Creating a Connected Community in Ogden City, Utah

Ogden City, Utah, is a picturesque city north of Salt Lake City. It’s known for its historic buildings and outdoor activities, including skiing, thanks to its proximity to the Wasatch Mountains at the western edge of the Rockies.

Home to nearly 90,000 people, Ogden is also a community on the forefront of innovation. According to a Deloitte report, cities like Ogden are driving the adoption of smart solutions to create a more connected service experience for citizens. For Andy Lefgren, the IT manager for Ogden City, that means providing a technology foundation to support everything from police and fire departments to public works, HR, city council, and the mayor’s office.

“We’ve seen a shift over the past few years and have reached the point where technology underpins practically everything we do,” explains Lefgren. “That means our systems must be available at all times so that we can arm our internal and external partners with the tools and information they need to do their jobs as efficiently as possible.”

A Safer, Tech-savvy City

Ogden’s Police Area Tactical Analysis Center (ATAC) is a prime example of the city’s innovation and reliance on a strong technology foundation. According to a report released by Ogden in February 2019, major crimes dropped to a 10-year low in 2018—and city officials attribute that success partially to the ATAC, which is fully supported by Pure Storage solutions.

Tapping into a central source of connected community data, ATAC provides insights to officers in the field and investigators—helping them identify trends and, in some cases, assist with crimes in progress.

“By capturing data that show trends in crimes, where they’re happening, and where officers should be deployed, ATAC gains insights that actually drive results,” says Lefgren. “Pure is the main building block for this, helping us make sure that the correct information is readily accessible to law enforcement. We could not achieve this with the storage bottlenecks we were experiencing with our previous solution.”

Connecting the Data Dots

Access to data is important—but the key is having access to the right data, according to Lefgren. That’s his ultimate vision for a connected community in Ogden, and where AI and machine learning come in.

For example, based on data from the Waze app, the emergency dispatch center can be alerted to a possible car accident at a specific intersection in the city before the first 9-1-1 call comes in. This alone might shave 30 seconds off emergency responder times. But if the city could connect its Waze data with its OnStar data—something the city is actively working on—it could confirm the traffic accident and trigger an automatic text message to dispatchers.

“As a result, we might be able to shave minutes off response times. And in the case of a serious incident, that can mean the difference between life and death,” says Lefgren.

Thanks to a highly scalable, reliable, and efficient data-centric foundation on Pure Storage—complemented by Pure’s responsive account and support team—the city has virtually no limits on what it can do. As Lefgren’s vision unfolds, Pure will continue to play a key role in helping Ogden City deliver exceptional experiences to its citizens as efficiently as possible.

“Ogden is a relatively small city with a small-city budget. We simply can’t afford to constantly replace our key technology,” says Lefgren. “Pure Storage is a smart investment that will stand the test of time as we progress towards our vision of a truly connected community.”