Where's the emergency? Tensing & what3words

Where’s the emergency?

This is one of the key questions that a control room dispatcher asks when responding to a 112 (Dutch emergency number) call. Every second counts when deploying a response and communicating location simply and easily is critical. Historically this has been challenging but Tensing and what3words now have a solution.

Tensing is an award winning global specialist in spatial intelligence. They help solve GIS and mobile work management challenges through enterprise mobility solutions that seamlessly connect mobile field workers to the back office. They work across public safety, field services, transportation and logistics and utilities with clients ranging from Dutch National Police, Schipol Airport, and PostNL to Southern California Edison and Sydney Water.

Command and Control Room 360 (CCR360) is Tensing’s map centric solution for both public and privately owned emergency rooms. Based on the Esri ArcGIS geo-platform it controls all data traffic between the back-end systems in the control room, the GPS-equipped field units and the CCR360 software.

Easy communication of specific locations is critical when responding to an emergency situation. However street addressing can be inaccurate and doesn’t cover everywhere. Places like woods, parks or dunes are difficult to describe. Whilst latitude and longitude coordinates are accurate they are prone to error when transcribing or communicating them. And where can I find the GPS coordinates on my phone?

To solve this Tensing have integrated what3words into their product suite.

has divided the world into 3m x 3m squares, each with a unique 3 word address. Now people can refer to any precise location by using just three words. More memorable, easier to communicate and less prone to errors it means everywhere now has a simple address.

“At Tensing we have for years engaged in determining locations and the best way to capture and share them. In our CCR360 product we have built a large number of search options for messages quickly and accurately to give a position on the map,” commented Dirk Verbeek, business unit director of Tensing – Safety & Security. “what3words is a valuable addition to the arsenal. Anyone who calls 112 and uses the free app features may pass his location quickly and seamlessly to the emergency room. And that can save lives.”