Emergency Number - Functionality

[akademik]

Hi Everyone

We have just upgraded to BC12 6.2.

We have an emergency phone SPEXIIR=3333,OPT=E;
Until the upgrade calls to the emergency phone were able to be transferred from the Voicemail system after certain options had been keyed. The progress of the call would be
Recall - Dial 3333 - Wait for ring tone - Release. The call would then have been extended by the voicemail system to the emergency extension.

Now the same thing happens only the system doesn't allow a transferred call from an analogue line to the emergency extension. NU is encountered after Recall - Dial 3333, If we remove the SPEXI from the extension the call progresses normally.

We'd leave it like that if we didn't need other calls to conference onto the extension.

Reported it to the Service Provider they are looking in to it.

Consensus is that the facility isn't widely used. However, should anyone have found a solution to the issue we'd be grateful of any input.

Thanks - Paul

 

[akademik]

Hi again - Just as I posted this the SP called back with the reason for the problem.

Are you ready for this?

The powers that be (Swedesville maybe) don't think that this should be a feature to allow an analogue extension to be able to hold a call and dial the emergency number. It shouldn't have worked in BC8 (although it did) and in BC10 it didn't and there was a patch created to overcome the issue. Only calls from analogue lines are affected in this way.

Reasons against providing the facility (The all knowing powers that be)
In essence calling an emergency number automatically starts the conference bridge. This may conflict with the system which may believe that the extension calling in with a call on hold may want to start a conference.

In addition a call to an emergency line should only be made direct i.e. in an emergency situation such as the lift phone or fire call.

Reasons for providing the facility (in our opinion) :-D
In some cases the call may be forwarded by the voicemail system, where the caller has selected an option to direct his call to such a number, restricted extensions for example. Or the caller is already on a call and something which he may think he needs to report to the emergency number occurs, whether he puts the call on hold actively, or in haste and only effects a recall unaware that he has held his original call, receives dial tone and dials the emergency number.

We can see the logic however, if it worked in BC8 and there weren't any problems, maybe there were we don't know, what possessed them to take it away when they knew they had had to create a patch in BC10 to provide the facility.

Fortunately we have been advised of two workarounds by the SP , a) to make the call over the PSTN then it doesn't know where the call is from, or b) to use a TLU card to fool the system into thinking the call is from another source. Thanks to the SP for being able to quickly re-create the scenario and provide a solution.

If you have more to add on this your feedback is welcome.

Ciao - Paul