Emergency response centre (ERC) operations in Finland are one of a kind. Nowhere else emergency response centres and safety authorities work together as seamlessly as they do here. 

The system includes all 112 operators: Emergency Response Centre Administration, the police, rescue services, social welfare and health care services and the Border Guard.

The six emergency response centres work in a networked model. The calls overflow in two phases: in the first phase between ERC pairs, in the second phase between all ERCs.

The networked information system enables optimal use of the resources of the emergency response centres and enables obtaining real-time situational picture of the internal security in the whole country in a centralized manner.

ERICA includes automatic geopositioning of the caller, integrated risk analysis, integrated communication tool (phone, TETRA radio, emergency SMS), real-time response time of units / drive time calculation and dispatch calculation / response proposal.

ERCs are able to reach all emergency response authorities via a shared radio network. All necessary authorities can be dispatched simultaneously.
 

The Command Centre monitors the agency's own operational capacity and changes in its operating environment. In case of disturbances and exceptional situations affecting the emergency response centre's operations, the command centre is responsible for producing a situation picture and managing the situation.
The command centre monitors the situational picture related to the entire operating environment and actively cooperates with the situation, command and readiness centres of various authorities.

The command centre is responsible for the national resource management of the emergency response centres' operations. The command centre has real-time information on the personnel situation and the number of emergency notifications and forwarded tasks. 

If, for example, one emergency response centre has an unreasonable workload due to temporary congestion of the emergency number, a shortage of personnel resources or a disturbance situation, the command centre can speed up the transfer of emergency notifications to other emergency response centres.

The command centre is the agency's international contact point, which receives contacts from emergency response centres or security authorities in other countries. The command centre is responsible for responding to the Emergency Response Centre's international number, which receives calls from persons abroad who need assistance from the Finnish ERC. 

If an emergency situation that has occurred abroad is reported to Finland, the command centre is responsible for making an emergency report to the relevant country's authority.
The command centre also responds to the EU's common missing children number, which receives non-urgent reports related to children. The command centre also provides emergency services to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Accident Investigation Board.
 

Finnish ERC operators are among the best educated in the world. The same operator receives the call, takes care of the geopositioning and risk-assessment, dispatches the units, gives instructions to the caller and is in contact with the dispatched units over the radio. 

The ERC Operator degree training is free of charge for students and the duration is 1.5 years.

The training is carried out by the Emergency Services College, which operates under the Ministry of the Interior.
 

ERC operators can work in two different roles, which are calltaking (IVO) and task monitoring (TESE). 

The calltaking operator's task is to receive and locate emergency calls, make the risk assessment, dispatch the units and provide the needed information for the task. The caller is also given instructions. The monitoring operator (TESE) is responsible for providing support services to the authorities that are alerted and prioritizing tasks in the queue.
IVO roles can be Finnish and Swedish-speaking, nationwide, and site-specific. Task monitoring (TESE) work is usually divided by sector in emergency response centers, with the monitoring operator providing support services to specific authorities.

ERC operators, senior operators and shift supervisors  are part of the personnel performing ERC duties. All of the above-mentioned positions must have the qualifications of an ERC operator.

In addition, the center has warning device testers who receive calls related to testing fire and crime detection devices.
Head of ERCs manage emergency response centers. Operational work is supported by a group of specialists.

ERC operators provide service in Finnish and Swedish, and a very large number also speak English. 

If a common language cannot be found, an interpreter can be requested on the emergency line.

The ERC Agency offers various discussion opportunities for emergency personnel to help them cope with the tasks at hand. 

Defusing, debriefing and post-trauma workshops help them process situations, cope with the mental effects and recover from stress.

The Emergency Response Centre is an independent agency within the administrative branch of the Ministry of the Interior, which is managed for results by the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health.

Operational activities and related administrative and support services are the responsibility of the Emergency Response Centre, while results management, resources and legislation are the responsibility of the guiding ministries.

The police, rescue, social and health services and the Border Guard produce instructions for the Emergency Response Centre on the processing of tasks related to their own field of activity, forwarding and other instructions regarding the handling of notifications or tasks.

The agency's operations are based on the Act on Emergency Response Centre Operations (692/2010).

Daily cooperation between authorities is facilitated by shared technology, such as the authority radio network (VIRVE) and the emergency response centre information system (ERICA). Both daily cooperation and larger policies are developed in cooperation groups.

An authority may issue an emergency warning when the population needs to be warned of a danger threatening life, health or property. The statutory task of the ERC Agency is to forward the warning prepared by the authorities to Yleisradio and publish them in the 112 Suomi -app.

The issuing authority always decides on the content of the emergency warning and the scope of the information.

The ERC supports the authorities in translating the warning.

A warning can be issued nationwide, in which case it will be broadcast on television and in the 112 Suomi -app. Regional warnings are broadcast on the radio and published based on location in the 112 Suomi -app. In addition, the ERC Agency and the rescue services publish emergency warnings on their websites and in social media.