Control rooms are crucial for enterprises to monitor various information streams swiftly and effectively and make accurate mission-critical choices. With an ever-growing number of content sources and applications to manage, as well as collaborative information integration requirements, today’s control rooms must provide efficient and cost-effective system management.
Control room solutions are a crucial component of daily operations, enabling for more efficient work and better decision-making. They can be used for monitoring, decision-making, responding, regulating, cooperating, or communicating. It’s no secret that a control room is where a lot of critical work is done, thus it deserves the best equipment available. Learn how to better equip your control room operators in a variety of ways.
Table of Contents
Ergonomic Accessories
When it’s time to sit down, ergonomic chairs are a terrific method to increase an operator’s comfort. An ergonomic chair is designed with comfort foam to let operators work for long periods. There are also armrests to help them maintain appropriate posture while working. Adding ergonomic seats to your operator’s workspace is a great approach to improve their efficiency.
Aside from chairs and desks, control room operators can benefit from a variety of ergonomic accouterments. Memory foam mouse pads, wrist rests, extra seat cushions, and other items are among the accessories available. Back and neck strains are prevalent in control rooms, especially when a majority of the work is done on a computer. Having these supplies on hand demonstrates a degree of consideration that operators will appreciate.
Displays
In control rooms, there is a lot of vital information that needs to be viewed, which necessitates a lot of multitasking. Access to various displays across a control room is one of the nicest things you can do for your operators. This gives them quick access to whatever they might need, and it’s also a terrific method to streamline their workflow.
Operators can also access and use multiple applications at the same time, and effortlessly transition between them. You can even obtain touch screen functionality with certain monitors if you can afford it. It’s critical to have a large number of monitors so that your operators can see everything in the room.
An overview LED video panel can aid in the creation of a unified operating image that improves situational awareness and facilitates effective reaction. Choosing the correct technology that can be readily integrated into current systems and solutions — and working with a trusted integrator partner to do so — will make the video wall installation go smoothly and add value to your investment.
Room Design
When it comes to designing a control room, the overall design is crucial. Lighting levels (and the alternatives for adjusting them) aid in the maintenance of a healthy circadian rhythm. Human-centric lighting (HCL) is a comprehensive strategy that considers all aspects of how lighting influences the welfare, productivity, and comfort of operators in the control room.
While much of the work in a control room is done at a desk, operators need to be able to move around freely. This relates to establishing a layout that is easy to move around in, and in many cases, it also refers to the equipment itself. Mobile workstations are a must-have for control room operators and can be a valuable resource. Operators aren’t bound by a specific space in a control room; if they require more flexibility or efficiency, they can relocate to a different location.
Centralized Control
Many operators’ productivity is influenced by their working environment. Furthermore, centralizing control of several workstations at the same time streamlines the type of response. Having a single keyboard and mouse that allows operators to effortlessly interact with any panels and dashboards, for example, can provide faster response times without the extra burden of switching from workstation to workstation.
Today’s control room operators use 3 to 8 monitors and 2 to 4 distinct PCs and several on average. The work surface can be made more intuitive and less crowded with centralized control. This can be further modified in the ongoing fight against COVID-19 with a plug-and-play option for each operator to have their keyboard and mouse, which can decrease touchpoints and prioritization.
Network Connectivity
One of the innovations that can be used in today’s control rooms is network connectivity, which allows for the management of multiple IT systems. Computer operations and control, audio-visual systems, cable connectors, and other applications that can improve efficiency are all aided by networks.
Because control rooms are a fast-paced, high-pressure setting with a plethora of technological obstacles, effectively tackling these demands necessitates a certain amount of technical knowledge. System integrators must consider a variety of factors: solution components must be dependable, high-quality, and secure but, in addition, to build quality, the solutions should ideally provide future-proof infrastructure and investment protection, as well as ensuring network security and improving operator workflows.
Conclusion
There are many elements to consider while updating or building a control room or security operations center: traffic and talking patterns between operators, the minimization of distractions, and so much more. Maintaining the level of comfort required within the operational environment necessitates leveraging the experience of a control room expert who specializes in these elements and may offer recommendations based on specific needs.