City of Houston first to implement critical communications IoT platform to support school safety
The city of Houston will be the first to implement an Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled platform called ActiveShield that redefines public safety. Two Houston schools will pilot the IoT safe-spaces technology created by Insight Enterprises (NASDAQ: NSIT), which integrates with a building safety platform from BeSafe Technologies to facilitate critical, real-time information sharing during a crisis. ActiveShield leverages the power of Safe Spaces developed by Insight, part of a suite of customizable, end-to-end smart spaces solutions developed by the Digital Innovation team at Insight, a Fortune 500 global systems integrator helping organizations of all sizes manage and transform their business. Insight’s Safe Spaces solution addresses communication challenges during emergency events where public safety is threatened, running safety mechanisms like sound sensors and color-coded LED lighting through an IoT-enabled response system. The real-time information sharing clearly conveys the nature of an incident to first responders and people in the vicinity of the impacted area.
BeSafe, a provider of emergency response communication technology between school administrators and first responders, is working with Microsoft and the city of Houston to install the platform in two schools within the Aldine Independent School District (AISD). BeSafe already has equipped the schools with its core safety and security system, and the IoT-enabled ActiveShield will be implemented next. While Insight’s main focus for Safe Spaces is comprehensive, deeply integrated safety deployments, ActiveShield offers a cost-effective software-as-a-service solution for the broader market.
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