ATS Integrated Solutions

BUILDING SOLUTIONS

Controls ● Security ● Integration

Ventilation system on a roof of a building

temperature monitoring

Contact tracing at work

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There’s a lot of talk right now about how to contact trace when someone in your organization (school, office, etcetera) tests positive for COVID-19. Are there privacy issues? Are there errors? Is this kind of work reasonable and foolproof? The answers to these questions range, depending on who is giving the answers.

As a company already dealing with building systems, we are quickly helping our customers adapt to the current culture and needs. As we continue to learn more and evolve, some of the issues we are currently dealing with include:

Can we tie contact tracing into our access control system (i.e., keycards).

The answer is simply yes. When an employee tests positive and is not due back to work for a period of time after a negative test, their card access can easily be paused. Should an employer or building manager wish to block access to those who have come into contact with that employee, that can also be done.

Let’s talk about communication.

Yes, we can do all of this. We can block those who are regularly able to enter your building if they’ve tested positive or come into contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. But keep in mind you do not want a funnel of people trying to enter a building and have any surprises.

If a person does not know they have come into contact with a person who has tested positive, they may tend to become upset at the access point, causing a backlog of people trying to get to work.

Our recommendation is to have a clear set of protocols and a communication plan in progress. Employees should report any positive testing of them or their family members, and the employer will then need a system to let those in contact know the situation and that their card key may also not allow access at this point.

How else can this type of system be used?

We’ve shared with you before our new Screener Ti system for automatic thermal temperature checks. This system can easily be tied into your card access system, your turnstile entries or your elevator access scanners.

When it comes to public health and the safety of our workforce, we can collaborate with you to be sure you are working within guidelines and keeping everyone as safe as possible.

Reducing risk. That’s the goal.

While there are no guarantees that restricting building access or checking temperatures will keep everyone safe, the goal is to minimize risk and maximize the opportunity for a safe environment. As a partner to our customers, working toward a common goal – safety – is what we aim to accomplish.

We’re happy to help your business figure out what to do next. Visit our contact page and reach out for advice. We promise to find the information you need.

Efficient Temperature Checks for Employees/Customers/Guests now available.

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At ECT Services, our mission is to find solutions that meet the needs of our customers. We recently shared with you our space distribution intelligent software, Space Vi. Today we want to share another brand-new technology we’ve created called Screener Ti.

Pass green light

Screener Ti is an intelligent thermal imaging screener which serves as a first-stop screener for people headed into a space. As states continue to slowly open up business and people head back to work, the concerns we heard from our customers regarding temperature checks included determining who on their internal staff would be on “temp check duty.” These included:

  • A security guard preventing an employee from entering the building (even with a fever) could cause an issue between fellow employees;
  • An employee taking temperature checks is not being productive in their actual job if they are stationed at the entrance for hours at a time;
  • Any employee charged with taking the temperature of other employees is inherently breaking the rule to stay six feet apart and is exposing themselves to infection regularly.

From these challenges, a solution was born. Screener Ti serves as a preliminary screening device. Picture the entryway to a building with a Screener Ti system. One at a time, individuals will stand in front of the scanner, receive a pass light and proceed to work. The time to get screened takes no longer than digital toll devices do on highways, and no longer than it does to swipe a cardkey and proceed through a turnstile.

Screener Ti is not a medical device, it is a first-stop system. Once a person receives a “pass” they may enter. If they do not receive a “pass” then they are required to receive a second screening which could be performed by someone in proper PPE. This second screening can now be more efficient as it’s allowed all those cleared for work to enter quickly.

This technology meets the guidelines on thermal imaging put forth by the FDA. The device is not necessarily HIPAA-compliant because it is not required to be. It collects no data and takes no photographs.

We’ve moved ahead so quickly with this new product line we already have it on its way into several businesses including: an office building in Louisville, Kentucky, a logistics fulfillment center also in Louisville, Kentucky and a summer camp in North Carolina.

We’d be happy to help find the right solution for your company’s team. Contact us here for more information.

How companies are prepping for the return to work.

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During this time of businesses being closed and buildings mostly empty, our team has been hard at work.

 

We know when the workforce is allowed to return to their office and the world begins to get moving again, things will need to look quite a bit different. We anticipate in no way will doors fly open and office building lobbies will all-of-a-sudden be full of people again, waving their Starbucks in the air, high fiving each other on a great company party over the weekend or gathering for a bit of office gossip before heading up the elevator.

No, it will have to be different – much like the differences we saw with security post-9/11.

Companies are taking this into consideration now and are taking social distancing measures into account now so that when the government says everyone can go back to work, they can do it as safely as possible.

One of our customers is focused on monitoring building occupants and their movements in and out of the building to better allow for reporting a possible exposure. Working with their existing system and making a few additions we are able to make this a reality.

Another of our customers is focused on their turnstiles and how they can be used to affect change. We are currently working on upgrading some of those systems to allow for a break between people passing through the turnstile on their way in. In addition, we are upgrading these systems to no-touch card readers.

Another customer we are working with has decided to go with camera technology that will scan for temperature before allowing entry into the building.

Our goal is to work with each of our customers to implement a strategy that will make sure they have what they need to insure a safe re-entry into work when the time is right.

Stay safe, everyone. Please let us know if we can help your company reconsider future safety measures so that you, too, will be ready. You can reach us by clicking here.