InCommand Blog - Preplan, Inspect, Permit & MORE
CHALLENGE ACCEPTED: FIRE SAFETY EDUCATION . - by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Infinite Command is dedicated to the safety of firefighters and the communities they serve. Infinite Command has released many innovative solutions in pursuit of this mission, and has become vital to the Fire Department’s role in the community. This can be seen in how it supports fire protection systems & processes, fire prevention, fire & life safety education, incident planning, all-hazard preparation, on-scene decision support, reporting, and so much more. Fire & Safety Educators and Coordinators rely on Infinite Command to manage and track all related activities and details of safety education, even including counts of replaced detectors, changed batteries, demographic summaries of fire education participants and so much more (virtually unlimited). In fact, every one of the items listed below will return information that can be tracked in Infinite Command and used later for program justification, funding/budgeting, and impact studies. Call soon if you’d like to be up & running before fire prevention week, or if you’d like to learn more about Infinite Command. In the meantime, here are some ideas on how you can respond to your community’s fire & life safety education needs, in light of this year’s pandemic challenges!
- Meals on Wheels, your local food bank/food pantry and churches regularly engage your most vulnerable populations where they are. Groups like these are a fantastic resource for helping deliver your message and even identifying at-risk locations or individuals. Arm these community partners with your fire safety message, pamphlets, contact cards, etc.
- Go to where your community eats…. Restaurants, Food Trucks, and Grocery Stores are always looking for new and innovative ways to capture the attention of children so their parents can enjoy the activity. If a fire safety poster delivers the message and holds the attention of the child for a few minutes – success! Likewise, if you can reinforce a fire safety message with adults, while responsibly distancing yourself – that’s a WIN too!
- Use Social Media to schedule live online story-time for young children, and engage older children live using the same tools!
- Work with local schools to participate in their live-online activities (classrooms). Here you can give virtual tours of the fire station, share simulations, tour the burn trailer virtually, and even engage the students in conversation.
- Just a few years ago police and fire departments were participating in so-called lip-sync battles, and calling out neighboring agencies to accept the challenge. A twist on that idea may be to record a parody with a fire safety message for your community. An entertaining vid can have a viral effect in & beyond your community, and it meets your target audience where they are!
- Over the years we’ve seen many interesting and innovative ways to share the fire safety message. Remote controlled characters, puppet shows, mascots/costumes, even skits with live firefighters. Often fire departments will have small displays to educate onlookers about smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, home escape plans, cooking safety, or even how to use fire extinguishers. Your community still needs to learn these important safety tips and tricks. Enlist a handful of volunteers that represent your live audience, integrate your camera operator as one of them, and do the activity just like you always did – then post it to your website, social media, or make a scavenger hunt to find all 10 of your vids on community business websites for a simple contest!
- Are poster contests becoming out-dated? Modernize it!! Challenge your community members to create & submit a 30-second fire safety video. It’s a fun family activity, and a great reminder to think fire safe! You’ll be amazed at what you get back!! That footage may be very entertaining and useful as you continue your CRR education and activities throughout the year! It can also be helpful in driving traffic to your social media outlets and even to a city broadcast channel on the television.
- Work with your local chamber of commerce – they may be interested in helping to develop incentive programs that get your fire safety message out while fulfilling their mission to support local businesses. Perhaps the chamber has an allotment of ‘chamber bucks’ that can be spent at participating businesses, that haven’t been distributed. You could develop a simple incentive program to earn chamber bucks for engagement or through contests. One fantastic benefit of a program like this is that you can easily track and then use data to show the impact of your efforts/program. This also works to develop a community culture that reveres public safety providers. Community support combined with the ability to tie your efforts to a decrease in incidents or loss or severity will speak volumes when you’re justifying resources, staff, and related support.
- Delivering a message about fire safety can be very challenging if you have significant populations of non-English speaking community members. Have you considered carrying pictographs to help communicate the fire safety message? Pictographs in public safety have been used in EMS for years, to help improve communications (how bad it hurts, and point to where it hurts pictures). The universal language of visual arts can be an effective method for sharing your fire safety message!
- Broadcast partners (radio groups) are always looking for quality content, and information that can easily resonate with the community. Develop a relationship with your broadcast partners to help share the fire safety message this October and then keep sharing your CRR initiatives throughout the year! Not sure where to start? Call the radio station and ask for the community affairs division – that’ll get the ball moving!
BONUS: Kids and families are the obvious target, but don’t forget seniors in your fire safety education programs. We often find that new services and breakthroughs in medicine allowing seniors to stay in their homes longer. That phenomena creates unexpected challenges with health and fire safety that you can reinforce and/or catch early.
For more information on how Infinite Command supports your Fire & Life Safety Education & Coordination efforts, click HERE to have us call you back!
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Inspections Process = Success. by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
THE FIRE SAFETY CHALLENGE
You’ve answered the call - too often with limited time and resources. You’ve protected your community and crews when outcomes were uncertain. Your command, your crews, and your community all deserve better than those limitations and uncertainties, and so do you. Infinite Command answers those risks and challenges, helping fire departments like yours improve process, performance, preparation, planning, and prevention - all informing your decisions in the office and in the field.
