Cassidian Communications Recognizes Public and Private Sector Clients Throughout Northeast for Tireless Work During Hurricane Sandy and Nor'easter

TEMECULA, Calif. --(Business Wire)--

Cassidian Communications, an EADS (News - Alert) North America company, today wishes to recognize the outstanding emergency preparedness, response and recovery efforts of its numerous public and private sector clients throughout the Northeast during Hurricane Sandy and last week's nor'easter. As a global leader in mission-critical communications technologies for more than 40 years, the company knows and appreciates the passion, grit and determination required for people to prevail under such extreme circumstances. Accordingly, Cassidian Communications commends the countless community leaders, first responders, public service workers, volunteers and local business people who tirelessly worked to ensure public safety and to sustain operations during these back-to-back weather events.

"Our promise is to keep people connected when it matters most, and I am honored to say that during Hurricane Sandy and the nor'easter, we were able to do just that," said Bob Freinberg, chief executive officer for Cassidian Communications. "Mother Nature has once again shown us that she is a force to be reckoned with, but the spirit of people to persist against all odds--as demonstrated by those in the path of these unprecedented storms--is equally as strong."

"For the employees of Cassidian Communications, critical matters," said Mary Wathen, chief operating officer for the company's Critical Communications Solutions and Services division. "Watching our team in action, providing 24/7 technical support and continuously monitoring the performance of 9-1-1 systems throughout the Northeast was truly one of the most rewarding moments in my professional career. I, for one, could not be more proud of our people and their desire to help others in their time of need."

Cassidian Communications provides 9-1-1 call processing and emergency notification solutions to public safety operations, including Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) and federal agencies. Nearly 1,200 of the company's public safety customers alone are located in the states directly impacted by Hurricane Sandy and the recent nor'easter. Likewise, well over 100 of Cassidian Communications' private sector clients, including utilities, hospitals and banks, also were affected by these natural disasters. For them, Cassidian Communications' emergency notification technology was used for business continuity/disaster recovery (BC/DR) communications, helping ensure the safety of their employees and sustain operations.

"Incredibly, every solution and service platform we offer was utilized in some way during Hurricane Sandy and the nor'easter," said Wathen. "And given the breadth of our crisis communications portfolio, that is a powerful testimony for our company, our people and the thousands of clients we serve."

Among the many Cassidian Communications products used during these two events were the Vesta^{®
Pallas^™}, Vesta^® CS, Vesta^® DMS and IP-enabled Sentinel^® Patriot^® 9-1-1 call processing solutions. Others included the ORION™ Vela^® geospatial application and Aurora^® MIS (reporting) solution. As indicated by usage reports, customer feedback and media briefings, these mission-critical applications enabled PSAPs throughout the Northeast to manage emergency and administrative calls, even when volumes were at their highest.

In a televised interview on October 29, 2012, Mayor Bloomberg (News - Alert) of New York reported approximately 10,000 calls coming into the city's PSAPs every half hour. Accordingly, he urged residents to only call 9-1-1 in an absolute emergency, freeing call takers to provide assistance to those in dire need. Numerous other PSAPs across several states also saw a surge in call center activity during these extreme weather events, exercising their Cassidian Communications-provided solutions around the clock.

Many of these public safety operations, as well as private businesses, also relied upon emergency notification technology, namely The Communicator!^® NXT^™, GeoCast^® Web^™ and REVERSE 911^® brand notification solutions, to quickly mobilize emergency response teams, geographically alert residents of potential danger and account for employees.

From Friday, October 26, through Wednesday, October 31, Cassidian Communications' MassCall^® emergency notification service and state-of-the-art hosting centers placed millions of calls for clients impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Numerous other Cassidian Communications' customers exercised their on-premise emergency notification systems, successfully reaching thousands more people before, during and after the unprecedented storm. Several of these same clients found themselves activating these notification solutions yet again when the dangerous nor'easter brought heavy snow to the region.

Today, the employees of Cassidian Communications are diligently working to create smarter ways to keep all of our communities safe, not just in extreme situations like Hurricane Sandy, but each and every day. The company continues to offer support to its many public and private sector clients impacted by these two devastating storms. It also extends heartfelt consideration to those, including a handful of its own employees, affected by their wrath.

"Our thoughts are with you as you work to return to normalcy," said Freinberg. "We are honored to have played a part in your mission to protect life and property during Hurricane Sandy and last week's nor'easter, and we are here for you throughout this winter season and the days ahead."

Cassidian Communications continues to serve clients ranging from public safety operations to Fortune 1000 corporations to federal agencies. Collectively, the company has more than 40 years of experience deploying 9-1-1 call processing solutions, emergency notification systems and first-responder digital trunked radio networks.

About Cassidian Communications

Cassidian Communications, an EADS North America company, is the world's largest and most trusted source for mission-critical communications technologies, including NG9-1-1 call processing platforms, emergency notification solutions and services, and now, P25 land mobile radio networks. For over four decades, Cassidian Communications has upheld its promise to keep people connected when it matters most, consistently designing solutions with an open mind and creating smarter, more effective ways to ensure communities are safe. Today, the company supports more than 60% of all Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs), serving over 200 million people in the U.S. alone, plus hundreds of private sector businesses spanning transportation, finance and healthcare, and Federal Civil and DoD operations globally. For Cassidian Communications, CRITICAL MATTERS™. The company is headquartered in Temecula, Calif., with facilities located in Richardson (News - Alert), Texas, Franklin, Tenn. and Gatineau, Quebec.

About EADS North America

EADS North America is the U.S.-based operation of EADS, a global leader in aerospace, defense, and related services. EADS contributes more than $13 billion to the U.S. economy annually and supports over 225,000 American jobs through its network of suppliers. EADS North America, headquartered in Herndon, Va., offers a broad array of advanced solutions to meet U.S. military and commercial requirements, including fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft, homeland security systems, public safety communications, defense electronics and avionics, and threat detection systems.