In our recent article headlined, Sadly, there’s never been a greater need for CTS-PRAS… we gave a broad overview of our flagship software solution. In particular we looked at how and why the CTS-PRAS tool is used to safeguard major events such as G7 Summits, NATO conferences, the Commonwealth Games, the UCI World Cycling Championships and numerous VIP security operations.
Not just for CT
However, while the CTS-PRAS software (which stands for ‘Counter Terrorism & Search – Position Ranking Analysis System’, by the way) certainly does what it says on the tin, its name also masks an important fact: CTS-PRAS has wide application far beyond CT and Search.
The use cases for CTS-PRAS include but are not limited to:
- Airports and Critical National Infrastructure protection
As was seen only recently with the Heathrow Airport electricity substation fire, it doesn’t take much to cause major disruption to airport operations. Though that incident was not caused by a malicious act and posed little or no direct threat to life, airports and other CNI sites face a wide range of threats to people, aircraft, physical infrastructure and continuity of operation.
- Major events protection
The term “major events” can cover sports events, concerts, public ceremonies, political gatherings and more. All are attractive, high profile targets for terrorists and activists, with the threats ranging from significant disruption to potential major loss of life.
- Missing persons and threat searches
Our previous series of articles on our Search-PRAS tool explained how it brought major improvements in pace and accuracy to missing persons searches. Those same capabilities are included in CTS-PRAS, enabling it to be used not only for missing person searches, but also in CT and investigations where systematic searches for evidence or potential threats are needed.
- Firearms operations
Specialist firearms teams handle situations where there is heightened risk to threatened parties, such as the public and the firearms officers themselves. Rapid, effective planning and analysis of each situation is essential.
So, what does CTS-PRAS actually do, and what are the powerful benefits it brings across this range of use cases?
CTS-PRAS in brief
In short, CTS-PRAS is a software tool that brings significant speed and accuracy gains to the assessment and mitigation of threats from stand-off weapons, such as MANPADS, rockets, missiles, mortars, small arms and Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) or drones, and effectively communicates results through compelling visualisations. It also includes powerful search capabilities—for people, routes, buildings, actual or predicted crime scenes, and IEDs.
The benefits of CTS-PRAS over traditional and legacy approaches to the same threats and challenges are many. Using the richly featured CTS-PRAS software tool in event and infrastructure protection, searches, and in covert and firearms operations can:
- Reduce cognitive load for faster, effective decision making—rapid automated analysis using proven best-practice and standards delivers easily communicated and robust results. This supports effective decision making in time-critical and high pressure environments.
- Provide a common operating picture—configurable standardised reports and clear visualisation of threat environments and analysis results promotes effective shared situational awareness and better informed decision making.
- Deliver major efficiency gains—what was traditionally complex and time-consuming analysis is now automated, allowing users to focus on higher level assessment and judgements. This results in quicker results and lower resource requirement. A significant part of assessment can be conducted in the software without the need for site visits, further reducing lead times and resource requirements.
- Enhance situational awareness—CT, law enforcement and security agencies can quickly understand and explore immediate threats, risks, and mitigation plans, and how they relate to the local environment. This enables effective coordination and timely response to potential security incidents.
- Enhance interoperability—analysis results generated in the software are easily exported in compatible formats to a wide range of commonly used geospatial tools, as well as standard office document formats, enabling all stakeholders to collaborate using consistent, easily understood information.
- Reduce risk and saves lives—embedding best-practice standards for threat assessment, analysis and reporting, along with reduced lead times, significantly reduces risk. In time-critical scenarios especially, this will reduce harm and save lives.
Who should be looking at CTS-PRAS?
Because of the variety of CTS-PRAS use cases, the software has wide appeal across the spectrum of law enforcement and security leaders and decision makers:
- For Chief Constables, Deputy Chief Constables and Assistant Chief Constables in police forces, CTS-PRAS presents a strong business case based on professional excellence and reduction in the risk of harm, coupled with resource savings.
- For ROCUs and Serious and Organised Crime Units, CTS-PRAS can help significantly with efficient and cost-effective planning of surveillance, hostage and other serious crime scenarios.
- For firearms teams, CTS-PRAS has similarly powerful capabilities related to coverage assessment of hostile shooters, own snipers, surveillance locations and visual communication of situational awareness.
- For CTSAs (Counter Terrorism Security Advisers), CTS-PRAS can greatly enhance the accuracy, consistency and speed of production of vulnerability assessments for potential target locations, and provide asset operators with clear visualisations of potential threat scenarios.
- For CT SecCos (Counter Terrorism Security Coordinators), CTS-PRAS directly supports analysis of many of the threat classes of concern, while enabling rapid, agile production of defensive plans for threat scenarios that often change very quickly.
Use case articles coming up
Over the next few weeks we’ll be exploring each of the use cases touched on above—airports and Critical National Infrastructure protection, major events protection, search operations and firearms operations—in a series of CTS-PRAS articles. If you are involved in any of these areas, the articles aim to provide both valuable detail and food for thought. Please look out for them in our LinkedIn updates.
Stay in touch by following the Cunning Running company page on LinkedIn, or the LinkedIn pages of Stay in touch by following the Cunning Running company page on LinkedIn, or the LinkedIn pages of John Overend or Phil Cowell.
To arrange a CTS-PRAS demo, call us on +44 (0)1794 834750 or email enquiries@cunningrunning.co.uk
