Prism

Prism Apartments had everything ready to go and was excited for their grand opening. Years of work would finally come to fruition when they opened for new residents to begin renting. The only thing left to do before opening was to pass their safety inspection and make sure the new building was up to code.

Prism was stopped in their tracks when they were surprised to fail the inspection on the Friday before their grand opening. They needed a company to make the changes as soon as possible to prevent further time spent unopen, as this would cost them a significant amount of opportunity loss. Last minute they called Carter Rierson, the owner and entrepreneur behind Best Defense Fire and Security. He was familiar with their problem and worked with Prism and his team to put together a plan to make all the changes needed immediately. Carter brought in the cavalry, Jesse, Clint, Mica, Nick, and Mina.

BDA stands for Bi-Directional Amplifier and is also known as a signal booster. These are the main component of a BDA system or ERCES System (Emergency Radio Communication Enhancement System). A BDA is an amplifier which amplifies radio frequency (RF) signals in two directions simultaneously, both from a subscriber up to the radio repeater system and back down. BDAs improve in-building coverage for radio communications, cellular signals, and are occasionally used for improvements in outdoor coverage. These systems are frequency band specific in that they are built to amplify one or more frequencies / channels within a specific frequency band. They are designed so that they in no way modulate, modify, or otherwise distort the radio signal – what goes in is what comes out.

BDAs are life-safety systems and are usually purchased and installed at the same time as fire alarm systems. They need to be monitored by the building’s fire alarm system per IBC / NFPA rules as supervisory signals. BDAs are installed and tested by qualified technicians who are FCC GROL licenses and manufacturer certified, and inspected by the AHJ. These systems must meet code requirements and AHJ specifications as AHJ jurisdictions can have different frequency requirements.