When you hear the term “Life-Safety Solutions,” technologies like fire alarms, access control and video surveillance likely come to mind right away. These solutions are certainly important enough to warrant the attention they get in the industry, but a comprehensive life-safety plan includes much more.

Here are Tech’s 5 top underappreciated technologies that keep people and property safe:

  1. Public Safety DAS – While Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) may not be the first life safety solution that comes to mind, it plays a vital role in keeping many buildings and their occupants safe. DAS allows for clear, reliable wireless communications in buildings with poor signal strength or coverage. In the event that first responders are called to the scene of an emergency, a public safety DAS might be the difference between safety and disaster.
  2. Emergency Call Stations – You might pass a familiar blue-light station without a second thought, but these standalone two-way communication devices save lives. Most frequently stationed in parking lots and garages, or on walkways on large exterior campuses, they can be used to quickly notify authorities of emergencies.
  3. Intrusion Detection – For businesses that face a high risk of break-ins, an intrusion detection system that integrates with their access control and video surveillance is a key addition. Whether achieved via motion detection, door/window contact sensors or some combination thereof, intrusion detection ensures that when a building or area is supposed to be unoccupied, nobody can slip in unnoticed.
  4. Clean Agent Suppression – Fire alarms, sprinklers and portable fire extinguishers are all well-known, essential components of any fire safety plan. However, by the time heat-actuated sprinklers are activated, there could already be damage to people or property. A clean agent system is smoke-activated, and immediately floods the room with a people-safe gas which extinguishes the fire before it has the chance to get out of control.
  5. Area of Refuge/Rescue Assistance Stations – In the event of an emergency, these two-way communication systems can be a lifeline for building occupants who cannot safely traverse the stairs without assistance. Residents can assemble by one of these call stations, contact authorities and await instructions or assistance from first responders.