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Property Management
Industry Benefits from Automated Messaging
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- Fire alarm, building automation,
security and card access are some of the critical
operating systems that are found in most large commercial
office towers. Property Managers rely on these systems to
ensure the safe and efficient operation of their
buildings. API-8/232 is being successfully applied in
this market as a way of ensuring that key staff receive
important system information, quickly and efficiently
while they are mobile. Property Managers, Operations
Managers, Security Staff and Maintenance personnel are
some of the people who are benefiting from the immediate
information that API-8/232 provides.
- API-8/232 is being very well received
in this market place because it eliminates communications
problems that occur during alarm situations and ensures
that those who need the information receive it directly
from the host system without any human
intervention.
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Property Management
Company
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- The Property Management company for a
large urban shopping centre wanted to inform patrolling
security officers of unauthorized access after hours.
API-8/232 was the solution, but there was no security or
access system in place. The result was a total system
sale that encompassed perimeter alarm, card access and
CCTV.
- When pre-defined conditions ( forced
entries, glass breaks, doors that are held or propped
open) occur the patrolling security officer is
automatically paged with the exact details and location
by API-8/232. The security officer can now proceed
immediately to the location without having to backtrack
to the alarm panel. In addition the head of security
receives the same information at exactly the same time so
that they can both respond accordingly whether they are
on site or away from the facility.
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National Property Manager
purchased API-8/232 for the fire alarm systems in a number
of the buildings that they manage.
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- A Large National Property Manager
purchased API-8/232 for the fire alarm systems in a
number of the buildings that they manage. One of the
buildings is approximately 250,000 square feet in size
and is occupied predominantly by commercial tenants. The
fire alarm panel is located on the ground floor in the
lobby and is not consistently monitored by anyone on
site. Staff including the Property Manager, Operations
Supervisor, Operations Personnel and Security Officer
carry alphanumeric pagers. After hours the building is
patrolled by a single contract security officer.
- In this application API-8/232 offered
two distinct benefits. The first was to page the entire
staff (operations group, security etc.) with the exact
details (including location) of a fire alarm or trouble.
Prior to the installation of API-8/232 a staff member
would have to go directly to the alarm panel during an
alarm to identify the cause. They would then relay
information to other staff members via radio. The
installation of API-8/232 has eliminated this entire step
in the communications process. The staff now receive the
information directly on their pagers as soon as an alarm
or trouble condition occurs. Staff can now go directly to
the location of the alarm or trouble and investigate.
Valuable time is saved and the process of responding to
fire alarms has become much more efficient.
- The second benefit occurs after
business hours. After business hours one contract
security officer is responsible for patrolling the entire
building. Prior to the installation of API-8/232 an
officer on rounds on one of the upper floors would have
to travel via the stairs to the ground floor to
physically look at the alarm panel to find the origin of
an alarm. With API-8/232 this information is provided to
his pager and he can go direct to the source of the
alarm. This saves valuable time which is critical during
an alarm situation. As well the Operations Supervisor
receives this information while he is off site and can
telephone the security officer to ensure that the
situation has been handled and pass on any further
instructions that may be required.
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Automated Messaging, A
Winner in the Health Care Industry
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- Nowhere is timely information more
important than the health care industry. Health care
professionals rely upon essential information to ensure
both the comfort and safety of the clients under their
care. Reductions in staffing combined with increasing
requirements for higher level of care demand that more
efficient methods of notifying and informing staff be
adopted. Critical systems such as fire alarm, nurse call,
access control, building automation and panic alarms,
provide valuable information that must be received by key
individuals who are mobile in as quick and efficient a
way as possible.
- API-8/232 is proving to be a very
successful and efficient communications tool for the
health care industry. The following are examples of
facilities that are using API-8/232:
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Toronto area Hospital
required a method of alerting their fire team of an
alarm
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- When a Toronto area Hospital required
a method of alerting their fire team of an alarm, they
elected to use the API-8/232 to interface to the existing
fire alarm system. The API-8/232 allowed for the
automation of dispatching fire alarm information to the
fire team. Upon activation of the alarm, the API-8/232
sends a detailed text message to the alphanumeric pagers
carried by the team members. The fire team members
receive a distinctive alert on their pagers which
indicates incoming fire alarm information. The pager then
displays the complete alarm details including the
location and type of device.
- The automated dispatching provides a
number of benefits to both the fire team and the switch
board personnel who are responsible to manage the fire
alarm information. The fire team receives detailed text
information on the location and type of alarm which
allows them to initiate the required procedures
immediately. The fire team previously were alerted via
the overhead paging system after the initial alert bells
had stopped ringing. The API-8/232 helped to reduce the
delays in receiving the alarm information as the
alphanumeric messages are sent almost instantaneously
upon activation of the fire alarm. The ability for the
team to read and review the information also helps to
decrease errors and confusion associated with
misinterpreted or unheard overhead pages.
- With the API-8/232 unit handling the
paging of alarms to the fire alert team, the switchboard
staff is available to focus their attention on carrying
out the other procedures during the alarm. The fire alert
team may also be paged manually with detailed information
after the receipt of the initial alarm.
