Operating Report 2013-14

RESILIENCE RELIABILITY SECURITY

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Table of Contents1 Message from the Board Chair

2 Corporate Overview

3 PPSTN Coverage

4 2013/14 Annual Highlights

6 Interoperability

7 Training

8 PPSTN Equipment

10 PPSTN – Our People

12 Governance Overview

Our VisionSaskatchewan Public Safety: Connected, Interoperable

Our Mission• To establish, operate and maintain a

reliable, resilient and secure Public Safety Telecommunication Network in a manner responsive to the needs of the public.

Our Value Statement• Responsive, respectful, progressive and

accountable in everything we say, do and offer.

Our Guiding Principles and Strategic Direction

• We will be a recognized model for provincial and territorial public safety radio systems.

• Our partnership is highly committed and will provide strong leadership and collectively manage strategic growth.

• We will be responsive to client needs and as a minimum maintain current client levels and client services.

• All partners will have a voice in influencing network direction and performance.

• We will maintain a high level of Resilience, Reliability and Security for the system.

• We are an evergreening network. • Our operations will reflect shared and

equitable operating costs within a sustainable funding model.

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Message from the Board ChairOur network continues to evolve based on our strategic direction which is driven by our Mission, Principles and Vision. We continue to make progress in our efforts to optimize the capacity of the network within a responsible and accountable operational framework. As always the front-line responder and service provider are our focus for service delivery.

Our people who work for the RCMP, SaskPower and Government Relations – working together daily – continue to deliver a public

safety communications service second to none. As a result of their teamwork developing and implementing innovative solutions to challenges has become the norm rather than the exception.

Our efforts to improve resilience are beginning to bear fruit and we feel confident that we are moving closer to fulfilling this critical element of our Mission. The ambient air-cooling and generator installation projects which were initiated to address site cooling and power requirements are nearing completion. This year we implemented strategies and technology to improve network reliability and upgraded fibre connectivity, redundant paths between repeaters and the dispatch centre LANspan backup radio links.

SaskPower, RCMP and Government Relations team members are contemplating strategies for the ongoing development and deployment of training opportunities throughout our client user base. Government Relations has commissioned an online survey measurement tool that will be used to review training effectiveness.

We are striving to develop interoperable opportunities with non-PPSTN agencies within the province and with our provincial and U.S. neighbours. This work focuses on common technologies, standard operating practices and operating agreements.

Our network core has now been enhanced. This will open the door to adding site capacity as new areas of requirements emerge. We also continue to research and develop innovative solutions and tools that we can use to optimize the existing footprint of the network. Deploying these tools has been challenging but we are confident that they will fulfill their promise.

Although there is an emerging interest in wireless data services the requirement for mission critical radio voice capacity will remain in the forefront for years to come. Over the past year we have engaged in a comprehensive review of our current operations focusing on governance, technology, training and funding. We are also planning for the future by looking ahead at the three, five and ten year time frames.

With more than 8000 users from more than 400 agencies PPSTN has emerged as a leader in deploying interoperable public safety communications solutions in Canada. We are proud of this “made in Saskatchewan” solution which is part of our joint mandate to offer reliable and robust service to the people of our province.

Tom Kindred PPSTN Board Chair

Corporate Overview

The Provincial Public Safety Telecommunications Network (PPSTN) is operated through the PPSTN Agreement between the Ministry of Government Relations, SaskPower and the RCMP. It is the radio system used by most public safety agencies outside of Regina and Saskatoon. Its 260 repeater sites provide service to front-line public safety and service responders in populated areas across the province including corridors and in many communities in northern Saskatchewan.

• PPSTN uses modern digital technology which follows North American P25 standards and both VHF and 800 MHz radio frequencies to provide mission-critical voice communications to front-line responders. Its many redundant systems assure a high availability of service to its clients.

• PPSTN is an essential part of the emergency response continuum. Calls for service to centralized 9-1-1 answering personnel are channeled through dispatchers to front-line responders across the province. This gives front-line responders the ability to speak directly to each other during an emergent event and to access other agencies. The PPSTN service is a vital link to support resources and personal safety regardless of the scale of the incident.

• PPSTN is a strong advocate of achieving interoperable communication between responder agencies and other field radio systems. Ongoing training is provided to its clients to ensure they will be able to respond during a multi-agency event.