Imagine a situationally-adapted preplan for better-faster-safer decisions enroute & onscene, or a SMART NFIRS Incident Report that dynamically adjusts to information as you enter it! The extraordinary value in these familiar yet clever innovations, combined with a responsive display for any device (any operating system and any laptop/tablet/phone), is almost inconceivable until you have experienced it! Let Infinite Command unite information from an array of sources to deliver current-concise-actionable information for any-hazard and all incoming crews, even AID agencies! If you are entering information on-location, let Infinite Command simplify and organize it - and even capture photo-documentation directly in your incident reports, investigations, inspections, violations, or pre-incident plans. In every sense, Infinite Command delivers simple, fast, task-oriented functionality that improves quality and performance, and especially the safety of your command, crews, and community.
While there’s so much more to share, the real key to your success is overcoming the unique and specific challenges that you face. In a first call, we should plan to share additional insights as we match features to your interests, needs and vision. Reply with a good time to call, or start a live chat here !
THE INTELLIGENT CHOICE
We view every moment as an opportunity to earn your acclaim as a trusted partner and your source for unvarnished guidance. Combining great service with an economical everyday solution that saves time & resources allowing you to do more good is a smart investment! Let us help you take control to rise above it all, have a better experience, save budgets/time/resources, and put the stress behind you.
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*While you're here, you might be interested in the many former blog articles below!*
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SEE 20/20 with Infinite Command. Know More - Do Better by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Dictionary: Command Infinitely
Com-mand In-fi-nite-ly
/kuh-mand/ /in-fuh-nit-lee/
Verb
- To Know and Direct (to orchestrate)
“The conductor leads with absolute confidence, bringing life to every note in his orchestra”
- A endless support for a strategic decisions in the office and in the field!
- Well-informed directives
“Don’t go in there, it’s not safe!”
Similar: To order with confidence, Make swift-decisive-informed decisions, Have broad vision and control
Noun
- Limitless Empowerment
“We are safer because our decisions are informed”
- Commanders thrive on facts, but sometimes hints are good too….
“Knowing what is important, preventing catastrophe, managing & orchestrating personnel/resources/education, measuring and comparing risk & response all works in unison to build a cache of knowledge infinitely supporting your command and crews.”
Similar: Instruction, Directive, Commandment, Infinite Command is here for you at every turn!
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Inspections Process = Success. by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Infinite Command has revolutionized Inspections. Our industry experts have researched, observed and solicited recommendations from inspectors and officials in nearly every state & region across the nation. The result is a robust and flexible foundation that supports absolute simplicity, speed, and accuracy on a scale never before imagined.
Add to that, a responsive design that adapts to ANY internet-connected device (tablet, phone, laptop/desktop). With Infinite Command you'll nave no installs, no software downloads or updates, no risky synchronizations, and not a single additional cost for your iphone/android/windows/other mobile device! Not only that, but you also get live (real-time) access to ALL of your data, and you can even have multiple inspectors conducting their part of the same inspection, all at the same time!
Process Promotes Progress
An effective inspection program, whether you’re performing code enforcement inspections, fire safety, building, rental, property maintenance, tent/temporary structure, or even speciality inspections like fire pump or food truck, requires skillful organization and a developed process that Infinite Command is uniquely designed for:
- Locate and prioritize inspections. (Prioritize by risk with target hazards as highest priority. (Life Risk, Hazard Risk, Economic Impact, or Building/Business Type, etc)
- Set it and forget it! Automate scheduling and simplify oversight of all related tasks!
- ‘Inspection Accountability’ is critical for resource needs & planning, it is where many systems fail. This vital feature is baked-in to Infinite Command’s scheduled inspections process!
- Use the calendar to visualize your upcoming schedule, Drag & Drop inspections for easy organization.(goes hand in hand with #5)
- Create a call-list. Call to confirm appointments and update Site/Contact details (contacts email/phone, changes since last inspection, etc)
- A quick review of past inspection reports can help improve your experience.
- Conduct inspections with Infinite Command's exclusive Check-Active inspection system, and dramatically improve speed and quality!
- Use your device’s Voice Command to help speed entry of notes/comments.
- Picture documentation helps illustrate the issue, improves customer service, helps on reinspections, and provides a frame of reference for future needs.Auto-connect pictures to violations that can be printed on the violation report, and for all other needs.
- Upon completion, quickly review and capture signatures, then one more click connects a copy of the report to the inspection while emailing all interested parties.
The Benefit Of An Integrated Approach
It often makes even more sense to multiply the benefit, using Infinite Command to manage and collect pre-incident plans using all of the same principles noted above for inspections! Imagine each of your crew members capturing photos and updating vital pre-incident plan info (construction, condition, alerts, hazards, features, etc), all at the same time… Incredible efficiency and better - SAFER responders, just by bringing everyone together under one umbrella.
FINALLY - your first responders can respond with up-to-the-moment information and details that they’ve never had before!! The potential benefits are virtually unlimited! Reply that you are interested, and we'll tailor a tour for your department!
