warranty, ongoing support, and Evans Care. We are your ideal partner to build the most optimal RTCC control room.

Real-Time Crime Center Control Rooms

Effectively supporting crime-fighting efforts with complete crime center control solutions.