Excessive Pre-Movement Time

[Gasmeter]

Hello All,  I've found that students in open access computer centres often delay their departure when the fire alarm sounds (by nearly ten minutes in one case) to give them time to back up their work to memory sticks etc. Apparently there is a system which freezes their screens with a message saying ‘Fire Alarm Leave Immediately, your work will be backed up for you’ or words to that effect.  Does anyone know of any examples of this type of system?  Any help would be much appreciated.

[deaconj999]

No never heard of such a system. Is work that can be backed up more important than life safety......NO.

I have many computer suites in my charge, none of them have this, and the occupants are expected to leave immediately as normal practice.

I also have  an internet suite protected by a roller shutter, when the AFD operates the shutter descends but the occupants of the room are introduced to wall mounted signs that tell them to evacute immediately on hearing the FA and seeing the beacon flash in the room, in case they are wearing headphones. Which some of them do whilst using the computers.

In the system you describe I would be concerned that even with the screen message USB keys (memory sticks) would still not be left by the individual and there will be those that stay to ensure they retain ownership of the data.

This seems a bad practice, that kind of goes against "do not stop to collect personal belongings" etc etc etc..... and all other such good messages.

I would certainly review the management principles in the premises and any training requirements that both may need adusting/reviewing/freshing of the current policy.

[tmprojects]

Not sure i agree GFSM.

Linking your intranet to the fire alarm system is possible. it becomes very difficult if the intranet serves more than one building, but not impossible.

I know of such systems. and it does aid evacuation.

lets say your in the middle of a very important document.

with no computer intervention they usually stay till the bitter end to finish a paragraph or to save the doc.

but if the computer intervenes and saves from that point and does not allow any user intervention then they have no reason to stay. thus resulting in a quicker evac.

[deaconj999]

Well, if the computers are set up correctly surely they would be savvy enough to use autosave anyway in case of system crashes outwith of any fire alarm.

If they were in the middle of a very important document surely they would be saving regularly themselves anyway.

Are you saying they don't know how to do this and they will only start to evacuate if the screen tells them to leave?