SMS alert glossary: texting and alarm terms for Canadian teams
This SMS alert glossary explains the words you meet when alarms become texts. It covers texting terms like segments and 10DLC, alarm terms like SCADA and PLC, and on-call terms like escalation. Each entry starts with a one-line definition and shows how it affects alert texts in Canada.
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SMS alert glossary
In plain English, with what it means for alert texts.
Who this glossary is for
Alert texting sits between two worlds. The alarm side speaks in tags, PLCs and historians. The texting side speaks in segments, carriers and registrations. Most people know one side well and the other not at all.
- Operators and engineers who know their SCADA system but not why a text split in three.
- IT admins who know their monitoring tool but not why a toll-free number needs verification before it can text a Canadian phone.
- Facility managers who need a quick, plain answer before a vendor call.
- Owners and office managers who approve the spend and want the words to make sense.
Why the words matter for alert texts
Small details in texting decide whether an alarm arrives, what it costs and who sees it. You don't need to be an expert, but a few terms explain most surprises.
They explain the bill
A long alarm email can become several texts. Knowing what an SMS segment is tells you why one alarm used four credits and how to bring it back to one.
They explain missing texts
Texts can stop for quiet reasons: carrier filtering, a STOP reply, or a landline on the list. Each term here points to the fix.
They explain the paperwork
North American networks now ask businesses to verify or register before texting. Terms like toll-free verification and the US 10DLC system show what is required and why Welco handles it for you.
Glossary terms by topic
Every term has its own short page. Start with the group closest to your question.
Texting basics
North American numbers and registration
Consent
- Terms
- Opt-in, STOP keyword
Plant and control systems
- Terms
- SCADA, PLC, process historian
On-call and alarms
- Terms
- On-call, escalation, alarm flood
Terms people often mix up
A few pairs of words sound alike but mean different things. Mixing them up leads to the wrong fix.
Toll-free number and 10DLC
Both are ways for a business to text from a phone number. A toll-free number starts with a code like 800 or 888, works across Canada and the US, and needs verification. A 10DLC number is a US local number and needs brand and campaign registration. Read the toll-free verification guide for the details.
Email-to-SMS gateway and alert texting service
A carrier gateway was a free address, like a Bell @txt.bell.ca one, that forwarded email to one phone with no checks. An alert texting service like Welco checks the sender, trims the alarm and routes it by time of day. Bell closed its gateway at the end of 2025, which is why the difference now matters.
Escalation and on-call routing
Escalation means passing an alarm to the next person if nobody responds in time. On-call routing means sending it to whoever is on duty right now. Welco does routing by time of day, and does not run escalation chains.
SCADA and PLC
A PLC is the small industrial computer that runs one machine, pump or panel. SCADA is the software that watches many PLCs from a control room and raises alarms. The alarm email usually comes from SCADA, not from the PLC itself.
Opt-in and STOP
Opt-in is the YES that starts alerts to a phone. STOP is the reply that ends them. Both come from the person holding the phone, never from the company sending the alerts.
Delivery receipt and read receipt
A delivery receipt says the network handed the text to the phone. It doesn't say anyone read it. Plain SMS has no read receipts, so a confirmed delivery is not the same as a person taking action.
How an alarm becomes a text with Welco
Many glossary terms show up somewhere in these three steps.
Verify your business once
Sign up with your work email, share your business details and book a short intro call. Welco sends from toll-free numbers it has already verified, so you never file a registration yourself.
Each person joins and replies YES
You invite staff by email or a join link. Each person enters their own cellphone number, ticks an unchecked box and replies YES to one text. They can reply STOP at any time, and HELP for help.
Your system emails Welco
Your SCADA, monitoring or building system sends its alarm email to your Welco address. Welco trims it and texts the right phone.
See the terms in action on your own phone
Point one alarm email at Welco and watch it arrive as a text.
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Follow one alarm through the glossary
Most of the terms here show up in a single night. This is one lift station alarm in a Manitoba town, from the pump to the reply.
A PLC sees the wet well rising
The programmable logic controller at the station passes the alarm up to SCADA, which sends an alarm email.
Welco checks the sender and trims the email
Only approved senders can trigger a text. The trim keeps the alarm inside one segment, so it uses one credit per phone.
