HARTFORD, CT – It’s back to school for many this week and some schools are implementing a new piece of technology to make sure their students are safe.
It’s called the Guardian Indoor Gunshot Detection System and the technology is sweeping America’s schools, and it’s manufactured in Seymour, Connecticut.
“Sandy Hook is obviously very close to us here. I have children myself. We’re often in large group settings between schools, churches, malls. Those are places where I think every day just watching the news you’re feeling more and more at risk,” said Nicole Russo, CEO of Microboard Processing Incorporated which is a high-tech manufacturing facility in Seymour that pieces together the product.
From start to finish it takes about 30 minutes to piece the detector together.
A video shows a police training exercise using the shooter detection system and how it works.
Using infrared and acoustics, if the noise of a gunshot and flash of a muzzle on a gun is picked up with the detector, the location of the shooter is pinpointed and it’s relayed on a map to people inside the building and automatically triggers an emergency call to police.
“It’s a new level of responsiveness for law enforcement or anybody that would need to be notified of a gunshot in any area. I think it’s great, I mean it’s definitely needed in this day and age,” said Paul Perez, of MPI.
There have been 16 million hours of use and they haven’t had one false alert to date.
“It uses both acoustics as well as infrared to validate that it is indeed a gunshot and not something like a student slamming a book on a desk,” said Dan Michelinie, of Shooter Detection Systems in Massachusetts.
Shooter Detection System has received safety certification from the Department of Homeland Security.
“It’s a good feeling to know we’re able to help the world, the community and basically everybody stay safe,” said Sean Rosboro, of MPI.
As more people become aware that the product even exists, the demand increases and the company is expanding state side and abroad.
