The National Urban Security Technology Laboratory has evaluated a training program administered by the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers to mitigate vehicular incidents for law enforcement officers.

A team from the laboratory joined students in driving classes, took notes during training exercises and observed classes under the Law Enforcement Operations Driving Skills course, the Department of Homeland Security said Tuesday.

The participants were given classes on various topics such as parking techniques, situational awareness, driving tactics and recovery approaches. Classes were conducted within classrooms and simulated facilities and will culminate in applied training sessions on FLETC's driveways.

NUSTL conducted more than 600 surveys to 45 trainees under the course and is slated to compile all data through a report that will be submitted to FLETC. The centers seek to optimize the program for future trainees through the feedback.

Guidehouse has released a Navigant survey, conducted by the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA), revealing 75 percent of provider executives believe their corporate services spending could decrease without negatively impacting quality or efficiency, the company announced on Thursday. 

"Revenue growth remains a constant challenge for hospitals and health systems due to such aspects as stagnant reimbursement and meager inpatient growth, prompting many providers to grow inorganically via M&A while targeting corporate services for meaningful cost reductions," said Robert Green, partner at Guidehouse. 

The survey has revealed that providers fall in leveraging technology and automation of back-office corporate services functions through robotic process automation (RPA) and enterprise resource planning (ERP), shown to reduce costs and improve accuracy and efficiency. 

Specifically, Guidehouse has reported that 15 percent of providers have automated their corporate services functions, one-in-three providers have deployed an ERP system and 12 percent have optimized these systems. Moving forward, 51 percent of providers predict they'll deploy or optimize an ERP over the next 2 years.

"New technologies leveraging RPA, ERP, and machine learning have unlocked significant opportunities to drive back office efficiencies," said Jeff Palmieri, associate director of robotics automation at Guidehouse. "As many providers have learned the hard way, overlaying technology as the 'solution' without first reengineering the processes and concurrently embedding a change management program has proven to be frustrating at best, and value-degrading at worst."

About Guidehouse 

Guidehouse is a leading global provider of consulting services to the public and commercial markets with broad capabilities in management, technology, and risk consulting. We help clients address their toughest challenges with a focus on markets and clients facing transformational change, technology-driven innovation, and significant regulatory pressure. 

Across a range of advisory, consulting, outsourcing, and technology/analytics services, we help clients create scalable, innovative solutions that prepare them for future growth and success. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the company has more than 7,000 professionals in more than 50 locations. Guidehouse is a Veritas Capital portfolio company, led by seasoned professionals with proven and diverse expertise in traditional and emerging technologies, markets, and agenda-setting issues driving national and global economies.

Avaya Holdings Corp. has announced that it will provide its Avaya Spaces collaboration software for free to educational institutions, including colleges and universities, and non-profit organizations worldwide in lieu of the current Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the company announced on Wednesday. 

“There is an especially immediate need in the education sector as school and university administrators consider the safety of their students while ensuring continuity of their classes, engagement with their students and delivering on their educational objectives,” said  Jim Chirico, CEO of Avaya. 

Avaya Spaces has provided a cloud meeting and team collaboration solution that enables people and organizations to connect and collaborate remotely. The content will supply users a set of meeting and team collaboration features, including voice and video conferencing for up to 200 participants. 

As a mobile-enabled solution, it gives users a simple, secure and effective way to track communications and manage tasks when travel and connectivity are limited.

Throughout the year, Avaya teams and partners were on the frontline in Wuhan, China to help in the initial stages of this epidemic. The company has donated audio and video equipment and dispatched resources for speedy installation and deployment for hospitals in the region to help medical personnel perform remote consultation and video diagnostics.

The company has also worked with government health departments in the U.S. to get emergency call centers up-and-running in a matter of hours. “Coronavirus (COVID-19) is impacting the lives of people around the globe and every day we hear new sobering stories about the very real health and safety implications of the spread of this virus,” added Chirico.

About Avaya 

Businesses are built on the experiences they provide, and everyday millions of those experiences are built by Avaya (NYSE: AVYA). For over one hundred years, we’ve enabled organizations around the globe to win – by creating intelligent communications experiences for customers and employees. Avaya builds open, converged and innovative solutions to enhance and simplify communications and collaboration – in the cloud, on-premise or a hybrid of both. To grow your business, we’re committed to innovation, partnership, and a relentless focus on what’s next. We’re the technology company you trust to help you deliver Experiences that Matter.

QTS Realty Trust has signed agreements to purchase renewable energy through European Guarantees of Origin to enhance the company’s energy services in its newly acquired data center in Groningen, Netherlands, QTS reported on Wednesday. 

"Today's announcement is another significant step towards our goal of procuring 100% of our power from renewable energy sources by 2025," said Travis Wright, vice president of energy and sustainability, QTS. 

QTS has purchased environmental attributes from Dutch wind and Nordic hydro sources. The agreements cover over 20-gigawatt hours of energy and account for 100 percent of the expected electrical load at QTS' Groningen facility. The company’s transition to renewables will transform the global energy market and accelerate the transition to a clean economy.

The Groningen facility currently has built-out capacity representing approximately 10 gross megawatts of power and 45,000 square feet of raised floor data center space. Recognized as one of the most interconnected data centers in the Netherlands market, the facility has more than 10 network providers and internet exchanges on-site, including NL-IX and Eurofiber.

The Netherlands has been named one of the top European markets for data center users due to competitive utility and operating costs, availability of renewable power resources and proximity to diverse connectivity options to other major European markets.

In addition to QTS’ Netherlands facility, the company has also committed to renewable energy procurements in cities that include Dallas, Chicago, Piscataway, NJ, and Hillsboro, OR and supports QTS' commitment to procure 100 percent of its power from renewable energy sources globally by 2025.

"Groningen is particularly important as it demonstrates our global commitment to minimizing our carbon footprint through advanced development and procurement initiatives," added Wright. 

About QTS 

QTS Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: QTS) is a leading provider of data center solutions across a diverse footprint spanning more than 6 million square feet of owned mega scale data center space throughout North America and Europe. Through its software-defined technology platform, QTS is able to deliver secure, compliant infrastructure solutions, robust connectivity and premium customer service to leading hyperscale technology companies, enterprises, and government entities.