Flowroute, now part of Intrado, offers Emergency Services connectivity to all of our customers in the U.S. and Canada with domestic phone numbers. Additionally, Flowroute provides 9-1-1 support for all U.S. and Canadian toll-free numbers.
Calls made to 9-1-1 from phone numbers on Intrado’s Flowroute platform that haven’t previously been setup with 9-1-1 connectivity are able to reach Emergency Services in the moment that matters most. These calls without a defined location in the Intrado Emergency Service Database will first be connected to Intrado’s Emergency Call Response Center (ECRC) to identify the caller’s location before being connected to the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) in their area.
These steps put Flowroute to the forefront in enabling 9-1-1 access ahead of newer FCC rules taking effect, including those that will require outbound VoIP providers to:
- Automatically provide 9-1-1 service to all customers as a standard, mandatory feature. VoIP providers may not allow customers to “opt-out” of 9-1-1 service.
- Obtain a customer’s physical location prior to service activation, and provide one or more easy ways for customers to update the location they have registered with the provider if it changes.
- Transmit all 9-1-1 calls, as well as a callback number and the caller’s registered physical location, to the appropriate PSAP.
- Ensure that a 9-1-1 call is routed to the appropriate PSAP in areas where emergency service providers are not capable of receiving or processing the caller’s location information or call back number.
A connection fee of $95 per each call made to 9-1-1 for the use of the Emergency Call Response Center will apply only to phone numbers without a defined location. You can avoid the connection fee by subscribing to 9-1-1 services and providing an address for each of your phone numbers in the Flowroute Portal or Flowroute API.
This step will provide Emergency Routing Service (ERS) with automated E9-1-1 call routing so that when you or your users dial 9-1-1, they’re connected quickly and accurately to the nearest PSAP. ERS removes the need to install local gateways and dedicated 9-1-1 trunks for each office location, resulting in significant cost savings and reduced administrative and management overhead.
With ERS, you’ll:
- Reach more than 6,000 PSAPs across North America.
- Eliminate the need for maintaining emergency location databases.
- Achieve compliance with federal and state regulations.
- Have backup 9-1-1 support through Intrado’s Emergency Call Response Center (ECRC).
