Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Department

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NCSU Preparedness

Prepardness Summary

Crisis Management

NC State as a University and the departments within it have developed business continuity and disaster recovery plans. These plans are stored in a business continuity planning tool - Living Disaster Recovery Planning System (LDRPS) and is not publized on this website. Below is a brief summary of our planning efforts.

NC State University has a Crisis Communication Plan. The plan provides policies and procedures for the coordination of communications within the university, and between the university, the media and the public in the event of an emergency or controversial issue.

Emergencies may include fires, bomb threats, natural disasters, or major crimes. Controversial issues may include police investigations, protests or other situations that demand a public response. THIS PLAN IS NOT INTENDED TO CHANGE THE WAY EMERGENCIES ARE INITIALLY REPORTED. ALL EMERGENCIES ON CAMPUS SHOULD BE REPORTED IMMEDIATELY TO CAMPUS POLICE (911). This plan not only addresses media relations and communications issues, but also includes procedures for the rapid identification of potentially harmful situations and the methods for responding to these situations quickly and effectively. It is the goal of this crisis communications plan to establish guidelines for dealing with a variety of situations, and to ensure that campus officials and communicators are familiar with those procedures and their roles in the event of a crisis. The plan is designed to be used in conjunction with the normal decision-making hierarchy of the university and does not supplant that decision-making process. A copy of the plan can be found at http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/campus_environ/REG04.00.1.php.

University Crisis Communications Team

This University Crisis Communication Team makes recommendations on appropriate responses. The Team also implements immediate action to:

Identify constituencies that should be informed about the situation
Communicate facts about the crisis
Minimize rumors
Restore order and/or confidence.

Information Technology

To prepare for incidents which would impact the ability for administrative and academic computing to deliver critical functions, below lists strategies that Administrative and Academic IT departments have implemented:

5 Main Distribution Feeds (MDFs) for backup telecommunication and networking
Alternate sites used to store critical files and data storage for data center
Interim disaster recovery strategy for recovery HR and Financial systems
Contract with vendor to provide mobile recovery unit to recover administrative mainframe infrastructure
Secondary data center in construction phase for recovery all critical applications and servers providing backup and data replication for administrative computing functions.

Animal Safety and Research

The Department of Business Continuity is in the process of working with College of Veterinary Medicine and College of Agriculture and Life Science in developing Business Continuity Plans and Disaster or Emergency Plans which will identify alternative sites that would be logical potential places for displaced animals as well as third party service providers whom could assist in the relocation of large displaced animals. In the event that a disaster impacts the care of [laboratory] Animals, plans are being developed to document tasks that will be involved [to ensure the health and safety of the animals].

Communication with Students and Faculty

NC State University maintains a notification system called The Communicator that automatically dials each RA and provides information that needs to be communicated to students. In the event of disaster that impacts NC State University, Faculty and Staff should call 513-8888 for campus updates. Faculty and staff should also contact their Department Head for information on how to respond to the business disruption. For major crisis information, students should also contact their RA or visit the NC State Website for up-to-date information.

Housing and University Dining

In acknowledgement of the fact that approximately 8,500 students live on campus and administrative support personnel respond to campus emergency, University Housing and University Dining will coordinate interim housing and coordinate catering functions. The University Housing department has a comprehensive business continuity plan to handle displaced students. Some University Dining cafeterias are on backup power sources and Dining has the option to utilize third party providers to assist with catering needs if necessary.

Facilities

In the event that a business disruption impacts classrooms, labs, or office buildings, the Facilities Department will work with the respective departments during recovery. The facilities department has developed a team who will respond to specific facility disruptions. Faculty and staff should contact Facilities at 919-515-2991 to report all facility disruptions. The University Architect Department maintains an inventory of facilities that are available to teach classes, house students, and provide office space in for all academic and administrative departments. However, departments must provide them with minimal requirements while working in an alternate mode until normal business can be restored. In the event that external facilities are needed, staff should contact the Real Estate Office. The Facilities Planning and Design Office can assist departments with renovation or new construction needs.

Protection of People

The mission of the Campus Police Department is to assist students, faculty, and staff in maintaining a safe and secure environment in order to enhance the quality of life at North Carolina State University. The Campus Police Department has instituted many safeguards to protect the students, faculty, staff, and visitors of NC State University. Visit http://www2.ncsu.edu/ncsu/public_safety/psdhome.html for more information.

Business Relationships

It is important to maintain the business relationships developed with our department. In the event of a business disruption, communication protocols are in place to communicate to our business partners the impact of the incident on our relationship with them. The communication protocol will be reviewed by the Office of Public Affairs to ensure it complies with university policy for internal and external customers.