Ask the Expert (Gunshot Sensors)

What Does It Take To Add Gunshot Detection Services To Your Facility?

• By Allan Overcast
• May 1st, 2018

You will need to look at your facility and identify what classrooms, hallways, entrances, and exits that you need covered. Decide how many sensors you need. Each sensor will detect within a certain range, for example 2500 square feet. Indoor sensors will generally be placed in hallways and entrances at an absolute minimum because statistics indicate that shootings occur or start in the entrances or hallways. In businesses you’re going to want to place sensors in areas where people congregate the most, because if a crime is going to be committed it generally will be focused in an area that has a larger populace. Examples would be in a lunch room or in a large open atrium area where a lot of your coworkers hang out.

The second consideration is, are you adapting your existing alarm panel or are you going to have to put in an additional network system to support the sensors? Some sensors have integrated contact closures that can tie directly into your alarm panel, therefore minimizing the need for an additional new system. You also need to determine how you want the message to go out. Look for sensors can send IP message notification over SMS, email, and other notification means.

In conclusion, when considering a gunshot detection system for your facility, the main focus should be the size of your facility, the number of sensors that you want to put in those facilities in the high-traffic areas, and the message notification style whether it’s alarm panel integration or and/or if it includes IP message notification.

This article originally appeared in the May 2018 issue of School Planning & Management.