We've Made These 3 Big Improvements at Digitize in 2023
By Andrew Erickson
July 19, 2023
Digitize equipment gives you many benefits:
- Broad compatibility with many different FACPs and control panels
- Proven designs via 46 years of evolution
- Custom engineering option when you need it
As we move through 2023, now more than 12 months after our change in ownership, we have several new improvements I'm excited to share with you - our customers and distributors:
A Website that Attracts 10x More Leads for Our Distributors & Installers
For B2B technology products, information is king. Anyone working with fire alarms in any way is bound to have questions that must be answered. In the 21st century, that means doing a Google search.
For the last 12 months, we've been writing tutorial blogs each week. Each blog post answers a common question or gives an overview of a specific topic. Our most popular blog posts include:
- Understanding Common Fire Alarm Trouble Codes
- What is a Fire Alarm Monitor Module?
- NFPA 72: Overview of National Fire Alarm and Signaling Code (Chapters 1-10)
A graph showing a sharp 10-fold increase in website traffic during the last several months, a direct result of publishing helpful articles on a regular basis. Satisfied website visitors can become leads that we forward to our regional distributors.
As a result of posting useful information, we've seen a huge 10x increase in website traffic, with most of that jump happening exponentially in just the last few months. If you're one of the thousands of people we're now helping each month, it's been a pleasure helping you during your project research.
If you're a Digitize distributor (or plan to become one), you can expect to begin receiving new inbound leads as a free benefit. Some percentage of our website traffic has a product need and will call us, email us, or chat with us on our website.
We forward new inbound sales leads to trusted distributors in the customer's geographic region. It's a win-win both for Digitize end users and for our distributors. If you're not yet a Digitize distributor, register with us as a distributor today so we know what region(s) you serve.
A Revitalized Engineering Culture as "a DPS Telecom Company"
As you know, Digitize was acquired by DPS Telecom in 2022 when our founder, Abe Brecher, retired after 45 years. DPS Telecom designs and builds alarm monitoring systems for very remote telecom huts and power substations. It's a different type of alarm monitoring, but there is massive technology overlap.
A new Digitize engineer writes embedded software code to be installed on Digitize equipment.
In the last 12 months, we've been active on several fronts. We're pleased to report that we have long-time engineers like John Ermatinger and Jim Sutton on staff - and we also have a large team of new engineers.
All new engineers were required to pass our standard multi-week "boot camp" before being allowed to work on actual product development. This ensures that only the strongest hardware engineers and software developers get to work on your life-safety equipment.
Another new Digitize engineer designs a circuit for a small hardware board.
Our new engineering muscle means that we're more prepared than ever to give you both:
- Custom products
- Custom enhancements for applications of existing products
The Digitize engineering and manufacturing facilities have undergone massive improvements in the last 12 months.
A Substantially Improved Manufacturing Process
As part of our 2022 acquisition of Digitize from founder Abe Brecher, we've surveyed our existing product lines and spoken to many distributors and users.
While we've heard many positive reviews of "bulletproof" Digitize equipment, we also know that important details like proper grounding against static electricity and excellent process control will give you even better products in the future.
A work table with an ESD protective mat protects sensitive eletronics during assembly of our fire alarm monitoring devices.
As I wrote about in my July 2022 article on ESD mitigation in our factory, we made immediate changes last summer to ground virtually every person, workbench, and storage area in our factory.
You can look forward to even more reliability of both equipment and delivery dates as we continue improving our manufacturing.
Conductive ESD mats are used to prevent the buildup of static electricity on components being stored on the shelves. This reduces the chance of equipment damage caused by an electrical discharge.
What Improvements Do You Want to See at Digitize?
Our best ideas for new product improvements always come from users and distributors. What is it that you'd like to see?
Your direct feedback is invaluable in shaping our plans for the future. Tell me about any specific functionality or general improvement that you believe would make Digitize gear more effective for your needs. Whether you want changes to hardware design, different ways of displaying alerts, or a change in the way we work together with you - I'm all ears.
Remember, this is your opportunity to directly influence our development process. Help me shape something that is best suited for your environment. Share your thoughts, ideas, and expectations with me.
Give Me a Call Today.
Whether you have a routine project involving existing Digitize equipment or an idea for the future, all you have to do is give me a call. Just tell me what you're trying to accomplish.
You can reach me at 1-800-523-7232 or email me at info@digitize-inc.com
Find Your Local Distributor/Installer (or Become One!)
At Digitize, we're a manufacturer of fire alarm monitoring systems. We can and will help you directly, and you can also get region-specific help from your local distributor/installer. Just give us a call. We'll connect you with a distributor in your region.
Would you like to become a Digitize distributor? Just give us a call and we'll work toward getting you set up:
1-800-523-7232
Andrew Erickson
Andrew Erickson is an Application Engineer at DPS Telecom, a manufacturer of semi-custom remote alarm monitoring systems based in Fresno, California. Andrew brings more than 17 years of experience building site monitoring solutions, developing intuitive user interfaces and documentation, and...Read More