Lifeline To Safety
Communication systems can make a world of difference when alerting occupants to danger.
By Debbie Cohen
The ability to alert people to danger immediately and clearly has never been more important. As a result of events over the past several years, few people in any type of facility would disregard an emergency message or warning. The possibilities can prove far too dire. [For more on the consequences, see “Worst Case Scenario,” this month’s lead feature.]
To help ensure the safety of everyone in any facility, the government and the life safety industry have dedicated efforts to protect the public. Federal and municipal regulations on the dissemination of emergency messaging in public places have been carefully reviewed and updated nationwide. In addition, product manufacturers have increased their commitment to develop advanced and highly intelligible communication equipment for use in all types of buildings and complexes.
Such preparedness is now mandatory for evacuating facilities promptly and safely. The recent past has shown that ineffective loudspeaker systems blasting unclear messages to already disoriented individuals offer a recipe for disaster. In contrast, other crisis situations have repeatedly revealed that the best results are obtained during emergencies when broadcast warnings are heard clearly, instantly, and intelligibly throughout a facility.
Knowing The Proper Requirements
Never an easy position, the job of the facility manager has become even more complex as federal and municipal governments perform ongoing assessments and re-issue life safety regulations. The latest regulations impacting a facility include:
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). On January 26, 1993, the ADA became fully applicable for businesses and organizations that provide a place of public accommodation. This includes, but is not limited to, retail stores, factories, showrooms, sales offices, and places of entertainment and recreation.
The ADA is a federal civil rights law, rather than a building code. Non-compliance can lead to legal action. ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAGs) specifically address visible signaling appliances and audible emergency alarms used in fire alarm systems.
In addition, both the NFPA 72: National Fire Alarm Code and the ANSI A117.1: American National Standard for Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities standards are incorporated as regulations in many regional, state, local, and model building codes. The signaling requirements in the latest version of each of these documents are now in agreement.
ADA Regulations for Epilepsy. Initially, one of the ADA’s major requirements was to notify hearing impaired persons. Concern, however, was soon expressed to the ADA’s Access Board by people with photosensitive epilepsy—a form of epilepsy in which seizures are provoked by both natural and artificial flickering light sources.
As a result, a coalition was formed with members from the Epilepsy Foundation of America, Self Help for the Hard of Hearing, and the National Association of the Deaf, along with Underwriters Laboratories (UL) and manufacturers of fire alarm systems and signaling products. Members of the coalition have participated actively in the process of changing the ADAAGs, as well as industry codes and standards to address concerns.
Strobe Signaling Appliances. Experts in photosensitive epilepsy recommend that a composite flash rate in excess of five Hz should be avoided for multiple strobes installed in the field of view. NFPA 72 requires the use of synchronized strobes when more than two strobes are installed in the same field of view. This is intended to eliminate the possibility of high composite flash rates.
Also, in order to meet the ADA concern for effectively alerting the hearing impaired, strobe flash rates must be a minimum of one flash per second. Using lower intensity synchronized strobes can provide better alerting, since occupants can often directly view the strobe flash.
Synchronized Temporal Pattern. NFPA 72 (Chapter 6, Sections 6.8.6.4) requires the use of a synchronized temporal pattern (Code 3) audible signal to ensure that the sounds from multiple signals within a specified area do not overlap and interfere with the distinctive temporal pattern in public evacuations.
UL Testing. In testing, more than 92% were alerted by visible signaling with a 15 candela strobe in a 20' x 20' room. NFPA requirements increase the strobe intensity as the protected area increases in size. This is done to maintain the proper level of indirect viewing illumination for adequate warning. In fact, UL research even showed that 110 candela strobes were at least 92% effective in waking up sleeping people.
Life Safety Technologies
To accommodate these regulations as well as anticipated updates, the capabilities of voice communications equipment have been enhanced. These enhancements include the introduction of advanced integrated systems and wireless platforms using voice, strobe, and digital messaging. These technologies give facility managers the ability to be better prepared to guide occupants to safety during emergencies, as well as to warn them of potential security or environmental threats. These systems also offer security personnel new methods for practicing safety procedures and training occupants to respond to emergencies.
In many instances, existing voice communications systems have been replaced by a single integrated system that fulfills numerous functional and safety related communications tasks. For instance, one product combines telephone zone paging and high quality background music with intelligible broadcast messaging and emergency voice evacuation capabilities. Deployed as a standalone system within a single facility or part of a Base Wide Mass Notification System, these life safety technologies offer state-of-the-art circuitry and visual alert capabilities that are both ADA compliant and approved for use under NFPA, ANSI, and OSHA regulations.
In addition, such technologies project a wide assortment of messages through the delivery of digitally pre-recorded tones as well as live overrides from on-board or remote microphone stations. Other life safety systems, such as those developed for military and industrial applications, use the latest wireless technologies to provide reliable outdoor and indoor notification.
On The Safe Side
Security and safety cannot be taken for granted. Disasters, whether man made or natural, can occur with devastating results. But, advanced voice communications systems are now available to perform more effectively and comply with the latest codes and regulations. Timeliness and foresight remain the best allies for leading individuals away from danger and directing the proper personnel with the appropriate live saving responses.
Cohen is marketing communications manager at Wheelock, Inc., a company involved in the fire life safety, emergency communications, and facility management markets. She can be reached at (800) 631-2148 or by e-mail at Debbie.Cohen@mail.wheelockinc.com.
Web Resources
What communications systems are in place in your facility? E-mail your experiences to avazquez@groupc.com.
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