Surge Village: Additional subscription capacity to augment local training and response AD | 11.19.2006 | 12:59:02 | Views: 6940 | ID: Local EMS, fire and law enforcement agencies try to acquire all-hazards response capabilities sufficient for the most predictable response needs. However, many specific preparedness and response solutions to terror threats or disasters are beyond the budgets of local governments - solutions such as mobile coordination and communication centers, medical surge facilities, community decontamination units, mobile water purification systems and other expensive or high-tech capabilities. However, if private sector service providers offered these services on a subscription basis to local governments who joined together as a purchasing cooperative, the price per locale would be dramatically reduced while gaining access to a magnitude of capability beyond what ordinarily would be possible. Local governments usually establish mutual aid agreements to assist one another during crisis through shared resources and personnel. These same locales can enter into a cooperative agreement with major service and product suppliers, who would provide an array of specialty capabilities on an annual subscription that could be shared between the local governments at a fraction of the purchase price, while avoiding the problems of maintenance and aging inventory that attends purchases. Many corporations with national scope are prepared to provide their services on a subscription basis, financed through either their own finance divisions, or through a mutual pact with state or federal agencies. Companies such as BAE Systems, Siemens, 3M, Target and others have expressed a readiness to craft regional or national programs that provide capabilities that can be delivered within hours of the need. An example of best practices is Mobility Resources Associates is a private sector provider that coordinates different specific capabilities into mobile solutions that can be staged regionally to be available to the cooperative members within hours of need. MRA provides the mobile tractors to stage and deliver services by companies such as BlueMed, which provides rapid deployable medical surge tents during crisis, or for BAE System ERRICS command and control systems.
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