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An effective response is a well-coordinated response. by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
That coordination starts with a practical, shareable, every-day-useful foundation of support for strategic, tactical, and responder safety related decisions
1) Streamline your process (automate and confirm key details prior to walkthrough)
- Set your fire-safety preplan inspections on a cycle, let Infinite Command alert you ahead of their due date (every cycle – 6mo, 1yr, 2yr, 3yr, etc).
- When you call to schedule the visit, confirm contact(s) and update details, then.
- Ask if there’ve been any changes (or planned changes): construction, business, products, processes?
- Update any other details when you call to confirm your walk-through.
2) Seamlessly collect and deploy vital details (concurrently improve efficiency & quality)
- Relative risk likely dictates prioritization, frequency, quantity of info, and commitment. Use your data to set determine those factors as you schedule preplans and for years to come.
- Make capturing vital information super simple (in-field, touch screen, voice to text, take pictures right from the preplan record, guide users with checklists, etc)
- Pre-set guidelines (Preparation should match risk… The higher the risk, the more information your crews need at decision time!).
- Higher Risk Sites:
- Identify and address concerns that can be resolved ahead of an attack (doors not labeled).
- Identify typical response practices (communications, secured/unsecure spaces, family/media/ems/command staging).
- Set alerts for things like situational strategies, responder safety concerns, known/unknown limitations, etc
- After data is collected, round-table the site and add additional considerations... this activity nicely doubles as training!
3) Clean-Concise-Comprehensive preplans are essential for smarter safer responders!
4) Data Interoperability promotes sharing preplans with your LEO’s, EMS, EMA, etc.
5) Share plans with AID agencies & double-down on safety and mitigation!
- Coordination with incoming AID agencies improves their effectiveness and safety.
6) Better process & plans = Better preparedness, outcomes & Better/safer community
- (Training: How/What/Where to train, what equipment, staffing, resource Use the information and tools day-to-day prevention/protection, operations and administration, as well as training and continuous improvement.
- Use the information both to plan training sessions, and in your training! Also great for table-top exercises
- Use the information for prevention and preparedness activities
- Use the information for administrative decisions – next station, new resources, justify staffing, etc.
- Use the information for mitigation planning with local departments and AID agencies. Consider bringing local law enforcement in to unify-planning where overlap is essential (hostile environment or Active Assailant incident)
- Special Teams in both fire and law enforcement can benefit from preplanned information (RIT, SWAT (planning raids), Bomb Squad (environment/infrastructure), School Safety Resource Officer, Search & Rescue, Swift Water, HazMat, SERT, CERT, Event Safety/Patrol, and even CAD911 Dispatchers.
Uniquely designed to continuously improve and incorporate every aspect of prevention, planning, preparation and coordination, Infinite Command is an indispensable tool from your office to the scene, and everywhere between.
More critically, Infinite Command promotes all responders to "Know before you go". That level of coordination is essential to a swift, safe, and smart response to every incident, even the most chaotic and complex mass casualty incidents that we've witnessed all-too-often lately. Improve safety and situational awareness without sacrificing your budget – call today.
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Residential Preplanning by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
As Infinite Command has become simple and accessible on any device, the volume and quality of preplanning has increased. So too has the interest in Residential Preplans (surveys). Residential surveys are on the rise, whether you are capturing information on your door-to-door smoke detector deployment program, picking-up a few tidbits while on an alarm or EMS call, having residents fill out a questionnaire during fire prevention week, or actively preplanning priority residential developments/neighborhoods. To help, we’ve compiled a simple list of features/considerations that are very beneficial to have on-hand during your residential response. As always, we are interested in your thoughts and what you’re planning to collect for residential preplans - we welcome your thoughts & response!
The simplest information like Construction Year/Era provides a basis for how a fire will progress and behave. For example, it is common for a 70-100yo residential buildings to be balloon frame construction (fast vertical fire spread!). Typically a hundred year old home that has been maintained will be less dangerous and predictable than a new building of similar size (provided the lighter-weight construction and practices that are used in today’s construction).
Keep It Simple: Having the basics is key - having Height, Width, Length, Floors, Sq Ft, Cu Ft at your fingertips will help determine necessary resources, ladders for egress, ladders & equipment for ventilation, pump operations, water requirements, and so much more.
Knowing a building’s Construction Style is important!!
- Ordinary Construction - Outside masonry, load-bearing walls with wooden floors & roof. Typically quite stable and resistant to rapid spread, but not resistant to collapse – pick your battles!
- Balloon Frame – Vertical members/studs extend from attic to basement. High risk of spread from any floor to the attic and the basement in rapid succession. A leaning balloon frame construction building is susceptible to rapid collapse due to high pressure on building materials.
- Platform Frame Construction – The answer to balloon frame construction, with each floor being a fire-stop (preventing rapid attic-basement extension). This is the most common multi-level construction type used today. Platform can be confused with light-weight construction, but has better fire-performance rating than LWC.
