National Monitoring Center (NMC) Integration Guide

Overview

Cornerstone integrates with National Monitoring Center (NMC) to make it easy for dealers to set up accounts with one-time data entry for customer site, 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 NMC.

The integration is sensitive to the required data fields by the central (e.g., at least one contact and phone number) and provides validated lists of selections for other fields (e.g., devices).

Data Sync Capability: Changes in Cornerstone go to NMC immediately, and if you make changes in NMC directly, you can pull the updated info into Cornerstone.

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

Getting Started

Contact Cornerstone for assistance setting up the connection with you and NMC.

Step 1: Download Open Device List

Set up the connection to download from NMC your open device list so you can audit the accounts in Cornerstone vs. NMC.

Key Questions to Answer:

• 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 NMC?

Step 2: Verify Central Station Numbers

Make sure that you have your Central Station numbers (the linking field) in your Cornerstone accounts and names and addresses are the same.

Once verified, you can decide if you wish to allow individual site communication between Cornerstone and NMC and for which fields.

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

Step 3: Determine Edit Protocol

Edits in Cornerstone:

• Edits to any of the NMC required fields in Cornerstone can immediately push the new field values to NMC

Edits in NMC:

• Edits made at NMC do not automatically communicate the change back to Cornerstone
• You can use the Get Data Button to pull information to update the record in Cornerstone

Life Safety Priority: If NMC changes a code word and you do not pull the update, NMC will have that new code word and not Cornerstone. This errs on the side of life safety, where the correct record is with NMC.

Step 4: Tasks to Complete Directly in NMC

Some things need to be done directly in/with NMC:

Set the Responding Authority

• When Cornerstone pushes the subscriber's site address (street, city, and zip code), NMC produces GPS coordinates
• Complete the setup by selecting the responding authorities directly in the account at NMC

Establish 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 that need to be handled/recorded directly with NMC

Close Accounts / Take Them Off-Line

• Closing an account in Cornerstone will only stop the recurring billing
• Cancellations must be handled directly with NMC 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

Setup and Data Fields

System Configuration

Cornerstone will enter your Dealer/Site Account Number in two places:

• System Header
• Central Station List

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

Important for NMC: Standardize should NOT be checked – we do not want to remove hyphens from CSID#s.

Accounts Monitored Elsewhere

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

Creating an Account in Cornerstone

Accounts can be created in Cornerstone and pushed to NMC, or if the account was created at NMC, you can download the customer record from NMC.

Recommended Approach: We highly recommend Option A where the accounts continue to get created in NMC and then download the info to Cornerstone. This way, the information for responding authorities is complete and any special protocols are established properly.

Option A: Account Exists in NMC (Recommended)

This is the easiest method and does not change current processes for many dealers.

Existing accounts in Cornerstone will connect via the CSID field #1. Accounts can be created in Cornerstone as prospects.

Steps:

1. Enter the Cornerstone Account number you want (if not auto-generated) or pull up your Prospect account
2. Select NMC as the Central Station
3. Enter the Central Account # (number assigned when the account was created in NMC)
4. Click on the Download Customer button to pull the data from NMC into Cornerstone

What Gets Downloaded: 'Download Customer' will fill in the account information, contacts, and zones from what was entered in NMC.

Option B: Creating Account in Cornerstone to Push to NMC

1. Use auto-numbering or enter a Cornerstone Account number
2. Enter your next available Central Station device number (from the list you have from NMC)
3. Enter all required customer data
4. Clicking OK communicates with NMC and creates the account in NMC

Important Notes About Central Station Numbers

Case Sensitivity and Formatting

The communication link between Cornerstone and NMC is the number in the 1st Central Acct # field.

Critical: Central Station numbers tend to be case sensitive and may include hyphens. It is important to enter the information exactly as it is at the Central.

Example: DCU3930 and DCU-3930 are each unique because of the dash.

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.

While the site info and contacts are shared between devices, the devices may have different zones. Cornerstone's system only records 1 set of zones per site.

