by Jessica Barnes | Aug 17, 2024 | WHIRC News
The Alarm Industry Communications Committee (AICC), part of The Monitoring Association (TMA), recently welcomed WHIRC as its newest member. The AICC includes representatives from national industry associations and alarm companies from across the country. It coordinates with the Federal Communications Commission, regulatory bodies, and Congress to address telecommunications issues affecting the alarm industry. The AICC maintains a presence in Washington, D.C., to advocate for the industry’s interests. They also manage a Political Action Committee (AICC-PAC) to engage in the legislative processes.
As a member of the AICC, WHIRC is actively involved in furthering our industry through technology and legislation.
Highlights from the June meeting
At the most recent meeting, held in June, Ashley Raisanen and Shane Clary from Bay Alarm were invited to discuss the topic of POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service) replacements. The discussion centered on the industry’s efforts regarding National Fire Protection Association code compliance, and the potential requirement for supervision of POTS replacement devices. Additionally, they addressed other issues such as communications, network stability, and standby power.
Other AICC updates
- 3G network decommissioning: AT&T and Verizon Wireless continue to phase out 3G towers. AT&T still operates about 30% of its towers with 3G technology, which will be transitioned to 5G or extended LTE.
- Telephone carriers: These carriers will continue to shut down circuits, focusing on fiber and network buildouts.
- Dial tone: The “dial tone” customers hear is now a recording played by the provider when the phone is off the hook, rather than a true dial tone.
- Signal transmission checks: Using a butt set is not a reliable method for investigating signal transmissions unless specifically listening for receiver tones.
- Network buildouts and outages: With ongoing network expansions, more outages and communication issues may occur, as these companies are not regulated by the FCC and can schedule outages without notice.
WHIRC joined AICC to provide our dealers with the latest industry information, connect with other committee members, and advocate for our industry. We will continue to communicate updates to you throughout the year.
by Jessica Barnes | Mar 14, 2023 | WHIRC News
Rockford, Minn. (March 14, 2023) — WH International Response Center (WHIRC) recently received its Underwriter’s Laboratories (UL) listing as a Central Monitoring Station for the 30th straight year, dating back to 1994. This means WHIRC has met or exceeded quality, safety and training standards set by UL. WHIRC is committed to exceeding UL’s standards to ensure continuity of quality service to its customers.
“At WHIRC, we’re more than alarm monitoring,” said WHIRC Technology & Dealer Manager Ashley Raisanen. “We provide collaborative solutions and reliable support for 24/7 monitoring.”
To learn more, visit WHIRC’s website at whirc.com or call (800) 858-7811.
WHIRC is a leading national central station monitoring partner for residential and commercial security, alarm, video and personal emergency response system dealers. WHIRC’s headquarters are located in Rockford, Minn.
by Jessica Barnes | Feb 20, 2023 | WHIRC News
As we kick off 2023, the 3G sunset is in the rearview mirror and we can put our full attention and resources towards growth. Video is the fastest growing sector of the security market and can bring high value to your customers. Did you know that now you can add recurring revenue to your video services?
With our video health monitoring, video verification, and structured remote guard tour offerings, WHIRC can help you achieve your revenue goals. We have direct integration with multiple video platforms like OpenEye, and soon we will be offering Digital Watchdog. For video systems that without direct integration, we have the Universal Connector which translates email communications from the video system into alarm signals that we can act on.
WHIRC is committed to providing reliable and custom monitoring solutions for you and your customers. As reliability from traditional phone lines continues to decrease, installing a new communicator, either cellular or Internet Protocol, ensures alarm signal continuity. Replacing traditional phones lines will decrease the time that it takes to report a signal and minimizes signal interruption. Let us know if we can assist with transitioning your customers.
WHIRC is excited to expand our offerings in 2023! Keep your eyes peeled for the 2023 WHIRC Dealer Symposium coming this summer. We hope to see you there!
by Jessica | May 2, 2022 | WHIRC News
The security industry is the middle of it third technology sunset in the last 10 years. This means another piece of technology needs to be deployed to your current customers. The replacement units are dual path, so even if there is another cellular sunset in the future, these devices have Internet Protocol (IP) backup. With hopefully 10 years before the next sunset, these dual path products have the capability to stay connected even if the cellular technology changes.
WHIRC is well prepared to monitor this technology. We have assigned specific IP addresses to increase our redundancy for signaling and upgraded our receivers, adding additional capacity for future growth.
ResearchandMarkets predicts significant growth in the number of cellular connections for home and small business security systems, with year-over-year growth forecast through 2025. What is WHIRC doing to support that? We stay relevant in the industry, are proactive and supportive by identifying any outdated equipment and help in getting the end user updated.
WHIRC is committed to staying ahead of manufacturers and products by ensuring our technology is the most current. The WHIRC sales team attends training sessions to stay current with what is coming in the industry. This allows us to reliably support your monitoring needs 24/7/365.
In addition to supporting the phase out of legacy equipment, WHIRC can help you to gain other efficiencies from your business. We offer after hours answering support services to assist your customers when you are away. For example, if there is a beeping that will not stop, we’ll get a technician on the phone to help them take care of the issue until you can roll a truck to conduct repairs. We also offer custom reports, including signal reports showing communication failures. These trouble reports can let you know which accounts are in failure so you can make them a high service priority.
As always, WHIRC is here to monitor your systems, but we are also here to support your business by offering collaborative solutions and reliable support you can count on!
Message from Business Manager Ashley Raisanen
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