- Light-weight construction (materials and trusses/i-joists): Relatively new construction type. As the name implies, light weight construction does not use the same sturdy construction methods or materials as you might expect in older homes. Often you’ll find features that might typically be supported by 2x12’s, now supported by 2x4’s. Another tell-tale sign is cheap truss or I-beam joists. Consider that a fire-exposed truss or I-beam joist can fail in as little as 5-10 minutes… that’s right-about the time you arrive! (a far cry from the 20min benchmark). Be careful out there!
- Modular (built off-site and delivered) – Although maybe built within tight specifications and up to code, these homes are often built with light-weight construction and have their own unique firefighting challenges.
- Manufactured (mobile home/trailer) – Not all mobile homes are built the same, but there are commonalities about them that are mostly true across the board. As esthetics advance, it is becoming more and more difficult to identify mobile homes without close inspection. Identifying this ahead of time may help direct your efforts and safety concerns.
Condition - It is as beneficial to know that a building is in good condition, as it is knowing it is in poor or dilapidated condition. Whatever the circumstance, knowing a buildings condition and occupancy status will certainly shape your response and considerations.
Roof Type & Construction – The list of roof types and roof construction is ever expanding. Simply knowing the roof type & construction before arrival will help with strategy and tactics (even as simple as quickly grabbing the right saw and tools for ventilation).
Basement type – Full basement, Crawl space, Finished/unfinished, Walkout/not… each will alter your thought process and are all important to know before arrival and as the scene unfolds.
Reconstruction opens a whole new can of worms….. How many times have you been perplexed by the advancement of a fire, just to learn that it was perpetuated by void spaces (dangerous fire runs). Identifying the challenges of add-ons (building up or building out), roofline changes, wall removal or additions, etc. With rehab efforts driven by price/cost & esthetics, over fire safety concerns, the inherent risks in multiple-reconstruction projects is undeniable. Early notification is key to safety and protection.
Egress – identify ingress/egress points for each floor, including any for the basement. Consider the risk in cases where a single-family residence may have been modified for apartment-type living with outside-only access to basement or upper floor(s). There are too many concerns to list in this high-risk category.
Fire Escapes – It doesn’t take long to look around your community to find some really shady looking fire escapes!!
Exposures – Garage, town-homes with no common wall (very close proximity), Out-buildings, Propane tank, etc.
Other Property Features: Garage location (under house, side-attached, unattached), Out-buildings (sheds, pool-house *think chemicals, living space attached to larger commercial facility, etc).
Identify Emergency Contacts & related details
Water Sources may be a challenging. It may even be beneficial to identify alternate water sources (pool, pond, dry hydrant, or distant hydrant strategy)
If you are an Urban/Wildland Fire Safe Community – this can be a great opportunity to document external features, recommendations, and to also educate the homeowner of their safety-responsibilities.
Special characteristics
Inhibiting factors: Nuisance Property, Hoarder-type household,
Number of residence (large family in small house) – think not only about potential victims but also
Sprinklered
Potential for vicious animals
Seasonal occupancy
Short-term Rental (AirBnB type properties) – good to identify due to potential for increased risk and activity
TOO MANY TO LIST HERE – WHAT DO YOU TRACK?
Take Pictures of hazards, building features, special circumstances, front of building for quick identification during response or upon arrival. If time allows, take pictures around the back of the building – you may appreciate that you did on some foggy dark-morning response.
Sketch a floor plan/layout if you don’t already have one
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A Greater Mission by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
With a solemn mission to improve firefighter safety, Infinite Command has become synonymous with vital response tools, situational awareness, and command decision support. However, this mission requires specialized tools that extend into every aspect of public safety (Ops, Admin, Training, Planning, Prevention, Preparedness, Policies/Guidelines, etc). In fact, it is entirely possible that Infinite Command’s greatest benefit to firefighter safety (and that of the community) is an extraordinary focus on Prevention and Preparedness. So, whether you are preparing to improve your ISO rating, attain Accreditation, or initiate your Urban/Wildland Fire Safe Community or Community Risk Reduction program – Infinite Command is uniquely designed to guide your success.
Take Community Risk Reduction (CRR), for example… Infinite Command simplifies the process of identifying and prioritizing the wide-ranging risks in your community. You can then use Infinite Command to support the development of your strategy & tactics, and assist you in managing measurable outcomes (goals & benchmarks). Performance measurement and continuous quality improvement are made easy with Infinite Command, and an essential step in ensuring your CRR Plan’s success. The more we can do to prevent incidents, the safer and better-off we’all are! If you are responsible for the safety of your crew, then we are on the same mission. Together we can do it! Call, Message, or See More at http://www.infinitecommand.com
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"Do more with less" also means less time - WAIT - WE FOUND IT by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Your duty to protect & serve never waivers, neither does our pursuit of excellence. We recognize that “do more with less” also means that you end up with less time to do some of your most important work! In 2018, Infinite Command focused on meaningful innovations that also return that ‘lost’ time (and more) back to you. The results have been staggering. Nowhere is this more evident than in managing preplan cycles, scheduling inspections, or faster-higher quality assessments – these dramatic advancements are just a click away: *Automate Management*, Inspect, Cite, Sign, Email, Attach, Repeat… simple!!
