Affiliated Monitoring Integration with Cornerstone

Modified on Wed, 8 Oct at 4:27 PM

Overview

Cornerstone integrates with Affiliated Monitoring to make it easy for dealers to set up accounts with one-time data entry for customer site information, contact lists, and zones. You can set up the account in the Central Station and PULL the account information into Cornerstone, or enter the data into Cornerstone and PUSH to Affiliated.

Key Features

The integration is sensitive to required data fields by the central station (e.g., at least one contact and phone number) and provides validated lists of selections for other fields (e.g., Devices). You can also sync data:

Changes in Cornerstone go to Affiliated immediately
Changes made in Affiliated directly can be pulled into Cornerstone using the update function

Important: Due to the variety of settings and special protocols required for life safety, the preferred integration is to pull data from Affiliated.

Getting Started

Initial Setup

Call Cornerstone and we can help set up the connection with you and Affiliated.

Step 1: Download Open Device List

First step is to set up the connection to download from Affiliated your open device list so that you can audit the accounts in Cornerstone vs. Affiliated. Ask yourself:

Are you monitoring everyone you are billing?
Are you billing everyone that you are monitoring?
Do you have ALL the central station numbers in Cornerstone?
Do the names and addresses match what is at Affiliated?

Step 2: Verify Central Station Numbers

Once you make sure that you have your Central Station numbers (the linking field) in your Cornerstone accounts and names and addresses are the same, you can decide if you wish to allow individual site communication between Cornerstone and Affiliated and for which fields.

Important: Cornerstone never allows individual account communication to occur until the audit step is completed.

Step 3: Determine Edit Protocol

Determine the protocol for edits:

Edits in Cornerstone: Edits to any of the Affiliated required fields in Cornerstone can immediately PUSH the new field values to Affiliated
Edits in Affiliated: Edits made at Affiliated do not automatically communicate the change back to Cornerstone. However, you can use the Get Data Button to PULL information to update the record in Cornerstone
Life Safety Priority: If Affiliated changes a code word and you do not, Affiliated will have that new code word and not you. This errs on the side of life safety, where the correct record is with Affiliated

Tasks That Must Be Done Directly in/with Affiliated

Some things need to be done directly in or with Affiliated:

Completing the Responding Authority

When Cornerstone pushes the subscriber's site address (street, city, and zip code), Affiliated produces GPS coordinates and the POLICE responding authority is automatically selected and stored at Affiliated. You need to complete the list by adding Fire and Medical Responding authorities.

Establishing Call List Contacts and Protocols

Due to the level of detail for calling times and other protocols, call list instructions need to be established directly at the central. Some accounts may require special instructions and those instructions need to be handled/recorded directly with Affiliated.

Closing Accounts / Taking Them Offline

Closing an account in Cornerstone will only stop the recurring billing. Cancellations must be handled directly with Affiliated in whatever is the established protocol. There is a Central Station Notice function in Cornerstone where you can email your request and have it recorded in the Correspondence log that it was sent.

Setup and Configuration

System Configuration

We need to enter your Dealer/Site Account Number in two places:

The System Header
The Central Station List

The permissions will be established regarding push/pull of the data between Cornerstone and the central station. The preferred communication is pulling from Affiliated.

Important: If you have accounts that are monitored elsewhere or not at all, choose a Central Station option on the list other than Affiliated so data audits do not try to match CSID numbers that are not monitored/not at Affiliated.

Creating Accounts

Recommended Option A: Pull from Affiliated (Preferred)

We highly recommend Option A where the accounts continue to get created in Affiliated and then download the info to Cornerstone. This way, the information for responding authorities is complete and any special protocols are established properly. This is easiest and does not change current processes for many dealers.

Steps for Pulling Account from Affiliated:

Enter the Cornerstone Account number you want (if it is not auto-generated) OR pull up your Prospect account
Select Affiliated as the Central Station
Enter the Central Account # - the number assigned for that customer when the account was created in Affiliated
Click on the Download Customer button to pull the data from Affiliated into Cornerstone

'Download Customer' will fill in: Account information, contacts, and zones from what was entered in Affiliated.

Option B: Push from Cornerstone to Affiliated

If you are creating the account in Cornerstone to push to Affiliated:

Use auto-numbering or enter a Cornerstone Account number
Enter your next available Central Station device number (from the list you have from Affiliated)
Enter all of the required customer data
Click OK to communicate with Affiliated and create the account in Affiliated

Important: The communication link between Cornerstone and Affiliated is the number in the 1st Central Acct # field. The Central Station numbers tend to be case sensitive, so it is important to enter the information exactly as it is at the Central.

Managing Multiple Devices

If you have multiple CSID numbers based upon devices, you will need to decide if you should have more than one customer record.

Key Consideration: While the site info and the contacts are shared between devices, the devices may have different zones. Cornerstone's system only records one set of zones per site.

Solution for Multiple Zones:

If you need to keep different zones for each device for a subscriber in Cornerstone, you will need to have a customer record with the communicating device/CSID # in the 1st Central Station Number field for each device.