• Partners contribute capital in alignment with their system responsibilities and fund their own users. Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Government Relations operating costs are funded through monthly user fees and revenue provided through The Emergency 911 System Act while RCMP and SaskPower operating costs are budgeted internally.

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Government of Saskatchewan

RCMP SaskPower Total

Operations & Maintenance/ Salary

$ 2,485,548 $ 4,091,528 $ 1,717,591 $ 8,294,667

Enhancement $ 1,463,398 $ 2,520,807 $ 1,470,015 $ 5,454,220

Sustainability $ 180,191 $ 1,411,106 $ - $ 1,591,297

TOTAL $ 4,129,137 $ 8,023,441 $ 3,187,606 $ 15,340,184

PPSTN Expenditures for the year ending March 31, 2014

PPSTN Coverage in Saskatchewan

PPSTN COVERAGE MAP

Yellow = Portable Coverage

Green +Yellow = Mobile Coverage

2013/14 Annual Highlights

The core of the PPSTN system has now been expanded providing the opportunity to address priority coverage requirements in critical areas across the province over the next several years. Along with the efforts to utilize a broad spectrum of “tools” in order to optimize performance PPSTN will be able to provide secure and reliable service to front-line users.

Network Capacity – Site Additions/Relocations

PPSTN continues to address client coverage concerns through the coverage and service analysis process. This process considers resilience and reliability requirements; client’s needs; multi-agency response requirements; incident activity; and other factors. In the past year additional builds and relocates were identified in the Bruno, Wolseley, Isinger (Yorkton), Nokomis, Estevan and Saskatoon areas. All of these will be operational early in the second quarter of 2014 bringing our active sites to 260.

Over the next year, the plan is to develop seven new sites across the province. All potential sites are evaluated using a gap analysis process involving the PPSTN partners along with input from front-line clients. This process reviews types of response; numbers of clients served; significant infrastructure usage; and front-line responder requirements. The process also provides for the installation of three network boost sites which will enhance network availability. The location of those sites is yet to be determined. One site at Southend will also be relocated.

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Portable Device Coverage

The gap analysis process was also used to develop a network that helps ensure mobile radio coverage meets operational needs. Although this requirement remains a priority on-scene operations often occur away from vehicle-mounted mobile units and can involve critical voice communications that have the potential to impact the life and safety of members of the public and front-line responders. This challenge will continue to be addressed by working with and evaluating solutions that have the potential to extend portable coverage. Although no fully operational solutions have been deployed a number of technical solutions are being evaluated to ensure that operation requirements are met.

Site Resiliency

The stationary generator support plan is being implemented with completion expected early next year.

The ambient air cooling project uses low voltage battery-powered fans to draw outside air into on-site buildings to supplement air conditioning continues. This system had been installed at 206 of 260 sites by fiscal year end. This project has had a major impact on heat alarm management and will be completed by fall 2014.

Fibre Optics

In 2013, SaskPower continued to deploy new network equipment to PPSTN sites. Its fibre optic network serves as part of its ongoing effort to support network resilience and sustainability.

Site Security

PPSTN continues to enhance site security through a multi-year plan to install fencing, improved site grounding, signage and other security initiatives.

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Interoperability

Interoperability – the ability of services to communicate with each other as required – remains a cornerstone of the PPSTN capacity and is a critical element of the emergency response continuum in the province.

Police, Fire and EMS agencies and personnel are beginning to utilize the interoperable capacity of the network on a regular basis. This is a key progress marker for mission critical voice communications in Saskatchewan. There have been a number of instances where multi-agency communication has contributed to successful incident management during events such as motor vehicle collisions, hazardous material spills and firearms-involved incidents.

A test exercise centred on a simulated child abduction in Saskatchewan that ended in Montana was successfully completed. This involved participants from Saskatchewan public safety including police services and PPSTN personnel as well as the Montana Sheriff’s department, U.S. Border Services and American Homeland Security. The exercise was the culmination of months of correspondence and negotiation and paved the way for effective cross-border responses for any kind of public safety incident. Additional exercises are anticipated in 2014 and are expected to involve more of Canadian and American participants.

As a result of the exercise interim solutions were implemented to link non-PPSTN public safety systems in the Estevan and Saskatoon Police Services in order to meet immediate operational requirements. These types of effective solutions form part of the foundation to develop interoperability as required to meet the needs of Saskatchewan’s broader public safety communications system.