Extraordinary flexibility allows Infinite Command to match to your particular needs. Schedule your private webcast and prepare to be amazed: :http://www.infinitecommand.com/info_requests/
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What does “ANY DEVICE” mean anyway? by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Finally, in-field data collection made simple! One of the great challenges to app developers is adapting to the wide variety of devices available today. When we say ANY device, we really mean it! With Infinite Command, user experiences are nearly identical with every device (android, ipad, etc). All of this is accomplished intuitively, without having to download apps or re-learn different interfaces. You have selected the device that best fits all of your needs, and we strive to take advantage of all of it’s capabilities, such as:
- ONE-TOUCH, fully Integrated pictures, videos & voice recording
- Always On - live Access to all history
- Automatically email reports to all associated contacts
- Voice Command – makes typing notes super-simple
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ANYTIME/ANYWHERE INSPECTIONS by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: Fast and Simple access to complete inspection history for every site record in the system. It is often helpful to have access to inspections just before walking into an inspection, or even during an inspection. In Infinite Command, not only do you have direct access to all history, but you can see previous reports, checklist results, pictures, and even signatures.
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Infinite Command UNIQUELY delivers flexibility to meet a WIDE variety of inspections by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Condemnation Inspections
Courtesy Inspections
General Construction
- Footing and foundation inspections
- Rough framing inspections
- Insulation and vapor barrier
- Final inspections
- Boiler permit & safety inspections
- Commercial vent hood inspections
- All hazardous type inspections
- Plumbing inspections
- Electrical inspections
- Structural inspections
- Fire Protection inspections
Residential & Commercial Code Inspections
Special Enforcement Inspection
Vacant Building Inspections - xxx
Abandoned Property Inspection - xxx
Ongoing Fire Protection Systems Inspection
Fire Alarm Panel Inspections
Sign Ordinance Compliance Inspection
Fire & Life Safety Inspections
Environmental Inspections
Rental & Multi-family dwelling Inspections
Tent and Temporary Structure Inspections
Carnival Ride Inspections
Food Truck Inspections
Nuisance Inspection –
Daycare Inspections
Income-subsidized Housing Inspections
Bridge & Dam Inspections
Nursing Home & Hospital
Seasonal Inspections (occupied and vacant recreational housing)
Tunnel/Viaduct Inspections – Man-made/natural tunnels: cause ways, caves, mountain tunnels
Taxicab Regulation/Inspections
Environmental Health Inspections
Construction and Land Use Permitting
Urban/Wildland Fire Safe Community - Urban/Wildland Interface (UWI) Inspections
Don’t forget, Infinite Command supports quality, efficiency, and efficacy with user-defined and standards-based inspection checklists for any/all !
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Fireground: Know You Know the Risks by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
We all know that ‘structure & fire behavior’ are key factors in developing on-scene strategies and ensuring the safety of your fire crews. The complexity of this topic is endless, and yet a crucial component to success on the job. As a responsibility of every firefighter’s response, the task of evaluating a scene for key indicators, potential hazards & backup-plans may seemingly become second nature for routine calls, but a comprehensive and continuous scene size-up is both fundamental and essential to any situation that has, even the slightest potential to reach, significance.
When faced with an early morning worker, like the recent Plaza Lanes fire, the size-up undoubtedly identified a mature fire in a large commercial building with bow-string construction (time, type, construction, condition). Aside from quality training, location familiarity and a lifetime of experience, these incident factors certainly played a major role in Command’s decisions, ensuring the safety of the community and all responders. **A job well done!
That said, if any number of variables hadn’t been managed just as they were, it is easy to see how the outcome of a similar incident could play-out differently in another city. For instance; 1) In the dark of night, if the facade had been more pronounced, the roof construction may not have been identified so quickly, 2) What if the commander was any less experienced (acting officer for the night) and/or the crew less familiar with the location (company moved-up). 3) it is very likely on that size of incident that crews could be arriving from other stations or other agencies (completely unfamiliar), 4) A different time of day, 5) any number of occupants, 6) water supply issues, 7) building contents & load, 8) weather issues, 9) hidden spaces and exposures, 10) any number of other hazards… the possibilities are vast.
Infinite Command’s designers have meticulously crafted a tactical-response tool that feeds all of these critical points to responders automatically AND in an exclusive and inventively simple (concise) useful style. This is a true one-of-a-kind solution to your consistent performance and success before, during, and after an incident. What makes it most unique is that it is imagined by responders like you, and because (like you) we’ve dedicated our lives to our craft, and it shows!
So, whether you are training, planning, inspecting investigating, or responding to a pipeline fire, a derailed train, an active shooter, a commercial fire, an industrial collapse, or any number of other potential scenarios – Demand Infinite Command! If you aren’t convinced yet – you’ve got to see it today – call now!
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Smarter-Safer Firefighters by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Studies show that visualization has an exceedingly positive impact on aptitude, performance, and outcomes. No matter how routine, every incident has a potential for unexpected circumstances and unforeseen hazards.
