Growing up in the ‘70s, “Dust in the Wind” by Kansas became one of my favorite songs of all time. Now that I have a house and teenagers, I don’t like actual dust at all. It seems to come from everywhere, and I know this is even more true in your 911 Comm Center. With 24/7 staffing and the constant action in the room, there is a ton of dust. So, how do you get rid of it?

The famous pumpkin spice flavor has made its way onto the store shelves, announcing that fall is officially here. Many people are absolutely obsessed with pumpkin spice, so this is a special time for many fall-loving folks. As a child from the ‘70s, it was Count Chocula gracing my supermarket aisles that got me excited. To this day, I still love Count Chocula.  

Speaking of pumpkin spice, recently, I read about how an entire high school was evacuated due to a plug-in pumpkin spice air freshener. I’m not sure how bad it actually smelled, but the story made me think about the many scents that lurk around a 911 dispatch center. When you work in close proximity with others for long periods of time, you’re bound to run into some strange ones.

Xybix has now expanded our presence in Canada and we are pretty darn excited about it! We have grown a name for ourselves in Manitoba and Ontario over the last few years and we felt it was time to introduce our company to the other Providences. With a dedicated sales, service, installation and support team we are ready to provide the same amazing product and services to all our partners in Canada. To learn a bit more about who we are as a company and what we plan to offer Canada the best in dispatch consoles, read on below:

via GIPHY
I usually like to do a review on all of the competitors and highlight what was new at APCO 2017. I was busy this year (busy is a good thing), so I didn’t really get to check everything out this year.  

That being said, I still took notice of overall trends that will affect what your dispatch console furniture will look like in the next few years. Here’s my two cents on what to expect in the near future:

Technology is pushing the 911 industry forward. Technological advancement is an important element of helping emergency responders and dispatchers be efficient at their jobs, and because of this, it is always a challenge to keep up with new emerging technologies. Of course the private sector gets the latest in new developments first, and then they work their way into public safety market. What similarly seems to happen is that the digital side of the product pushes the envelope, and afterwards, the hardware side is left to catch up.

You’re right in the middle of shopping for new dispatch furniture, and you realize that you don’t know what to do about all the ancillary storage and furniture in the room. You can’t just keep the old steel HON file cabinets when they are ugly and do not match anything. So how do you complete your room after shopping for dispatch furniture?

I have witnessed many instances where 911 Comm Center staff members are shopping for new equipment, but they will not call any references of the vendors-in-question. I am not sure why this is? Maybe the dispatch managers know that the companies they’re looking into will only send them the “good” references, maybe they simply do not have the time to call around, or maybe they just feel silly asking someone else if they’ve made a good choice or not.

There are four types of lighting in a 911 dispatch center. There isn’t a right or wrong way to go about it, and each center utilizes a different approach when it comes to illumination. Similarly, each shift will use lighting differently based on the preferences of dispatchers and the time of day. Heck, even each dispatcher will have a different opinion on which lighting option is best for them.

This is something that we get asked quite a bit. Understandably, many of you want to get the best value out of your purchase for dispatch furniture. This consists of the initial cost of the dispatch station as well as the expectant lifetime of the product and the warranty. Getting the most for your money is important no matter where you work.

My oldest son’s 17th birthday was on March 2nd. As many of you know, it’s incredible how kids change and grow by that age. As all parents feel about their children, I am so proud of him and what he has done so far in his life that I cannot say enough good things.

This brings me around to a Xybix installation job that I visited which installed in 1999. This means it was shortly before my son was even born. Just like my son has changed, how we build our dispatch consoles and even how we run the business at Xybix has transformed as well.