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Training

Radio user and interoperability training continues to be delivered across the multi-agency environment.

Although basic radio training is an ongoing requirement the focus is now shifting to enhancing interoperable communications practices.

Opportunities are emerging to introduce these practices to public safety dispatch centres and training venues such as the Saskatchewan Police College.

A survey of the Ministry of Government Relations’ PPSTN clients confirmed and overwhelmingly endorsed the viability of our evolving training model. It also reinforced that ongoing training will continue to be a key requirement.

As part of our strategic review our training model will be reviewed and enhanced on an ongoing basis.

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Client Radios

SaskPower

RCMP F DivisionSite RadiosRCMP Depot Division

EMSFire RescueProvincial GovernmentFirst NationsMunicipal First Nations PoliceHospitals Health FacilitiesFederal Entities

PPSTN Equipment

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Number of Radios at Each Location

Base Mobile Portable TotalRCMP F Division 177 1000 1007 2184Site Radios 242

RCMP Depot Division 7 163 141 311SaskPower 9 820 656 1485EMS 66 309 945 1320Fire/Rescue 20 614 605 1239Provincial Government 33 280 643 956First Nations 38 120 158Municipal/First Nations Police 8 52 98 158Hospitals/Health Facilities 70 8 24 102Federal Entities 5 10 31 46

TOTAL 395 3294 4270 8201

Radio Types

BaseMobilePortable

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PPSTN – Our People Sheri Bell has been Civilian Member of the RCMP in Saskatchewan since 1999. Sheri has a Bachelor of Arts degree and an Electronics Technologist diploma. Sheri is the manager of the PPSTN Radio System Infrastructure unit. This unit is responsible for maintaining and repairing the radio system equipment at the more than 250 HARRIS P25 Trunking radio sites in Saskatchewan. This includes all HARRIS radio, CISCO network, GE and 4RF RF linking and satellite and fiber optic backhaul equipment.

One of the major challenges in Sheri’s unit faces is keeping the equipment up-to-date by using the latest software code releases.

Saskatchewan is approximately 647,000 square kilometers and some areas only accessible by air. This has resulted in the need to perform code upgrades over the network. Although limited bandwidth at some locations has made this challenging the unit continues to find ways to make the upgrades as painless as possible both for users and system technicians.

Bonnie Longhurst is the Ministry of Government Relations Client Services “voice” of the PPSTN. Whether you are just thinking about joining the system, making changes or passing on a concern Bonnie is the person you will probably end up with on the phone. Bonnie had extensive experience in police dispatch before joining the PPSTN and her front-line knowledge makes her familiar with a wide range of operational requirements. Bonnie is very involved in our Gap Analysis project – a process to identify and address PPSTN coverage concerns – and is also the primary trainer for Help Desk personnel.

Bonnie knows first-hand the frustrations of dealing with communication problems in a critical public safety environment and is committed to ensuring that when “bad things” happen, radio communications should be the least of your concerns.

“The PPSTN radio network is a great example of what teamwork and inter-agency cooperation can do.”

“The best part of the job is the number of terrific emergency response people I’ve gotten to know personally. Saskatchewan is in good hands.”

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Ken Rebrinsky has worked for SaskPower for 23 years currently working as a CADD Technologist with P25 Operations – IT&S (Information Technology and Security), Intelligent Networks, Voice Ops. He has also worked with Transmission and Distribution Operations and Field Services, Construction and Operating Support.

He became involved with PPSTN in October 2006 when he was chosen to be a member of the P25 Radio Project – Implementation Team.

The Implementation Team was responsible for the initial C3 Dispatch Console and P25 Radio (user gear) configurations, all hardware installations, all end-user training, ensuring business process alignment and formulating the transition-to-operations plan. T and D Field Services accepted the operational responsibility for maintaining the PPSTN commitment within SaskPower. To maintain continuity and momentum SaskPower chose to transition two of the project staff positions to operational positions, including Ken’s. In March 2013 the two positions were transferred to IT&S as part of an initiative to consolidate information technology under one banner.

Ken currently sits on the PPSTN Operational Committee, Console Working Group, Inter (Radio Frequency) Shared System Interface Implementation Working Group. He also has previous experience on the PPSTN Users Committee, Radio Working Group.

