It goes without saying that safety is a top-tier concern for businesses and organizations. With new federal and state mandates to have robust and secure commercial safety plans in place, safety has become a renewed priority. Hospitals, schools, industry, and manufacturing are all looking for products and technological solutions to support and service their safety plans.

Technology is a game-changer, but technology can’t keep people safer without human involvement. Every organization needs to have an emergency plan. We need to learn it, practice it with drills, and be ready to respond when something happens. We want to be ready for anything. Communication is key—instant communication, and the ability to communicate across platforms and directly with public safety organizations.

Consult with a Communications Technology Leader

Of course, communication interoperability looks different for every business, institution, or entity. Each organization will have different workflows and different communication approaches. It’s important to talk through your needs and your potential scenarios, and to review your commercial safety plan in detail with someone who knows how to meet your communication challenges and keep you safe. Someone who knows your industry can customize a solution and then install and service that system to keep it working optimally.

Chicago Communications is a leading provider of two-way radios and integrated commercial safety systems, with decades of experience designing, installing, and maintaining communication technologies. We are happy to offer a free, onsite communication and safety plan consultation. 

The Right Technology Matters

There are so many safety needs and scenarios out there to consider. An intruder, a disaster, a workplace injury, weather threats, suspicious visitors, or possible weapons. How do we create a safety plan that takes into account all the various threats? And how do we best respond in each situation? Overlapping and redundant communication technologies, and the ability to use them effectively with staff, students, patients, safety officers, and public safety, is the answer. 

Here are some communication technologies to consider in every commercial safety plan:

• Mass notifications

• Radio communication

• Text

• Video

• Interoperability over the PA system (to bring in radio)

• Visual alarms

• Tonal alarms

• Searchable analytics

• GPS tracking

• Direct to 911 and law enforcement capability

• Command Central view

There’s a layering of these elements that comprise an effective safety plan. Command Central, a dashboard of all of the functions of your system, brings it all together.

A Safety Ecosystem

Managing various complex systems can be daunting. Different technologies often require different management systems or devices, creating inefficiencies and difficulties. Worse, they might not be able to talk to each other at all, creating the opposite of the safe and effective response you bought the technologies for in the first place. 

That’s why many government mandates and commercial safety plans are calling for a holistic, ecosystem approach, unifying voice, data, video, and analytics in one integrated platform. This interoperability enables businesses and individuals, communities, and public safety to work together in more powerful ways. 

Extra Eyes, Ears, and Focus

Safety Reimagined is a comprehensive technology ecosystem that allows for the efficient use of personnel and enhances safety and security. It’s powered by Avigilon, cutting-edge technology that allows intelligence to advance outward, giving you eyes and ears where you’ve never had them before. Information can move where and when it’s needed—from cameras to two-way radios, smart devices, machine sensors, alarms, and productivity tools. It can be accessed by security and operations centers, both on- and off-site. 

If there's something going on in an area you want it to focus attention on, you can program it to search for that. Safety Reimagined’s color-coded, searchable alerts ensure that you are watching the things that need your focus at the moment. It's like extra eyes. Lots of them. 

Let the System Do the Multi-Tasking

This is intelligence you can use. Safety plans and safety personnel need actionable information when they need it. Avigilon's video management software is extremely intelligent. It's self-learning. Here are some of the features of the safety system analytics: 

• Sends alerts to phones or radios.
• Captures cars, people, or objects.
• Helps you track someone of interest over a period of time. You don’t have to search thousands of hours of footage. Video analytics is an intelligent tool in the camera system.
• It is selective and laser-focused, helping you feel more secure, knowing you are on top of your safety concerns.
  
  

Technology Supports the Good of the People Who Use It

With a smart security system like Safety Reimagined, your team decides what is important and what to look for and does the actual vetting. 

The technology is vital for gathering, screening, and presenting information in an efficient, usable format. It streamlines video, keeps you updated with alerts, and empowers you to take any necessary action. And it’s adaptable to a wide variety of fields, including manufacturing, utilities, hospitals, schools, hospitality, and more.

A comprehensive system like Safety Reimagined, in addition to close connections to public safety and law enforcement, is the foundation of a 21st-century commercial safety plan. Add to it proper staffing and training, and you have an effective security and communication system that will create confidence and a secure work environment.