Vigilante Security may be Michigan security specialists, but there are times we feel like evangelists. After all, we’re continually spreading the word about the many ways in which security systems protect homes and businesses — and especially about the difference remote monitoring makes in keeping your property, assets, and people safe. Our approach to alarm monitoring is a bit different than most, since we rely on a private radio network (PRN) to ensure reliability and uptime. If you’re wondering why that matters, let us explain.

How a PRN Works

So how does security using private radio networks work? Traditionally, security monitoring has relied on one of three means to transmit vital information — an alarm, signals from environmental monitoring systems — to a central station. Phone lines are the oldest method, and are still in use by many companies. Cellular signals are beginning to supplant land lines for security monitoring just as they are for homes and businesses. Other systems use Wi-Fi or PRNs.

Our private radio network uses a small radio transmitter with a battery backup. It’s a two-way radio system that not only alerts us in a fraction of a second when an alarm or sensor is triggered, but also confirms message receipt (a feature that one-way networks lack). We’ll have more to say about how this works as we discuss the benefits of a PRN.

Benefits of Security Using a Private Radio Network

Private radio networks offer some important advantages in security monitoring.

Speed

If you’ve ever placed a phone call on a landline or a cellular phone, you know that dialing and waiting for a connection isn’t instantaneous. While security networks are quicker than dialing by hand, there’s still a gap compared to a PRN.

Reliability

Land lines can be cut, and cellular signals jammed. However, the reasons that some security alarms using these notification methods slip through the cracks are usually more prosaic: car accidents, heavy weather, human error during utility work, and the like. That doesn’t happen with a private radio network.

Redundancy

PRNs use narrow-band transmission, and can hop from frequency to frequency in much the same way that a mobile phone does when it’s searching for a signal. This redundancy can’t be found in land lines, and helps to ensure better uptime.

Flexibility

There’s some complexity involved in any alarm installation, since your site needs to be evaluated, equipment carefully chosen, and installations performed with precision. That said, traditional landline based security monitoring is a bear to install, and equally difficult to move or to scale if your home or business undergoes changes. A PRN is simply more flexible.

Burglar Alarm Monitoring Service in Southeast Michigan

Now that you know why security monitoring via private radio network matters, let’s fit in the last piece of the puzzle; your choice of security monitoring company matters just as much as the methods they use. For homes and businesses in Livingston County, Washtenaw County, and elsewhere in Michigan, that means a call to Vigilante Security. Our PRN and our Underwriters Laboratories Listed central station have received the TMA Five Diamond Monitoring Center designation, and the breadth of our security solutions is matched only by the depth of our commitment to our customers. For a security consultation, contact us today.