Solution for Different 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.

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.

Note: The 1st Central Acct# communicates with NMC. You can put additional device numbers in fields 2 and 3 to keep track of other devices for that customer without needing their zone info stored in Cornerstone.

Separate Accounts for Different Services

Most dealers create two separate accounts in Cornerstone when the same customer has both Burglary and Fire services. This allows for:

• Recording different equipment installed
• Separate service tickets
• Different reminders for each service

Billing can always be consolidated in one account.

Required and Pulled Fields

Note: After customer information is downloaded, there is a 'Get from Central Station' button that allows you to pull in information that was updated at the Central.

Fields You Must Enter (if account doesn't exist in Cornerstone)

Account - Your 2 letters will appear, and you enter the remaining digits (Required)

TaxCty - If pulling everything from the Central, this will not come from them. You will need to enter this data for applying the correct tax rate to the customer record. Select the list box and choose the city. (Required)

Fields Pulled from NMC

Central Acct # - The CSID ID number assigned by the Central (this is the link) (Required)

Customer - Company name or last name (Required)

First Name - First name if residential customer

Address - Address line 1 is the street address (Required)

City, State - Auto-filled (Required)

Zip - Zip code filled in (Required)

• Allows for USPS address validation for the mailing address adds zip+4

TZ - Time Zone automatically fills in from Zip Code

Type - Select RES or COMM – Central returns different codes to Site Type (Required)

Equipment - Equipment (optional) field at NMC is descry (Optional)

Code Word - Password (Optional - can be masked and/or not available to view by user)

Site/Premise - Contact 1 (Recommended, not required)

Phone - Premise phone number (Required)

SysType_Id - System Type also pulled in and added to the validated list (Required) - found on User Defined Tab

Address Validation

Click the validation icon to validate the address as a USPS recognizable mailing address. If 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 NMC. The location pin icon will also call the USPS API lookup for the mailing address (not a field in NMC).

Contacts

The customer record has a space for the premise contact name and 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.

Download Contacts

Download Contacts will pull in the contact information if it already exists in NMC. If contacts have been downloaded, a 'Get From Central Station' button will be available to pull updates that were made directly with the Central.

Contacts can be pushed from Cornerstone to NMC. Cornerstone supports 2 phone numbers per contact and does not record any special protocols such as method or times for contact.

Important: All special protocol instructions must be entered directly in NMC. Changes to contacts can be communicated back to NMC.

Communicated Contact Fields

Priority Sequence - The priority sequence for contacts. Additional contacts need to be numbered in increasing values. If none are entered, you will receive a warning. (Required)

Person to Contact - First and last name pulled or pushed and listed in this field (last name Required)

Relationship - Pulls or pushes type (Optional)

Phone 1 - Pulls or pushes the first phone number field in NMC for the contact (Optional)

Phone 2 - Pulls or pushes the second phone number field in NMC for the contact (Optional)

Phone Type 1 & 2 - Pulls or pushes type (Optional)

Password - Contact-specific password can be recorded (Optional)

Email - Pulls or pushes the email address (Optional)

Special Notes - Pulls or pushes special notes (Optional)

Contact Updates

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 NMC.

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 the 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.

Download Zones

Download Customer will pull the zones from NMC. 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 (Required)

Zone Description - Zone Description (Required)

Zone State ID - Also populates the list box for Zone State ID (Required)

Event ID - Also populates the list box to select the Event ID (Required)

Zone Management Best Practices

Ideal Setup: Zones should be set up directly at NMC by the technician and pulled into Cornerstone.

Permissions can be set up to insert zones as well as edits to zones from Cornerstone to NMC.

Important Considerations:

• Because NMC allows zones with the same ID number, the Zone State ID is also used to determine unique records
• Any change to the Zone Description in Cornerstone will edit the description for all with the same ID at NMC
• You will only see the change in Cornerstone for the one you edited; refresh all by pulling zones from NMC
• Delete will only delete the record you are on

Data Responsibility

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/technician use.

Need Help?

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