Public address and voice alarm systems for shopping malls

At LDA we are experts in public address and voice evacuation systems for shopping centers. That’s why we can help you create the most competitive solution that best suits your needs.

Sound environment suitable for a pleasant shopping experience

Large spaces dedicated to leisure and relaxation should provide the user with a satisfactory shopping experience at all levels. Its public address systems, therefore, need to offer an attractive sound atmosphere and at the same time guarantee fast and phase-driven evacuation in case of emergency.

It’s a given that people act faster when they hear a human voice telling them what to do or how to proceed, especially in case of emergency.

LDA Audio Tech’s public address and voice alarm systems certified according to EN 54 and EN 60849 provide intuitive user management and are easily integrated with existing third-party technologies at shopping malls.

PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEM

The loudspeaker system allows voice messages to be sent in crowded places. These messages can be informative, advertising, etc. The advantages of an LDA public address system are the following:

• Possibility of sounding differentiated zones with high quality.
• Management of messages through a calendar module. Distribution of advertising messages and announcements, as well as automation of security messages.
• Integration with automatic text-to-speech systems, IP telephony or digital signage.
• Management of messaging and background music. Possibility of remote supervision and management of the system by means of tablets.
• Integration of the general system with public address systems by stores.
• Possibility of managing several shopping centers through the network.
• Automatic gain control, which automatically adjusts the volume level in real time.
• Dynamization of the shopping center through voice messages and adaptation to the target audience and time ranges.

VOICE EVACUATION / VOICE ALARM SYSTEM

A voice evacuation system is a critical safety tool that allows us to achieve a faster, more controlled and safer evacuation that can save lives.

The European standard EN 54 sets out the requirements for fire detection and alarm systems throughout the European Union. In addition, it has been adopted in numerous international markets as a standard that guarantees safety for people in the event of an emergency.

In those buildings where loudspeakers are used to emit voice alarms in the event of fires in Spain, compliance with the EN 54-24 application standards for loudspeakers and EN 54-16 for the systems to which they are connected is mandatory.

In addition, there are certain uses for which it is mandatory that fire alarm systems are of this type. One of these cases is that of public buildings if the occupation exceeds 500 people. In addition, in the commercial sphere, if the surface exceeds 1,000 m2 the installations must also include a public address system and voice evacuation.

In shopping centers where different stores and common areas coexist, it is the property of the shopping center that is responsible for issuing warnings according to the evacuation plan they have established.

In this respect, the local regulations indicate:

In order for an establishment integrated into a building to be a fire sector, it must be understood that the “differentiated ownership” and the “regime not subsidiary to the rest of the building” that oblige it in accordance with Annex A refer not only to the activity regime but also to the significant material aspects for fire protection, such as they are:

• the constructive conditions inside the possible establishment;
• the provision, use and maintenance of fire protection facilities;
• the implementation and management of the emergency and evacuation plan, etc.

In accordance with the foregoing, shops integrated into shopping centers, except in the case of those of a large surface area in which there are circumstances of autonomy in the management of fire protection, whose fire protection conditions are under the responsibility of the owner of the building as a whole, are not considered to be “establishments” for these purposes, and therefore do not need to constitute a separate fire sector, but are subject to the criteria of zoning in fire sectors of the shopping center as a whole.

The advantages of an LDA public address and voice evacuation system can be summarized in the following points:

• It allows you to broadcast both live voice by microphone and different pre-recorded voice messages to any area or set of selected areas.
• Report on the type of incident.
• Generate a quick reaction in people.
• A voice alarm improves the response time in the evacuation of buildings by generating a rapid reaction in people.
• Reduce panic.
• Perform a directed and phased evacuation, according to the evacuation plan of the building.
• Indicate the quickest and safest way

With regard to the management advantages of LDA systems, the following should be highlighted:

• Modern equipment, so the system has no obsolescence problems.
• Complete supervision of all elements of the system, which provides high availability and a higher degree of security to the system.
• Redundancy of the elements of the system, thus reducing the level of system errors.
• The implication of civil liability insurance, as it is a system with a higher degree of security.

In order for the shopping center to comply with current regulations, and considering the division between establishments and common areas, our public address and voice evacuation system NEO offers us several possibilities:

• Incorporate voice alarm loudspeakers in the shops of the shopping center.
• Each of the store’s own systems is managed jointly in the event of an evacuation.

On the other hand, evacuation signal processing can be carried out in different ways:

• Through interfaces with the fire detection system.
• Through the data network, through interfaces that allow us to connect to it.
• Through the control signal