Your selfless dedication to improving the life & safety of others makes it that much more unimaginable to think that you could have known better when it mattered most. Operating at peak performance is a trademark of emergency responders, and when you know better - you do better. Whether enroute or onscene, Infinite Command helps you visualize – to know the hazards, to be mindful of the knowns and unknowns, to circumvent the pitfalls, and to take advantage information that ensures safe results.
Infinite Command™ delivers the most critical information and stunning visuals – like never before. Infinite Command is the visualization tool that gives you the ‘extra edge’ to make the decisions that you’ve prepared an entire career for.
Don’t leave that opportunity to chance – See your EDGE in Infinite Command today.
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Start Your Legacy: Make Pre-Incident Plans Your Priority by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
We all understand the value of preplans on effective incident-mitigation and overall safety, but have you ever wondered why such a widely accepted ‘standard practice’ is so commonly under used? There are many explanations why we haven't done better, but there are many more and powerful reasons why we should. With a renewed commitment to better planning for the safety of your community and firefighters, you may now begin to see that there are many ways around the barriers that were holding you back. In this first article, we’ll explore strategies for keeping preplans fresh and relevant.
Commit to annual site visits (preplan-inspections). Set alerts to remind you what preplan-type inspections are due on a specific day, week, month or quarter. Remember, you should also maintain records of preplan visits for your evaluations (ISO/ACC).
A Continuous Quality Control process will help identify unexpected inconsistencies. Start with your highest risk assets (target hazards), checking to be sure they have the most relevant preplan features (building/systems, tasks/strategies, etc). With technology, you can easily identify and resolve unexpected inconsistencies in your preplan information or in the Site's features.
Develop risk mitigation strategies especially for high risk Sites. Often “preplans” are thought-of as drawings. Not everyone has the skill or the tools to draft a preplan drawing. TODAY however, preplanning is so much more than a simple drawing. Now anyone can contribute valuable observations or develop action plans for certain circumstances. You’re not going to be able to account for every possible variable, but you certainly can start to build strategies for managing varieties of incidents at a specific site.
Integrate live preplans into your training and table-top exercises to maintain a high level of awareness. There’s no doubt you’ll find areas where you can improve your preplans through this activity
Make them a part of your daily activity. Some departments showcase a site or even a category of sites each week, while others have included a site briefing as part of their daily regimen.
Community Involvement helps to ensure the most accurate information is always available, while also keeping fire safety at the forefront of their routine. Employ fire explorers or hire interns to call building owners and simply confirm the accuracy of important information, ask critical questions, and empower them to educate the community how to be proactive in alerting the fire department about changes or updates to contact/property information.
And finally (most importantly).... Select a solution that minimizes the administrative effort, helps you remain disciplined in maintaining accurate and up-to-date information, and capably organizes/presents the information for consumption under pressure.
Your team at Infinite Command is the product of decades of direct public safety experience, thousands of hours of observation and refinement, and the most advanced and accepted technology practices available today. We've simplified nearly every aspect of preplan management, we know how to make this work for you, and we can do it cost effectively. Start your legacy now at www.infinitecommand.com
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Could three-ring binders or pdf preplans get you dethroned? by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
You’ve heard the axiom “Data is King”, right? It refers to having a wealth of riches that allows you to rule with strength and confidence (like a king). With great data management tools, every ‘bit’ of data in your reserve multiplies the value of the data that existed before it. However, the moment that you convert data to print or pdf, you devalue and destabilize the foundation of incident-critical decisions. The bottom line is, “print is not data”, and print/pdf eliminates your leverage for effective operations.
When life and safety are at stake, confidence and strength in your decisions must be based on accurate and meaningful information. Infinite Command enhances the quality and efficiency of that preplan data, while ensuring the right information is delivered to the right people at the right time.
Command like a king – demand your data in Infinite Command!
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Visualization: A Key to Firefighter Safety & Performance by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Studies show that visualization is a powerful technique for improving performance and outcome (safety on the fire ground). Infinite Command organizes the most critical information and stunning visuals so that your responders arrive prepared and focused. You deserve the same ‘edge’ that elite performers use before every performance - especially when lives are on the line! See your EDGE in Infinite Command today!
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Fire Officials Require Efficient Tools by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Fire Marshals and Fire Inspectors commonly note that workloads are beyond their capacity and unbalanced. There are many reasons behind this, but experts warn about the cost of poor designs and layers of technology as a deteriorating factor. There has been a concerted effort to sugar-coat old tech concepts that improve sales of device specific apps, synchronization dependent software, and decades of promises that haven’t come through. Those who invested in “web-based” are realizing that that term is just a thinly veiled disguise for something well-short of a true web application?
