Businesses are now more aware of global safety issues than ever before. A notable development is the sharp increase in the demand for dedicated Disaster Command and Control centres. The nature of risk in the 21st Century has changed enormously; from fuel shortages and flash-floods to contagious diseases and worst-case scenario attacks such as those mounted in 2001. As business grow larger and more complex, maintaining open lines of communication in a crisis also becomes more challenging.
Companies have reacted to the post-9/11 global environment with typical cool Risk Management thinking, control and contain the threat. Many companies are now choosing to build dedicated Disaster command and control centres to safeguard their business resources. These centres are controlled and operated using the latest in Audio Visual Digital technology. Smartcomm have designed and installed two of these centres in recent years. The N.E.M Room for Novartis and The Emergency Control Room for John Lewis plc
These special centres are designed and built by companies to ensure that the business can protect its personnel and business interests in the event of a natural or man-made disaster. They allow the companies who build them to monitor the world outside and the effect on their businesses from a safe and secure environment. Smartcomm designed, installed and currently maintain the Emergency Rooms for both John Lewis and Novartis, helping to support vital corporate infrastructures in the event of an emergency.
John Lewis Crisis Commsuite
Completed in March of 2005 and located at the John Lewis Headquarter building in London, Victoria. This sophisticated suite is built to physically and technologically protect personnel and business operations should the need arise.
Built into the Head Office’s basement and surrounded by solid concrete below ground level, this structure is a fortification designed to withstand natural and manmade disasters. The room incorporates a multi-screen facility on Hitachi 42" plasma screens with live sky, satellite and terrestrial TV feeds, to ensure that staff manning the room can view, hear and interact with the rest of the company both internally and the wider world, in real-time.
There is a Matrix of PC hard-drives that can be viewed on any or all screens allowing staff to display different information at the same time. For example; a spreadsheet may be displayed in one screen whilst a website is on another. Essentially, the idea being that the company could still manage business functions even in the event of a disaster as lines of communication audio and visual would still be entirely accessible.
The Novartis Emergency Meeting Room
The NEM Room (Novartis Emergency Meeting Room) is located in the Horsham site of Novartis and was completed in January 2005. Unlike John Lewis, this room is located in the 2nd floor and has an elegant style with polished wood tables, cabinets, and leather seating. It features a large 72inch touch screen interactive SmartBoard.
There are 2 Akai 30inch LCD screens on either side of the Whiteboard for multi-display purpos es such as media monitoring with audio supplied by Speakercraft CRS speakers. The system operates on 2 separate user levels (User 1 – for everyday use and User 2 – for high level staff in emergencies).
The system is controlled via a Crestron TPS 1700 touchscreen keypad Smartcomm installed secure external phonelines with record, playback and live teleconferencing recording onto an Octo 8 hard-drive. In addition there are motorised blinds for privacy as well as motorised metal tambur door (rolls down) to conceal and protect the NEM kit.
