Emergency Alerts & Unique Paging Systems

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More and more employers are stepping up the security and safety policies for the well-being of their staff. Recently we have been asked for some unique emergency alert systems to be added onto existing and new overhead paging systems. They have been predominantly for warehouses and large campuses, but would work in a typical office environment as well. The situations vary from site to site, but one thing holds true. How do you inform employees of a dangerous situation in a quick manner? It started about a year ago when we were asked to design a new paging system to replace the original one that was approx 50 years old. They were expanding to a 3rd building in one square block. The need was to be able to page separate buildings for day to day reasons, but in an emergency be able to page all the buildings at the same time, including the rooftops where building engineers could also be located.

This part is pretty typical however, the challenge was that they wanted the speakers in every conference room to be turned down and off by a volume control in the room itself. Using our knowledge of the Bogen and Viking brands of paging equipment and with their design team help, we came up with a cost effective solution that will last for decades. The emergency page can be reached by anyone by dialing a code from their phone system. It will cover all areas and override any muted speakers in the conference room. To enhance functions even more, we created emergency switches at the main reception desk, which, when switched on, will create either a tornado siren or a fire alarm sound indicating to everyone real time that danger is imminent and they need to take cover immediately.

A few months later we were designing a similar system for another customer and they wanted to take it a little further by adding a third alert for an intruder. However, they wanted to skip the switches and be able to turn it on from any phone by dialing a code for each alarm. They dial the code and the alarm starts going until they dial the code a 2nd time. For this site we even had professionally recorded messages that would play. Eg <tornado siren sound>, then “tornado warning, please take cover,” followed by the same message in Spanish.

Most recently in a food manufacturing facility, they needed all these options but the biggest complaint? Pages were too loud when machines were off, but not loud enough when they were in operation. The solution? A small microphone that listens for the current noise levels and then adjusts the volume in real time!

All of these sites undergo a monthly test of the systems. This ensures that everyone knows how to operate it in case of a real emergency and that the employees know what to do when it happens.

 

Brad “the phone guy” Carr

Need Help with Your Phone System? Give our Friendly Staff a Call @ 847-398-3393 or click here https://wirelineinc.com to learn more about Wireline

The problem… unwanted sound!

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The problem- sound. The solution – Sound Masking

Let me start with a few examples and maybe you can relate…

I’m visiting a client a few years ago, they had just moved into a new office space a few months prior. Their new space is a a very open floor plan, an industrial space with 14′ ceilings. They have offices around the perimeter, and cubicles in the center, but theoffice walls only go up about 8′.  From there it’s an open, loft-style ceiling, a very sharp looking place. The problem they werehaving however, is sound. Everyone can hear everyone, everywhere!  From one end of the office to the other you can clearly make out everyone’s conversations, it’s beyond distracting, and very difficult for anyone to get any work done.
A few weeks later, I’m at a new doctors office for a routine physical and I’m sitting in an exam room filling out paperwork. I begin to hear the doctor start talking to a patient in the next room. Luckily I didn’t see them in the waiting room before or after my appointment, as I heard their entire conversation, and learned much more then I wanted to about him. So much for HIPPA privacy.  After walking out of the doctor’s office I walked past a psychiatrists office, they had a noise machine sitting in the hallway, with a power cord going under the doorway. It was a very loud, non aesthetically pleasing solution. I’m surprised the land lord would allow that day to day.

Then I’m on a pre-bid walk through for an office remodel at one of the world’s largest soft drink manufacture’s research and development facility. They have a lot of policies and items in place for confidentiality of their products, but the one that I picked up on was sound masking. We walked down a large section of cubicles. I could tell that there was a lot of people working away, on phone calls, mini meetings, and typing away on their computers, but what was missing was the clarity of their voices. I couldn’t make out what the employees were saying as we walked by. Only 10′ or so away, but since they were not talking to us, it was private to them.

What they had was a sound masking solution in place.
Here’s how it works! A small, web enabled, amplifier with small speakers is placed throughout the facility which creates a nice constant sound, similar to the whoosh of air conditioning. Some people refer to it as white noise, but when you get specific it’s really pink noise, which is more on par with the human tonal range of speech than the static-like sound of white noise. It really does create harmony between the employees, reduces confidential information going to the wrong people, and creates less distractions which helps the bottom line.
Contact us to let us help your company do the same!

Brad “the phone guy” Carr

Need Help with Your Phone System? Give our Friendly Staff a Call @ 847-398-3393 or click here https://wirelineinc.com to learn more about Wireline