It’s unfortunate that this struggle is so well documented, as it is not uncommon to have been sold on the idea of adding layers of software to a base system (administer one system, while importing/exporting to another system, that syncs data to/from handheld devices). This is ugly, risky, costly, and seemingly difficult to extricate yourself from, BUT it is just the tip of the iceberg compared to the costs below the surface. As if the initial purchase & ongoing costs of each layer weren’t unseemly enough, they are quickly overshadowed by the rising cost of support - and your cost & hours to maintain it. These extraordinary expenses can go undetected (and/or seemingly unavoidable) for years - constantly eroding your budget and ability to direct funds to critical services.
As a fully integrated system, Infinite Command eliminates all of the functional disparities and the extraordinary cost to maintain such a cluster as noted above. With Infinite Command, you have No Installations, No Updates, No Synchronizations, and No Software! It is accessible from anywhere, on any device, at any time. Whether you are working on risk mitigation plans, completing tactical surveys, undergoing an Accreditation/ISO type review, performing fire prevention/code enforcement inspections, or responding to an incident, Infinite Command delivers from the cloud to your desktop, to your dash, or to your hand.
To learn about the unique and innovative capabilities that can help restore balance and provide decision support from the field to the planning desk, can improve the efficiency and agility of your inspectors, and can help your firefighters respond smarter and safer -http://www.infinitecommand.com/info_requests/
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Firefighter Safety: Plans are Essential by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
With lives, property, and firefighter safety on the line – few priorities are higher.
Capturing critical preplan information, community involvement, and maintaining vigilance & awareness of your environment are all benefits of performing your Tactical Survey (Pre-Incident Plans). However, many argue that the extensive time required to draw the plans could be better allocated. We all know that drawing isn’t a skill-set that many firefighters have a particular interest in perfecting. So, what happens…. We’ve all seen it – the drawings (sometimes the whole preplan program) gets overrun with other tasks – then when disaster strikes and that information is critically needed, they’re outdated, unreliable and potentially even (hard to admit) hazardous.
Are you ready to get your preplan drawings up-to-date, easily editable, and out of that dusty 3-ring binder? Are you ready to have your up-to-date sketches, alerts, threats, hazards, maps, pictures, videos, special notices, weather, and references at your fingertips the moment you hop in the rig? It’s time to see the rewards of your hard work and preparation – it’s time to get some valuable time back! Your Infinite Command team will digitize your drawings and bring your pre-incident plans to life - accessible from your desk, dash, or hand!
Here's a short clip that tells a little bit about Infinite Command's Tactical Response Module: http://www.infinitecommand.com/videos/#v=5
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Firefighter job description is a challenge. So too is that of this critical skill... by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
When firefighters are put in position to answer “What do you do”, you’ll be surprised to know that ‘put out fires’ is one of MANY jobs that a firefighter performs… And then you add training for all of those jobs… and then you add all of the things that you do that you can’t train for and all of the sacrifices… It is a huge responsibility, an even bigger honor, and an even bigger benefit to the community than anyone would imagine.
In a very similar way, when asked “What is a preplan”, you may be surprised to learn that ‘drawings’ is only one of MANY crucial aspects of a preplan, and that using preplans for on-scene operations is only one of many ways preplans can/should be used. Drawings are important to represent various building features and locating critical infrastructure, but effective preplans will provide critical information such as special instructions, access codes, protocol notations (eg: vacant buildings = no entry), known/unknown limitations, special precautions, specific firefighter hazards, critical decision points. The list is limitless!
Also limitless are the various ways preplans can and should be used: Train with preplans. Develop strategies and action plans. Identify training needs. Engage with the community - Encourage community engagement. Recruit training & study. Discover special resource & skills requirements. Uncover specific risks and hidden dangers. Get a “big picture” look at your community. Study & know your community and it's assets. Informed = safer firefighter under any circumstances! Improve your Fire & Life Safety IQ.
**SAVE A MATE with preplans - insist that everyone perform preplans & insist that everyone use preplans!
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First Blog - Introducing Infinite Command... by Progressive Intelligence Technologies
Infinite Command delivers practical cloud solutions and purpose built mobile response tools, focused to help local government leaders and public safety responders perform smarter and safer than ever before. We uniquely deliver powerful and flexible web solutions that address your most complex day-to-day challenges, while dramatically improving the services that you deliver to your community.
Let us show you how a single platform for various departments and city services can both stimulate sharing of pertinent information and exponentially improve efficacy of your organization. Whether you need to focus on a single department/service (Water-Utility, Building/Planning, Administrative, Fire, EMS, Law Enforcement, Community Development, etc.), or magnify the benefit by connecting disparate services into an integrated system, Infinite Command is poised to help.
Cloud solutions are now widely regarded as the most powerful and cost effective business options available today. Infinite command delivers cloud subscription services that expertly combine value, speed, agility, and flexibility without sacrificing your budget or performance.
Infinite Command is the evolution of a suite of products from Progressive Intelligence Technologies, who has been delivering situational awareness and tactical response software to Fire, EMS, and Law Enforcement agencies for decades. Public safety agencies now rely on Infinite Command to deliver innovative solutions support your decisions on scene, in the office, and beyond.
On your desk, on your dash, and in your hand - Infinite Command is the first and only technology provider that inventively exceeds your expectations in a single solution:
- Secure and robust cloud platform.
