Icon contractor
 
 
 
   
   
HOME
 Products Contact Us Support Downloads Reference  
 

 

ICON MZ USED TO TRAIN NEW YORK'S BRAVEST
         
 
Middleton, WI - In the wake of 9/11, Fire Departments across the country are upgrading their training facilities and equipment. At the forefront is the New York City Fire Department who recently completed a $45 million fire training facility at the Fire Academy on Randall's Island. The facility is comprised of a 6,000 square-foot Burn Building which uses computer controlled technology to simulate conditions of a live fire in many different types of construction, a state-of-the-art 35,000 square-foot Learning Building which provides instructional opportunities for firefighters in remote sites, and a 35,000 square-foot Field House which contains a structural fire-fighting simulator.
    
  To manage the complex audio in the Field House training facility, Cerami & Associates, Inc., the designer of the audio/video system, chose an 8 input x 40 output ICON MZ Paging and Program Distribution System for the routing of pages and background audio program distribution. The flexibility of the ICON MZ made it an ideal solution for the rapidly changing environment of the fire-fighting facility.
Based on the environment and typical projected use patterns, the parish decided to divide St. Michael Hall into four combinable room groups. The area with carpeted floors and drop-tiled ceilings would be broken into three separate rooms, each about 20' by 50', whereas the remaining area, the 75' by 70' ballroom with tiled floor and vaulted ceiling, would be the fourth room group. All rooms would have floor boxes for local microphone and source inputs.
   
 
 
"The new FDNY training facility is a very large and dynamic place: the sights and sounds are constantly changing and the facility needed a matrix mixer capable of handling a vast array of functions," explains Mike DeSantis of Sound Equipment Corp., Hawthorne, New York, the equipment supplier for the project.
"The Field House simulates streets complete with different buildings representing major types of construction used in New York City, including private dwellings, commercial structures, apartment houses and brownstones," said FDNY Chief of Training Nicholas Santangelo. "Firefighters will practice varied operational techniques including entry, search, ventilation and hoseline operations in each of these structures. The buildings are designed to enable instructors to change the interiors with each scenario."

The audio for the complex training facility environment, including both paging and program distribution, is managed by the ICON MZ. Divided into 34 separate zones, the simulator requires paging into each individual zone for instructions, cautions, and alerts; however, because each zone presents a different auditory environment, independent volume control in each area is required. The MZ also routes relevant program distribution for "real-world program sound," such as the hissing of steam and crackling of burning timbers. When not in use, the MZ can be utilized to broadcast background music throughout the facility.

Control is provided from a glass-enclosed control center overlooking the field house. There, ten ICON Cube-4 zone selectors and two ICON Cube Tail volume controls are rack mounted for quick and easy audio selection. Background music and program sound are provided from a local PC and CD player. Four additional paging zones have been reserved for future expandability.

"This state-of-the-art facility will provide the training that our firefighters deserve," states New York City Mayor Bloomberg. "Since September 11th we have hired more than 1,800 probationary firefighters and are rebuilding the ranks of this great department with the best equipped and best trained firefighters in the world. Not only will our probes benefit from this enhanced facility, but also all of our firefighters and officers will use this facility for in-service training. The FDNY never stops learning, training or preparing new techniques to keep New Yorkers safe."
For more information on the ICON MZ Paging and Program Distribution System, as well as ICON's complete line of audio/video distribution equipment, please visit www.icon-global.com.