Consulting-Specifying Engineer - April 2008 - (Page 19) “ Effective mass notification is not a single system; it’s a process that involves leveraging and integrating many, if not all, of the monitoring, communications, and control systems in your building or on your campus.” capability to respond quickly to mitigate and limit the damage. It is easy to understand why; the focus and emphasis is being placed on responding to the mass notification challenge, or how to best communicate with all campus occupants in the event of an emergency situation. Purpose of mass notification What situations require campus officials to be able to communicate with everyone on campus? According to a recent public safety survey conducted over a sampling of public safety officials, the top concern was a natural disaster. Judging from recent hurricanes in the South, tornados in the North and East, and fires in the West, this concern is well-founded. Aside from weather-related emergencies, the threat could involve a security breach, an act of terrorism, a chemical release, a fire, a utility outage, or any other type of disruptive event. The purpose of a campus-wide mass notification system is to provide a reliable method for officials to notify people on campus of an emergency event and explain what is happening, what to do, where to go, and when it’s safe to resume normal activities. The mass notification system must have the capabilities to send instructions to people in specific spaces, floors, buildings, and facilities throughout the campus, or in some instances, to an entire regional or global network of people. These instructions can be transmitted via loudspeakers, voice-equipped fire alarms systems, public radio/TV networks, computers, telephones and cell phones, PDAs, visual display signage, and two-way radios. Refer to the sidebar at right for a partial list of technologies that can be part of a mass notification system. Technology risks and rewards The leading-edge technology of mass notification always has resided in the government sector, where the risks of security breaches are highest and the consequences can be the most devastating. Following Sept. 11, it became apparent that in order to protect ordinary citizens from terrorism and violence, the government’s advanced technology needed to be shared with system developers, manufacturers, and integrators in the private sector. Under the guidance of the Dept. of Homeland Security, the government is still where new technologies are developed and tested, but, now under presidential order, the government is sharing its lessons learned and technologies, Consequently, the private sector is now in a much better position to address security and mass notification challenges. The flood of new security technology into the marketplace has raised the capabilities of mass notification exponentially. New products and systems are hitting the market every day. They’re smarter, faster, smaller, and less expensive than ever before, and thanks to our mass media sophistication, more people know about new technologies in a shorter period of time. Complementing this proliferation of mass notification technology are consumers with real-world needs. The university president wants an immediate security solution to publicize to the parents who have selected a safe learning environment for their child. The CEO of a private company seeks the same quickfix solution to protect the people who work on a corporate campus, whether it’s a single building in one location, multiple buildings in a complex, or facilities spread across the country or around the world. It’s a perfect storm, especially in light of recent events on campuses. The consumer has a need; the industry has a solution. A typical question consumers ask is: “If I have a limited budget for mass notification, what’s the one system I should spend it on?” A good answer is: “Before investing in hardware, find a good consultant capable of guiding you through the entire mass notification process and can show you how to leverage the technology that you already own.” But in many cases, the top campus official is Mass notification interfaces Provide intelligible voice communications via loudspeakers that also may interface to: • Voice evacuation systems • Visible signal systems • Telephone systems • Cell phones and pagers • Radios and wireless devices • Digital video/graphic signage systems • Computer pop-ups • Text messaging • Other communication methods. Consulting-Specifying Engineer • APRIL 2008 19
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