Siemens Building Technologies to provide an integrated security system for Humber College's North Campus

Humber College Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning, selected Siemens Building Technologies, Ltd., a subsidiary of Siemens Canada Limited, to provide an integrated security system for its North Campus located in the northwest part of Toronto. The new solution replaced the existing fire alarm system with a technologically-advanced fully-addressable solution with annunciating capabilities.

Humber College's president, John Davies, identified an urgent need for a modern life safety system and an improved method to communicate with staff and students during emergency situations. "Our mandate, which is to focus on the quality of the learning experience, and Humber's overall concern for student safety, were primary factors in the decision to select Siemens for this project," noted Mr. Davies.

The system comprises of 14 XLS Fire Finder panels located throughout the college. There are two identical command and control centres, one at the main security desk and a back-up at the office of the director of Public Safety for Humber College. Each of the command centres has a Network Command Centre computer with a graphical display. There are more than 1,900 detection devices and 2,100 speakers and strobes throughout the campus.

"This a very sophisticated system we have provided to Humber College and we are extremely proud that we were able to deliver the solution in the summer months in a very short time frame, so there was little or no interruption to students or staff," said Meinrad Wagenschwanz, vice president of Siemens Building Technologies. "Moving forward, instead of disrupting the learning process, the college can isolate and investigate any situations at an appropriate level and communicate within the facility."

Humber College now has a security system with more capability than ever before. Pre-recorded messages allow the College to proactively prepare for possible crisis situations, improving response times. Humber management and security staff believe that the College now boasts one of the best systems in use in the province. Upon completion of the installation, Humber College promoted the benefits of the new system internally. Information was provided via pop-up messages on desktop PCs, pages on the Humber College website, and video segments on Humber TV.

In conjunction with the implementation of the new systems, Humber College has reviewed and updated their Critical Incident Preparedness Plan. The college now performs regular lock-down drills with the involvement of the police and fire departments. Weekly training on the systems is provided to ensure the systems and procedures are understood and executed with the highest efficiency.