The text goes out from a verified toll-free number
Only the standby operator gets it, because night routing picks the person on call.
Welco: [Lift Stn 4] Wet well HIGH, Pump 1 not running at 2:07 AM. Reply STOP to opt out.The network reports the text delivered
That network delivery report means no spam filter stopped it and the phone was on.
The operator replies before driving out
Heading to Lift 4The reply lands in the plant inbox
There is no escalation chain. The team can see who owns the alarm.
All glossary terms
Short definitions, an example for each, and how the term affects alert texts.
- SMS segmentWhat is an SMS segment? Learn the 160 and 70 character limits, why one emoji or French accent changes the count, and how to keep alerts to one segment.
- Toll-free numberWhat is a toll-free number? See how 800-style numbers send business texts across Canada and the US, and how they differ from local numbers for alerts.
- Toll-free verificationWhat is toll-free verification? See what the review checks, why it also covers texts to Canadian phones, and how it affects staff alert texts in Canada.
- 10DLCWhat is 10DLC? How US local business numbers are registered for texting, what changed in 2025, and what this US rule means for Canadian alerts.
- Alphanumeric sender IDWhat is an alphanumeric sender ID? See how a name can stand in for a phone number, where it is used, and how alert texts in Canada show the sender.
- STOP keywordWhat is the STOP keyword? See how a STOP reply ends texts from a sender, how HELP and French keywords fit in Canada, and why it mutes a duty phone.
- Opt-inWhat is opt-in? What a clear yes to texts looks like in Canada, how staff join with their own phone and reply YES, and why it keeps numbers trusted.
- Email-to-SMS gatewayWhat is an email-to-SMS gateway? See how addresses like txt.bell.ca turned email into texts, which Canadian carriers closed them, and what to use now.
- SCADAWhat is SCADA? A plain guide to the software that runs a Canadian plant or water system, its parts, and how its alarms reach an operator at night.
- PLCWhat is a PLC? Learn what a programmable logic controller does on a Canadian plant floor, how its faults reach a screen, and how its alarms become texts.
- Process historianWhat is a process historian? See how it stores Canadian plant readings over time, how it differs from SCADA, and how historian alarms reach staff as texts.
- On-callWhat does on-call mean? See how Canadian teams cover nights, weekends and stat holidays, and how routing sends each alarm to the on-call phone.
- EscalationWhat is escalation in alerting? See how an alert passes to the next person when nobody responds, what acknowledging means, and a simpler setup in Canada.
- Alarm floodWhat is an alarm flood? What sets off a burst of alarms, from hydro outages to ice storms, why it buries the one that matters, and how to stop it.
- Delivery receiptWhat is a delivery receipt? Learn how Canadian networks report whether a text reached the phone, what sent and delivered mean, and why alarms need it.
- Carrier filteringWhat is carrier filtering? See how Canadian networks scan business texts for spam, why real alarm words get caught, and how to keep alert texts flowing.
Three alerts, many terms
Each sample below fits in one segment of plain text. Each would go only to a phone that opted in, and each ends with the opt-out line.
- From a SCADA system: Welco: [Pump Station 2] Well 3 level LOW LOW alarm at 1:58 PM. Reply STOP to opt out.
- From a monitoring tool: Welco: [Server] Host DOWN - db-01 (10.5.160.9) at 3:12 AM. Reply STOP to opt out.
- From a phone system: Welco: New voicemail on Tech Urgency Line from (231) 555-0100, 0:36. Reply STOP to opt out.
Welco features linked to these terms
One-text alerts
Keeps long alarms to one segment where it can.
Delivery reports
Turns delivery receipts into plain-English reasons.
Alarm flood control
Limits bursts so a flood doesn't bury the phone.
Dedicated alert number
A number only your company uses, in the US and Canada.
Frequently asked questions
What does SMS stand for?
Is a text message the same as an SMS?
What does A2P mean in business texting?
Can I suggest a term for the glossary?
Do I need to know these terms to set up Welco in Canada?
Why does Welco explain SCADA and PLC terms on a texting site?
Know the terms, now send the alarm
Point one alarm email at Welco and see it arrive as a text. Nothing to install.
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