- Combined GIS and Information Management.
- Interoperable solutions for multi-agency response.
- Scalable and flexible for all-size and any number of agencies.
- Situational Awareness and Tactical Decision Support.
- Access to information anywhere and anytime.
For decades, fire service leaders like you have engaged with our team, shaping our vision for an incredibly powerful yet practical, simple, and complete Fire Department Management solution. The result is a unique & comprehensive web application that eliminates need for technical expertise, slashes costs of ownership infrastructure and IT resources, provides access from any device anytime, simplifies your day-to-day operations, and improves everything from Fire Protection & Prevention to Response & Reporting! Infinite Command is the one source for firefighting tools & technology that uniquely organizes and transforms information into actionable decisions. Unlike the antiquated methods and obsolete systems that are leaving your crews and community exposed, Infinite Command moves your force forward innovatively, intelligently, efficiently and safely. MESSAGE NOW TO SET YOUR GUIDED TOUR!
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“Fires burn hotter, faster, and need more water to extinguish”. This is often the ‘go to’ introduction in explaining today’s difficulties in the fire service, but we all know that it barely scratches the surface. Leaving decisions that affect public safety to ‘good intentions and intuition’ is mostly made for television drama. The reality is that battling for the safety of your crews and community can end in misfortune if you’re unable to make a compelling case for finances, essential staffing, equipment, programs, and standards-based operations.
You’re on the right track if you’re asking: Have I turned-over every stone, meeting the needs of the community, reaching our goals and tracking our vision? -How do I know and can I prove it? Have I ensured our crews received essential training and operate in peak performance, informed, skilled, proficient and safe? Are efforts to safeguard, prepare, engage and educate the community measured and working – and can I show it? How are our community engagements helping to establish adequate support & funding to reach my goals and vision?
While introspection can be intimidating, getting it right is definitely NOT insurmountable - it's easier than you might imagine… Infinite Command is tailor made to simplify, organize, measure, justify, analyze, automate, manage, and relieve such burdens so that you can focus on the most important decisions ahead! See here –
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Construction Site Risks
- Progressive Intelligence Technologies
For countless reasons, a site under construction is often at its greatest risk of fire and serious injury. While the Iowa City Fire Department (pictured here) is credited with ending this incident after a quick knockdown, a rescue of the crane operator, and no reported casualties, the incident is a great reminder of the inherent (and avoidable) risks of a construction site.
As you know, firefighters respond to a construction site even more disadvantaged; knowing little or nothing about the state of construction, not having clear points of ingress & egress, or how to access upper floors, status of completion (with virtually every step), type of construction (hotter-faster burn), power sources (temporary, portable, etc), hazardous materials, etc. We all know the dangers and the simple truth that fire departments aren’t allocated the time, staff, or resources to reasonably ensure their own safety on the scene of new construction or reconstruction projects.
We have introduced a powerful solution to combat this everyday challenge…. Infinite Command’s integrated approach eliminates the need to dedicate additional time/staff/resources to collect or manage construction sites. More vital to the safety of your responders - now you can have current drawings, alerts, hazmat reports, plans, construction details, status updates and much more at your fingertips while enroute and onscene. All of that information will become the basis of your ongoing pre-incident plan, and a foundation for managing fire safety and code enforcement inspections for the life of the site. Sound interesting? It’s only a small sample of what we’ve introduced. Let us give you a tour of Infinite Command today.
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To Our Valued Customers,This week, Infinite Command made a landmark announcement in the unveiling of the innovative Inspection Automation Cloud Platform. Complemented by a host of new products, features and capabilities, the new platform tightly automates the scheduling of inspections and provides simple-to-use real-time visual management tools, while seamlessly integrating with the entire portfolio of Infinite Command products - maximizing efficacy and decision support. This unveiling includes many key announcements that will help you better serve your community and keep your responders safe.
- NEW* Calendar Multi-view (Day, Work Week, Full Week, Month, Agenda, Timeline etc) capabilities for a simple, effective, and connected user experience.
- NEW* Calendar Filters provide an effective method for managing individual inspector or organization-wide schedules.
- NEW* Imagine planning your day or week in seconds! Now you can quickly visualize the calendar, Drag & Drop select inspections to the applicable day/time frame, and you’re done!
- NEW* Calendar Initiation empower inspectors, supervisors, or even call-takers with actionable data for real-time and real-fast access to inspection schedules by inspector.
- NEW* Advanced Schedule Definitions offer a rich and intuitive environment for automating your business and helping to ensure that critical community touch-points aren’t missed.
- NEW* Auto-Creation **key feature** automation, and includes deeper integration with calendar, permitting, Site/Preplanning, Staff and Contacts.
- NEW* From the simplest (single unit annual rental inspection), to the most complex (highly specialized industrial complex) requiring multiple highly-technical and varying inspections, Infinite Command’s extraordinarily flexible & powerful automation and management tools are second to none!
- NEW* Inspection Defaults deliver operational and economic benefits -allowing you to pre-set information that effectively coordinate your activities and process. Consider that this