Mass Notification Systems: What They Are & Why Your Organization Should Have One
By Stephanie Osorno, Marketing Copywriter at Alertus Technologies
As the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis has taught us, unexpected emergencies can happen anytime — and there’s no time to waste. Does your organization have a reliable communication system in place to quickly respond to severe weather events, active shooter incidents, workplace violence, and more?
Effectively preparing for the unpredictable goes beyond having a standard fire alarm or an emergency strobe. With a comprehensive mass notification system, you can create a multilayered alerting process and rapidly heighten organization-wide awareness when it matters the most.
We break down what it means to have a Mass Notification System (MNS), including important MNS features to look for, below.
What is an MNS?
An MNS provides a wide range of organizations, from schools to healthcare facilities, with a platform for sending emergency notifications to large groups of people in order to keep them safe and informed. This could be employees, staff, students, patients, or visitors during a time-sensitive crisis.
MNS technology has evolved to facilitate organizational communication through different capabilities and features beyond general alerting. For example, a modern MNS may offer integration capability with existing communication devices to improve communication redundancy and ensure notification delivery in the event of an emergency.
Why does my organization need an MNS?
Most commercial buildings are legally required to have a basic fire alarm system, which is one type of MNS. However, the fire alarm alone is simply not sufficient when it comes to successfully protecting your community. A more comprehensive mass notification approach is key to not only alerting everyone about an emergency, but also providing actionable information on exactly how to proceed. With an MNS that uses voice synthesis and screen display text, you could send a clear and informative alert such as: “A fire has been reported on the sixth floor. Please evacuate the building immediately using the west stairwell and assemble in parking lot D.”
While an MNS plays a critical role in mitigating harm, it can also help maintain business continuity. By keeping everyone informed, educated, and up-to-date during and after a critical incident, a high quality MNS serves to minimize panic and operational disruption as best as possible in the wake of a high-stress situation.
What should I look for in an MNS?
So, how do you go about choosing a suitable MNS? Here are a few important MNS features to consider:
Single Point of Activation
Every second counts in the face of an emergency. The quicker your emergency activation process is, the quicker you can disseminate critical information. To save your team valuable time in deploying multiple, disparate notification systems, you’ll want to choose an MNS that speeds up notification delivery with a true, single point of activation.
Audible & Visual Notification
Consider an MNS that offers both audible and visual notification through clear emergency tone sounders and intelligible alerting solutions like Text-to-Speech (TTS) technology. This way, you’ll more easily reach everyone, everywhere, with timely communication. A robust MNS will also be Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant to account for individuals with different auditory or visual ability.
Integration Flexibility
When selecting an MNS, be sure it offers integration with your existing communication devices — desktop computers, speakers, digital signage, and VoIP phones — and communication channels such as text and email. By unifying the entire emergency notification process under a multilayered MNS, authorized dispatchers will be empowered to activate an alert to each of those endpoints simultaneously by a push of a button.
In addition to existing communication devices, your MNS should be able to leverage the Internet of Things (IoT) technology to integrate with different building automation systems, including camera systems, fire alarm systems, and door access control. When you combine the features of building automation with an MNS, you’ll increase situational awareness and improve incident management.
Preset Emergency Templates
Naturally, humans make mistakes. With heightened emotions and nerves amid a potentially life-threatening situation, the chance of human-error is much higher. The right MNS will simplify crisis communication by allowing you to prepare ahead of time with customized, preset emergency messages. This helps to decrease the time it takes to send an alert, while increasing the accuracy of the emergency information being distributed throughout your organization.
Targeted Alerting
You got the word out, but did your intended audience receive the message? Targeted alerting should be at the top of your MNS wish list. Depending on the circumstance, MNS alerts could be targeted to the entire organization, a select group of people within a department, or a building floor.
Real-Time Weather Reporting
Relying on varying weather alerts from a weather radio or mobile device is not practical for severe weather monitoring. Look for an MNS with the ability to provide real-time weather updates and up-to-the-minute, site-specific warnings from AccuWeather Skyguard®, Severe Weather Warnings, and the NWS.
How should I use my MNS?
One of the great benefits of an MNS is that it can be used to suit your organization’s unique and evolving alerting needs, whether it’s addressing critical emergencies or simple day-to-day communications.
Some common MNS use cases include:
Medical emergencies
IT or network outages
Cybersecurity threats
Workplace violence
COVID-19 updates & protocols
To maximize MNS usage, we recommend starting with an assessment of notification gaps and challenges.
Learn More
Check out this quick video to learn how the Alertus Mass Notification System could become an integral component of your organization’s crisis communication plan.