The Kernersville Board of Aldermen voted Dec. 9 to authorize an exception to competitive bidding to purchase ForceMetrics software for the Police Department, a purchase town staff described as necessary to maintain interoperability and access to data other nearby agencies are adopting.

Town Manager Curtis Swisher explained that the town currently uses a platform referred to in the meeting as "p2p," but that vendor will not provide sufficient data going forward. Swisher said several neighboring agencies the town closely interacts with are moving to ForceMetrics, and ForceMetrics integrates with the town’s existing software.

"We're kinda forced," Swisher said, describing interoperability needs; he recommended a sole‑source exception so the department can obtain the product and continue to exchange needed data. The board approved the exception by motion and unanimous vote.

The transcript does not include a purchase price, contract length, or vendor contract terms; the board’s vote authorized staff to proceed with a sole‑source procurement under the competitive‑bidding exception. Staff did not provide details about ongoing maintenance costs or an implementation timetable at the meeting.

Any formal purchase contract and related budget actions were not described in the recorded discussion and would be the subject of future staff action and potential follow-up board approvals.