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Southwestern Ontario
Hospital utilizes the API-8/232 to provide paging
notification
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- A Southwestern Ontario Hospital
utilizes the API-8/232 to provide paging notification
from a number of systems throughout the hospital. The
input contacts from the API-8/232 are connected to the
following systems: fire alarm, boilers, coolers, and the
building management system. When an input from any one of
the systems is activated, the API-8/232 sends a
pre-programmed text message to a group of environmental
engineering staff. Each input has an associated
distinctive message which provides a level of detail to
the users such as 'Boiler high temperature system alarm'.
Upon receipt of the message, the appropriate staff can
take action to respond to the situation.
- Before the installation of the
API-8/232, the hospital relied upon either visual or
audible alarms in the plant department for notification.
Alarm conditions could potentially go unnoticed until
someone happened to be in the area. The API-8/232
provides for decreased response times to alarms and time
savings as the staff need not go to the physical plant to
check on the statue of the various systems.
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Director of Security for
a world renowned clothing retailer
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- The Director of Security for a world
renowned clothing retailer was looking for a way to
automatically direct alarm information to himself when
break ins occurred. He was having specific problems with
stores that were located outside of shopping mails and
that had street level access. He had alarm systems in
place in these stores. The alarm systems where equipped
with glass break sensors and motion detectors and the
overall system was monitored by a central station.
- API-8/232 was installed in three
stores to provide specific alarm information from these
stores to his pager. The information that he would
typically receive on a break in would be an initial alarm
message that like 'Glass break, Front Door, Store #12'.
Subsequent to this message (if it was an actual alarm and
not a false alarm) he would begin receiving motion alarm
messages as the suspects moved through the premises. He
would receive messages such as 'motion women' apparel,
store # 12' and 'motion shoes, store #12'.
- He wanted this information to be sent
directly and immediately to his pager for a number of
reasons. First, he wanted to receive the information in a
quicker fashion than he would normally receive it from
the central station. Secondly he wanted more detailed
information so that he would be more prepared to speak to
the central station and could potentially avoid a false
alarm response by the police.
- API-8/232 has already been used in a
number of real break in situation and is proving to be a
valuable tool. The customer is opening a number of new
street level stores and has indicated that he will be
installing API-8/232 in these locations.
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A Major Natural Gas
Supplier was looking for a way to be notified of problems
with its remote unmanned automobile filling stations.
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- Each site has a telephone and in the
past they have relied on customers to call and indicate
that the gas supply had run out or that there was another
problem at the location They felt that this approach had
become reactive and placed too much onus on the customer.
In many cases the customers would not call, leaving the
problem for the next customer.
- API-8/232 was installed so that
service reps could be immediately paged when the gas
supply was low or a problem had occurred with the
system.
- Now they handle problems at their
unmanned filling stations in a proactive fashion. The end
result is better customer service, increased customer
satisfaction and a reduction in lost business because
they can respond much faster to problems when they
occur.
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Downtown Toronto Office
Tower wanted to remotely notify mobile security
officers
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- A Downtown Toronto Office Tower
wanted to remotely notify mobile security officers when a
panic button was activated in the underground parking
garage. Panic buttons are strategically located on
columns in the garage. When activated, a panic alarm
triggers a light and buzzer on a panel in the security
office. After 6:00 P.M. there is only one security
officer on duty. At times he has to leave the security
office to go on rounds or perform various duties. The
problem is that when he is away from his desk he isn't
alerted to a panic button activation in the garage. This
posed potentially serious problem. There were two
possible solutions.The first and most expensive was to
hire a second security officer after hours to man the
security office full time. Alternatively they could try
and provide the information from the panel to the mobile
officer.
- API-8/232 was selected as the
solution to the problem. The security guard was provided
an alphanumeric pager. API-8/232 was interfaced with the
existing panic button alarm panel. The security officer
now receives alarm messages from the panic alarm system
indicating the location of the problem and can respond
immediately and directly.
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West Coast Salmon Farm
wanted to provide water temperature information from its
fish hatchery ponds to staff
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A West Coast Salmon Farm wanted to
provide water temperature information from its fish hatchery
ponds to staff while there was no one on site tending the
operation. API-8/232 was interfaced with water temperature
sensors to automatically page staff when the water
temperatures moved outside of the normal range. It was very
important for them to identify major temperature changes
before they did damage to the stock in the ponds. Shifts in
water temperature could have a dramatic impact on the
overall productivity at the hatchery.
Staff no longer have to constantly visit
each location to monitor temperature. They are notified
immediately of a significant change while they are mobile
and can act immediately if necessary.
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School Board recently
reduced the number of maintenance personnel responsible for
physical plant operations in their schools
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A School Board recently reduced the
number of maintenance personnel responsible for physical
plant operations in their schools. This lead to a major
concern about the ability of less people being able to
monitor all of the boilers in the schools located in the
district. Less people meant that each qualified operator
could spend less time in each school. Boiler alarms could go
unnoticed for a longer period of time. The solution was to
install an API-8/232 in each of the schools. The paging
interface notifies the operator when there is an alarm at
any of the schools that they are responsible for. They can
respond directly and avert any consequential problems that
may occur as a result of having no heat in the
school.
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