Seinajoki Security Latest News & Update: New Personal Alarm Device To Improve Employee Safety
From time to time, health care workers on their rounds may encounter threatening situations. Should the circumstances demand it, they need to be able to call for help quickly and without attracting attention. The City of Seinäjoki wants to make life safer for its employees. This is why Seinäjoki decided to pilot a new kind of safety alarm system in collaboration with the leading GPS locator technology provider Yepzon Enterprises, with Securitas operating as the service provider.
For the pilot project, Seinäjoki handed some of its school nurses, home care and substance abuse workers new personal Yepzon™ Freedom devices. The Freedom devices, which include both alarm and locator functions, were integrated into the transmitter system of Securitas. When the user presses a button on the device, the alarm is sent to Securitas’s control room in a matter of seconds, which quickly locates the person in need of help.
The best of different devices in one package
The health care workers of Seinäjoki have already been using different kinds of alarm devices before the pilot. But the fact is that the users have found them too bulky and too difficult to use. A short battery life and, in some cases, short range have also posed problems. The greatest challenge, especially for school nurses, has been that the devices are tied to a single location.
“Freedom is a compact personal alarm, which is easy to take with you, wherever you go. Sending an alarm is easy – on practical terms, help is always one button press away,” explains Otto Linna, CEO, Yepzon Enterprises.
Freedom was enthusiastically received at Seinäjoki.
“Freedom works better and more reliably than the other devices we use. It combines the best features of all devices in a neat cost-effective package,” says Jani Häkkinen, Control room supervisor, technical monitoring and security services, City of Seinäjoki.
Yepzon™ Freedom is the first independent locator and alarm device that uses Wi-Fi, 3G and GPS technologies. This way, the device locates its user quickly and accurately – regardless of whether the person is indoors or outdoors.
“Usually, the address visited by the employee is known. But should they be forced to escape the apartment for some reason, the device shows where the person is within one meter,” says Häkkinen.
Pilot likely to continue
The users have had access to the devices for roughly a month now. The devices have been praised as compact, light and easy to use. According to Häkkinen, the pilot has had a promising start. If everything continues according to plan, the pilot will be extended.
“Our goal is to acquire Yepzon devices for permanent use after the pilot as we seek to replace old devices or add new users.”
