EMERGENCY ACCESS
Joe Weber, Sales Director

Emergency access has always been a concern for all of us in the automatic gate operator business. As you know we have done a good job providing access for the fire departments but have had a difficult time providing access to other mutual aid departments. Very few of the local municipalities have access for their local police and ambulance. There are products available but they require the sounding of a siren to gain access. This is not necessarily bad when an ambulance is trying to gain access through an automatic gate. The sounding of a siren can help draw attention to the situation. However, when the police are trying to gain access in the middle of the night for a casual patrol of the neighborhood, sounding the alarm is not an option.

We need to understand the instructions and three distinct instructions given to sheriff and police personnel when they are dispatched. They are Code 1. A non-emergency, just coming in, Code 2. An emergency, drive fast without lights and siren and Code 3. Also an emergency, drive fast with lights and siren. As an example, when police are dispatched with "code 2" instructions, they must arrive at the scene as fast as they can without the use of lights or a siren. In a code 2 emergency, personnel are operating in a stealth or covert manner and their lives, as well as, the lives of others, may depend on this. An audible sounding of their siren is unacceptable as they come upon an automatic gate.

The solution to this problem was a new introduced at both the NOMMA and the IDA trade shows. This revolutionary device will allow access to all Mutual Aid agencies such as fire, police, sheriff, ambulance and rescue companies who utilize radio transmitters. There is nothing to give to the mutual aid agency other than instruction, as they own their radio equipment. Once their radio frequencies, along with their sub-audible signal (their facility code, if you will) are entered into the receiver it is ready to go. Through simple keying of the Mutual Aid agency radio, they are safely and securely granted access (this is sure be to a hit with the Mutual Aid society, so beware the product to fulfill this application has arrived).

A UL325 update… Educate, educate, educate,…
Like it or not UL325 is here to stay. I am encouraged by the request we continue to receive for handouts designed to help you educate your customer. We are committed to UL325 and, as you know, a compliant system provides total system safety. Only after your customer understands the dangers associated with an automatic gate, will they begin to appreciate your concern for their safety and allocate the additional money necessary to comply with the new standard.

Keep up the good work and continue to educate your customers.