A personal protection product is in use by Swansea University for its students and staff on and off campus.
SafeZone from CriticalArc went live at Swansea in September 2016. The uni has two principal campuses; Singleton Park and the Bay Campuses besides seven other sites frequented by students and staff in the Swansea Bay region. Swansea’s campus security teams point to an increasingly round-the-clock learning culture, and hence the need to offer safe 24/7 access to libraries, study hubs and other facilities.
The uni is looking at the product to help create safe ‘corridors’ between each campus, its halls of residence and popular destinations such as the train and bus stations. Monitoring and response cover along these thoroughfares will offer extra protection for people walking alone at night. SafeZone will also extend to designated areas off campus, for example, for those on field trips, research projects or international placements, anywhere.
SafeZone also offers a distributed command and control platform for managing response and mass communication during small or large-scale emergencies. Staff and students can download the free smartphone app that lets them raise a location-based alert at the touch of a button, so eliminating potential language or communication barriers.
The developers of SafeZone point out that there’s no need for physical security measures such as help points. University and other users can access features like lone worker check-in. These force-multiplier capabilities will CriticalArc says enable collaboration between security first responders and volunteers such as building wardens during critical incidents as well as improving the efficiency of everyday operations.
Darren Chalmers-Stevens, from CriticalArc said: “it is great to be working with Swansea University as our first Welsh University. The team at Swansea University share a similar vision for real time situational awareness to us and have a great vision for the solution to include collaborating with local authorities and private organisations alike for a smart city which is envisaged will lead to further safety and security initiatives that will benefit staff and students alike. We very much look forward to a close working relationship with Swansea University as an industry leader in this space.”
Russ Huxtable, Head of Resilience and Business Continuity at Swansea University said: “We have implemented an integrated security strategy for our University in order to provide, as far as practicable, a secure and safe environment for those who use, study or work at the University. We are always looking at innovative ways to further mitigate risk, enable rapid response readiness and fulfil our duty of care. By complementing our existing health and safety measures, SafeZone will enhance our ability to respond appropriately to any event, whether it’s a call for first aid, fire alarm or a major incident. Using SafeZone to ensure a consistent security approach across our campus locations and beyond will provide an extra level of protection to give all students and staff added peace of mind.”
Visit www.CriticalArc.com.
