The Police Rehabilitation Centre, Flint House based in South Oxfordshire, Goring on Thames.
The Flint House mission is to provide the highest standards of individually planned, intensive, rehabilitation services for sick and injured, serving and retired police officers. Flint House has a highly skilled team of Health Professionals, who every year assists over 3,500 Police Officers to return to full operational health. The site has a truly impressive range of facilities, including dedicated Physio facilities, exercise and wellbeing class-rooms, outdoor health trail, two gymnasiums, a Hydrotherapy pool, a 12.5 metre swimming pool, and a Jacuzzi spa.
The Challenge
The area around the centre consists of an uneven terrain and dense woodland surrounding the main building which dates back to 1913. Underground cellars were implemented as a standard aspect of the design including roof spaces installed with metal ducting, water tanks, pipes and cables. Lift shafts and underground fridges are other features which reflect the diversity of material in the interior building, within thick flint walls. The site also utilises underground floors but the thick flint walls has caused communication issues. The two terraces in front of the house, a bungalow at the east side of the entrance and 14 acres of surrounding land, plus several extensions were added to the main house in 2003. The buildings and expansive site requires capable communication that can penetrate through a different variety of materials and extensive area.
Brian Richards, the Estates Manager contacted Resound regarding problems that they were experiencing in coverage over the expanse of underground and over ground areas, and also the poor battery life of the radios they used previously.
“We were having transmitting problems- either staff not hearing or not receiving depending on location. Transmissions were often garbled or sounded like someone was speaking underwater or weren’t even received at all. The battery life was poor depending on the use, but mainly they were just totally unreliable.” – Brian Richards
The Solution
“We went with Resound and chose the Vertex Standard EVX-S24 because the Resound team were very helpful and provided good technical support. We were always able to speak to someone at the end of the telephone who has knowledge to deal with the problem or give advice. There was a quick turnaround and again, the knowledge of the right product for our situation and special type of building was brilliant.”
“Now, all the departments within the Centre use the Vertex EVX-S24 digital system, which we have on a long-term hire contract. These departments range from Maintenance, Housekeeping, Security, Physio, CEO, Admin, Drivers, Gardens/ Estates and the Nurses Reception. We find that the yellow and black colouring on the radios is beneficial in certain departments as it colour-codes what we use them for.”
The features of the EVX-S24 allowed the Police Rehabilitation Centre to benefit from one of the smallest two-way radio systems existing in the current market. This type of radio, although small still maintains its rugged, resilient and hardwearing durability with an IP67 waterproof and dust protection rating. Brian, the Estates Manager, was able to rely upon the communication system without suffering interference from other channels or loss of transmission helped by the digital qualities of the radio and the longer battery life. Individual features such as the emergency alert button and low battery indicator ensured that communication was fully secure, whilst also being a very cost-effective solution.
The Results
The Police Rehabilitation Centre has enjoyed using the small, easy-to-use EVX-S24s, finding them reliable, efficient and easy to fit into their on-site operational groups.
“We haven’t had any dead spots on site, and it gives us such peace of mind that during an emergency, our radios are up to the job. There are zero complaints from our Maintenance Department of any problems caused by communication failure or battery drain. It really is hard to find thing negative about these radios! Resound have been helpful and given advice whenever needed. They allowed us to trial different radios and explained how to carry out a thorough technical assessment on site. I found personally that they had good technical support and allowed us a smooth transition from old to new technology.” – Brian Richards