This case study shows the satisfaction of the end user with one of the alarm communications solutions of the company AES-Intellinet, after some emergencies experienced in the United States.
by: AES-Intellinet
AES Intellinet's communication system was able to withstand the past hurricanes of Katrina in Louisiana or Wilma in Florida, in the United States. This is because the alarm communications system of the radio mesh does not allow the failure of any of its components. The system itself self-regulates and intuitively re-engages. It could also be because you don't need phone lines, cables, or towers, nor do you need to get involved with your communications.
Let's look at what happened with Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma. This devastation highlighted the vulnerability of traditional emergency communication networks that rely primarily on telephone lines and cell towers.
Considering that winds topped 150 mph, phone lines and cell towers fell like dominoes, leaving hundreds of thousands of customers, residential complexes, shopping malls and municipal centers without at least basic communications capabilities. This compromised the safety of everyone who worked with these communications systems for days and, in some cases, months.
With storms reaching up to 20 feet, torrential rains, and extreme winds, the standard communications infrastructure presented several obstacles. The long-distance switches on the telephone lines were flooded and had to be deactivated until the water subsided. The battery-backed cell sites did not have staff or generators for recharging, as they could not reach the sites due to the flooding that occurred. Satellite antennas and radio towers fell or their coordinates stopped operating.
Rugged equipment
The wireless radiomail alarm systems of the AES-IntelliNet, thanks to its battery backup, remained online despite all these obstacles, allowing it to offer its customers continuous coverage. According to Don Richter, president of Aressco Services, Inc.: "My AES-IntelliNet customers received permanent service without any interruption throughout the storm; the system just worked. All of our cellular, wired (and other wireless) services went down with the first big wind and continued to crash until after the storm."
Another case worth noting has to do with the series of fires that occurred in Southern California since October 20, 2007.
Pushed by strong Santa Ana winds that were measured at more than 80 mph in some areas, 23 wildfires burned more than 515,000 acres in seven counties, from Santa Barbara to the Mexican border. Nearly 2,800 structures were destroyed, including 2,000 homes, while nearly a million people were forced to evacuate their homes and businesses.
The Command Center, a central contract station in Corona, located southeast of Los Angeles, covers San Diego County and the mountainous areas of San Bernardino. "He just swept us away immediately. We had a lot of problems with AC failures, low batteries and there was loss of test signals from time meters," said Morgan Hertel, vice president of The Command Center Inc. "Since we were covering such a huge area, it wasn't a couple of hours and that's it. The situation remained for at least four days." Hertel claims its normal daily volume of signals and alarm calls skyrocketed from 1,800 to more than 7,000.
The Command Center monitors different alarm communications systems, including AES-IntelliNet, GSM and other digital dialers. During the fires there were many problems due to the major failures in telephone service in both areas. They were presented with many GSM outages and were informed by a major distributor that the cellular network was experiencing problems in both areas as a result of the wildfires.
According to Hertel, "GSM presented problems, telecommunications facilities failed, and yet the AES-IntelliNet system continued to function. In fact, the wildfires did not affect the radio system. Our clients actually called us to "synchronize" their radios, as they knew that if the radio was still operating, the house was most likely still standing. We heard a lot of sighs of relief when we gave them the good news that the radio was still online."
So why is it important for alarm communications systems to remain functional during disasters? During a severe storm like Katrina, when electricity, phone lines, and cell towers go down, crime increases. As there are no communications available in the protected places when these incidents happen, looters make their own. Or if you and your family are at home sleeping in the middle of the night and a fire breaks out during a storm, your life and those of your family depend on the alarm communications system that has been installed in the home.
When you think about what may have happened in circumstances like these, what alarm communications system would you like to have in your home to protect your family, what is your most precious estate? Would you prefer an alarm system that is known to be faulty during storms and won't carry the alarm signal to the authorities? Or would you prefer one that is not vulnerable to weather conditions, line cuts, collapsed towers or satellite stability?
Reliable solution
The radiomail alarm communications system offers the necessary peace of mind in case of a fire or if a thief breaks into your house. Only in a matter of 1 to 3 seconds will your alarm come to the attention of the authorities, no matter what happens.
Technologies come and go and will continue to do so. Analog cellular service is a thing of the past and as there are more and more people disabling their land lines, it is the safest thing that the alarm communications systems that depend on the POTS Service (Traditional Simple Telephone Service) are the ones that are still in turn.
Of the Central Stations that offer monitoring for AES-IntelliNet, all value having and operating their own system, in order to have complete control over the quality of service from start to finish. They highlight the fact that they don't have to rely on unreliable service providers like phone companies and really highlight the fact that they don't have to pay them bills monthly. For example, Douglas Pierce, president of Michican's Guardian Alarm Company, said he is comfortable with the kind of wireless radio jam technology he uses: "I love having and controlling my systems from start to finish. Eliminating monthly costs improved profits and consequently increased our profitability and the value of the company."
David Avritt of SentryNet expressed his satisfaction with the control offered by AES-IntelliNet. "This system allows us to control our own destiny without having to rely on the whims of someone else's network. We can control our prices and the quality of service and, in compensation, we control our future."
