While the business alarm system will detect intrusion, the central monitoring station is the force that actually protects your company. As a result, understanding the role of the central station should be an important part of your purchasing process.

The control panel is pre-programmed with your business information and connected to your phone lines. When your business alarm system is tripped, the control panel sends the relevant details to the central monitoring station. Within 10 seconds, the central station will call your office – or speak through the security keypad if you have dual-communication monitoring – to see if anything is wrong.

If they reach a live person, they’ll ask for a passcode to confirm the person belongs there. If they don’t hear the right passcode, or if they get no answer, they will immediately send authorities the scene. The central station will also contact the designated keyholder – someone in the company responsible for determining if there’s been a break-in.

While many small monitored alarm companies license the services of third-party central monitoring stations, larger companies have their own central stations that can simultaneously watch over thousands of homes and businesses. The larger companies cost more than their smaller counterparts or third-party administrators because they are held to a higher standard through verification from the independent, non-profit Underwriters’ Laboratories (UL). Large monitored alarm companies pay for the UL to test their products and services for maximum safety and reliability.

Internally managed central stations are required to contact authorities within 45 seconds of the alarm going off. And should they lose power, they must have a reliable backup source – either a second station, or a backup generator with 10-15 days worth of power on reserve.

Keep in mind that a central station might not even be in your state. That’s generally not a problem, but you’ll want to find out how the central station operates to know how they will monitor your alarm system.

How central stations help reduce false alarms
False alarms are a growing concern nationwide, and the industry and authorities are focused on preventing them. Make no mistake about it, the protection and safety of your business is important. But bringing authorities to the scene when they’re not required ties up resources that could be needed for high priority situations.

An audible delay alarm – typically 45-60 seconds before it goes off – can help prevent false alarms. This option gives an authorized employee or visitor enough time to provide the appropriate passcode or verify who they are before the central monitoring station contacts authorities.

Even cellular backups have ways to avoid potential false alarm calls. The backup will alert the monitoring station when there is a problem with the regular phone line. The monitoring station will call your company’s keyholder who will check out the offices and see what the problem is. Only if they discover that someone tampered with the phone lines would the police be dispatched to the scene.