Security Integration: Does Your System Hurt Emergency Communication?

Security emergencies are tense situations for any organization. The need for quick decisions and mass communication is essential. If your security systems aren’t equipped with the right emergency communication tools, your facility stands susceptible to threats due to slow and ineffective response. Even with the widespread use of technology in the hands of the populous, incidents unfold at a frenetic pace when the proper parties aren’t notified fast enough.

The right security communication alerts people of a security risk onsite while notifying and calling forth emergency response teams. The more streamlined and centralized your facility’s emergency communications, the better chance you have of responding in a timely fashion to security incidents. Security integration ensures your security team receives the right communication at the right time to assess potential threats.

Why Security Integration Improves Communication

The advantages to security systems integration are numerous. For example, a door alarm system may trigger CCTV coverage and alert an agent to view the appropriate monitor on his security command console and assess the threat as it develops.

Other ways security integration improves emergency communication include:

• Prioritizes transmission of emergency communications over other daily communications to accelerate and ensure delivery
• Reduces stress on security team fielding and responding to a host of facility communications
• Expands security coverage by enabling emergency response capabilities for 24/7 or afterhours coverage

Most importantly, emergency communication devices integrated across an entire facility streamline officers’ technology training by simplifying their ability to use the security technology regardless of where they are onsite.

Seek Strategic Use Of Communication Devices

Strategic placement of communication devices enhances communication between occupants and security professionals, and builds a well-connected and informed security team.

For example, the best emergency communication devices for occupants and visitors are placed in visible, well-lit areas of easy access. The stations or wall-mounted communication devices should be integrated with CCTV to help an officer assess a situation, and enhance the interaction between the person calling and the officer responding to the call. Depending on your security needs, this officer may either be located at your site or offsite through a remote monitoring service.

Combining the right technology to support a faster flow of information to your security team results in stronger, timelier emergency responses.

Precautions For Integrating Communication Devices

While it’s true that security integration is good for security, it’s not always good for facility management, unless your security integrator has taken all the proper precautions. When integrating security technologies, it’s important to keep them functionally and operationally separate from facility management controls related to heating and cooling, lighting and energy to avoid confusion and streamline use.

Systems integration is all about pairing similar security technologies and leveraging the full capabilities behind each individual technology to ensure no communication is lost and every angle is accounted for.

Before choosing to expand emergency communication devices, discover other ways to increase the strength of your security system.

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