Alternative: If you do not need the zones for that second or third central station number, they can be stored in the 2nd and 3rd Central Account # fields.

Burglary and Fire Services:

Most dealers create two separate accounts in Cornerstone when the same customer has both burglary and fire services. This allows for recording of the different equipment installed, service tickets, and reminders needed for the different services. Billing can always be consolidated in one account.

Data Fields

Required and Pulled Fields

The following fields are required or automatically pulled:

Account - Your 2 letters will appear and you enter the remaining digits
Central Acct # - The CSID number assigned by the Central (this is the link)
Customer - Company name or the last name
First Name - First name if residential customer
Address - Address line 1 is the street address
City, State - Filled in automatically
Zip - Zip code filled in (allows for USPS address validation for mailing address, adds zip+4)
TaxCty - If you are pulling everything from the Central, this will not come from them. You will need to enter this data for applying the correct tax rate. Select the list box and choose the city
TZ - The time zone should automatically fill in from the zip code
Type - Select RES or COMM (Central returns different codes to Site Type)
Panel Type or Equipment field - Is not communicated
Code Word - Password is pulled (this can be masked and/or not available to view by user)
Site/Premise Contact 1 - Recommended, not required
Phone - Premise phone number (Required)
Template Type - Also pulled in and added to the validated list

Address Validation

Click the validation button and you will be prompted to validate the address as a USPS recognizable mailing address. If it is recognized, the Zip+4 will be available - not needed at the Central, but important for mailing invoices from Cornerstone. Select 'Update' to update the Cornerstone entry.

Note: Any address corrections must be made directly at Affiliated. The location pin icon will also call the USPS API lookup for the mailing address (not a field in Affiliated).

Contacts

The customer record has a space for the premise contact name and a phone number. The Contacts list provides the call list for the account.

Note: There is also a Rolodex list that you can use for phone numbers that are not on the call list, e.g., AR/Payables. These are not impacted by downloads.

Downloading and Updating Contacts

Download Contacts will pull in the contact information if it already exists in Affiliated
Once downloaded, a 'Get From Central Station' button will be available to pull updates that were made directly with the Central

Contact Communication

Contacts can be pushed from Cornerstone to Affiliated. Cornerstone supports 2 phone numbers per contact and does not record any special protocols such as method or times for contact. Emails are also not communicated with Affiliated. All special protocol instructions must be entered directly in Affiliated.

Changes to contacts can be communicated back to Affiliated (if permissions allow).

Communicated Contact Fields:

Priority Sequence - The priority sequence for the contacts. Additional contacts need to be numbered in increasing values. If none are entered, you will receive a warning
Person to Contact - First and last name pulled or pushed and listed in this field
Relationship - Pulls or pushes type
Phone 1 - Pulls or pushes in the first phone number field in Affiliated for the contact
Phone 2 - Pulls or pushes in the second phone number field in Affiliated for the contact
Phone Type 1 & 2 - Pulls or pushes type
Password - Contact-specific password can be recorded
Email - Does NOT communicate due to structure of file at Affiliated

Important: If a contact was deleted at the Central, 'Get From Central Station' will bring down the updated list. Permissions can be set up to allow changes made to existing contacts in Cornerstone to push the update to Affiliated.

Zone Lists

Zone lists are device-specific and the data links to the Central Station number in the 1st field. If you have multiple devices installed for the same site, they share the site and contact information.

If you need to record different zone information in Cornerstone, then you will need to create a second account so that the second device is recorded in an account in the 1st Central Station field.

Downloading and Updating Zones

Download Customer will pull the zones from Affiliated
Once downloaded, the 'Get From Central Station' button is available should a change in zones be made directly with Central

Communicated Zone Fields:

Zone ID - Zone number in the Zone ID
Zone Description - Zone description
Dispatch ID - Also populates the list box for Dispatch ID
Event ID - Also populates the list box to select the Event ID

Best Practice: Ideally, zones should be set up directly at Affiliated by the technician and pulled into Cornerstone. Permissions can be set up to insert zones as well as edits to zones from Cornerstone to Affiliated.

Important Reminders

You are responsible for the accuracy of the data at the Central Station. The information can be pulled into Cornerstone to augment having all information at your fingertips and available for service tickets and technician use.

Best Practices

Always start with an audit of existing accounts before enabling individual account sync
Use the preferred method of pulling data from Affiliated to ensure life safety protocols are complete
Keep Central Station numbers consistent and case-sensitive
Complete responding authorities directly in Affiliated after pushing addresses
Set up call list protocols directly with Affiliated
Use 'Get From Central Station' regularly to keep Cornerstone updated with changes made in Affiliated
Create separate accounts for burglary and fire services for better tracking
Document special instructions directly in Affiliated, not just in Cornerstone

Need Help?

Still have questions? Contact Cornerstone Holding Co. 847-405-9517 or email us customer.success@alarmbills.com