Mike Fraser is the Technology Manager, PPSTN for the Saskatchewan Ministry of Government Relations.

Mike deals with the technology side of public safety communications for the Ministry, and as a self-professed Ubergeek with over 35 years of experience he is the go-to guy for any questions about things that go “beep.” Mike has worked with clients from every provincial government ministry as well as clients ranging from NASA to the operators of diamond mines. He has also worked on automated wildfire detection, remote road–frost monitors, long-range high-frequency communications and satellite data systems.

Mike has a straightforward goal – find the best solution to a problem and keep that solution as simple and failsafe as possible. He says, “The rapid pace of technological change and the varied needs of the PPSTN users have posed a bit of a challenge but one that is being met with a strong team and a lot of dedication to public safety.”

“The product is good, and the people are great!”

“Everyone looks to technology for a fix, but we can’t forget the training that must go with the hardware.”

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Governance Overview

Executive Board

This board is comprised of one senior executive from each partner and is responsible for providing strategic direction, approving operating and capital budgets and policies, resolving disputes and managing the PPSTN in accordance with the PPSTN Agreement. To assist in fulfilling these responsibilities the Executive Board is granted the power to create committees the primary of which are the Management Committee and the Resource Committee. Other committees may be established by the Executive Board on an ad hoc basis. Examples are the Operations Committee, the Operational Processes Committee and the User Committee.

Management Committee

The Management Committee is responsible for the operations of the PPSTN. It is granted the authority to make day-to-day operational decisions such as the addition of user agencies to the network and the placement of resources needed to improve radio coverage. It recommends tactical plans to the Executive Board whose members develop strategic plans for network enhancement and operations.

Resource Committee

The Resource Committee works with the Management Committee and is tasked with creating annual operating and capital budget plans on behalf of the Executive Board which then reviews and approves them. Since no funds change hands between the partners the Executive Board provides the oversight that ensures the partnership is fair, equitable and balanced.

Tom Kindred Vice President and Chief Information Officer, SaskPower, Board Chair

Al Hilton Deputy Minister, Government Relations

Brenda Butterworth-Carr Commanding Officer, RCMP “F” Division

Duane McKay Commissioner, Emergency Management and Fire Safety, Government Relations, Committee Chair

Chad Schatz Manager, Infrastructure Services, Corporate Information & Technology, SaskPower

Ron Mills OIC Operations Strategy Branch, RCMP “F” Division, Committee Chair

Karen Lautsch Assistant Deputy Minister, Government Relations

Carla Feld Manager, Information Technology Business Services, Corporate Information and Technology, SaskPower

User Committee

The User Committee’s mandate is to bring forward the needs of PPSTN users, identify priorities and make recommendations to the Management Committee. Its members provide a voice for users. The eight members represent key stakeholder groups and are chaired by an elected Committee member. Through quarterly meetings and correspondence the Committee is provided with information relevant to our clients and opportunities to provide feedback on PPSTN capital and operational strategies.

User Committee Robin Litzenberger Executive Director Client Services, Land Use Planning and Public Safety, Global Transportation Hub (Provincial Agencies), Committee Chair

Kelly Stienwand Deputy Chief, Prince Albert Police Service (Municipal Police Services)

Richard Kent Commissioner, Emergency and Protective Services, Prince Albert Grand Council (Special Services)

John McDonald Chief, Melfort Fire Department (Fire Services)

Tanya Messer P25 Radio Operations, Customer Service, SaskPower (SaskPower)

Clayton Lund Chief Operating Officer, MD Ambulance (Emergency Medical Services)

Lisa Graham Client Support, Informatics Saskatchewan, RCMP “F” Division (RCMP)

Ron Erickson Director, Ministry of Environment, (Provincial Agencies)

AlternatesJason Stonechild Inspector, Prince Albert Police Service (Municipal Police)

Sharla Winter-Martin Regional Programs Officer, Corporate and Programs Services Division, Prairie Region, Canada Border Services Agency (Special Services)

Erwin Jackson Chief, Rock Glen Fire Department (Fire Services)

Darlene Peterson P25 Radio Operations, Customer Service, SaskPower (SaskPower)

Vacant Emergency Medical Services

Paul Gallant Client Support, Informatics Saskatchewan, RCMP “F” Division (RCMP)