The Smarter Way to Scale Your Alarm Inputs

You've probably seen a scenario like this before: A building expansion is on the horizon, and your fire alarm system needs to cover more ground.

The issue? Your current infrastructure just hit its upper limit. You're out of input capacity, and the only options being floated around sound expensive: full panel replacements, long cabling runs, and ripping out equipment that still works just fine.

So you pause, delay, and hope maybe the next fiscal year will bring better options - or a bigger budget.

But what if your smarter choice was already available?

Let's take a deeper look into how a scalable, modular system design - like what you get with Digitize DGMs - can transform the way you grow your fire and security alarm infrastructure.

Expansion Projects Often Grind to a Halt

You'd think adding more alarm points would be simple, but with many legacy systems, it's not.

Most fire alarm systems come with a hard cap. Maybe it's 64. Maybe 128. You might even get up to 512 zones with a specialized rack or expansion shelf.

But once you hit that ceiling, you're stuck. If your monitoring hardware isn't designed to scale, adding more zones often means starting from scratch.

Here's what usually happens next:

• Your vendor recommends a complete system swap to get more zone capacity.
• You're asked to budget for new panels, new programming, and new head-end gear.
• You realize your existing wiring can't support the new gear, so cabling is back on the table.
• You're now looking at downtime, extra engineering, and thousands in unplanned expenses.

And the worst part is, all of this is just to support a few dozen more devices.

The "Rip and Replace" Mentality Will Cost You

Modernizing an alarm system isn't inherently bad. But when you're forced to rip out functioning infrastructure just to grow your zone count, that's a problem.

Let's say you have a fire alarm system that already handles 256 zones and you need to add 32 more for a new wing. Your vendor tells you the only option is to swap the central receiver and rack setup - at a cost of $30,000 to $50,000. And that's before labor, programming, and recertification.

You've now committed a five-figure spend for a small 11% capacity bump.

With that kind of math, expansion quickly becomes unfeasible. It gets shelved, or worse, you end up improvising with add-ons that aren't supervised or code-compliant.

This isn't how safety systems should ever scale.

Real Scalability Involves Integration

In ideal scenario:

• You plug in a module.
• The module adds more zones.
• The head-end system recognizes it automatically.
• Your technicians program zones from a central dashboard.
• You're live in minutes - not weeks.

That's what Digitize DGMs were engineered to deliver.

Each DGM-16LS provides 16 supervised inputs. These support true NFPA-compliant, supervised zones - capable of detecting opens, shorts, and ground faults in real-time.

More importantly, DGMs are stackable. You can add hundreds of them over your network backbone. That means you can grow from dozens of zones to thousands - without replacing your central receiver or infrastructure.

Avoid Middleware & Compatibility Battles

You've likely dealt with the mess of system integrations where "vendor A's" panels don't talk to "vendor B's" monitoring server. Middleware is required, drivers fail, and compatibility patches are needed after every firmware update. You end up with an "in-house solution stack hack" that becomes a nightmare.

Digitize takes a different approach.

DGMs are designed to talk natively to the System 3505 Prism LX - a battle-tested alarm monitoring platform that supports thousands of active zones, across a wide range of communication paths. These include RS-485, Ethernet, single- or multi-mode fiber, and more.

This native integration means there are no:

• Translators or converters
• Recurring licensing fees
• Cross-platform bugs
• Surprise configuration delays

Instead, you just get clean, fast communication between modules and your head-end - every time.

Use Supervised Inputs That Don't Sleep

Each DGM-16LS doesn't just give you more zones. It gives you peace of mind.

Every input is fully supervised, using End-of-Line resistor (EOLR) technology. If a wire is cut, a sensor fails, or someone tampers with a device, you'll know immediately. There's no need to wait for quarterly inspections or cross your fingers during a fire drill.

Faults are flagged, logged, and sent to the Prism LX in real-time. This eliminates manual testing and guesswork.

Scale Without Replacing What Works

Modularity really shines in these mixed panel environments.

You don't have to throw away your existing field devices. You don't need to rip out miles of cabling. You don't need to reprogram every panel from scratch.

You can grow incrementally, adding DGMs only where you need them. This minimizes disruption, preserves capital, and makes sure that your system evolves organically as your facility changes.

It's the opposite of "forklift upgrades" - and it's a far better long-term strategy.

Real-World Flexibility for Real-World Facilities

Digitize systems with DGMs aren't just a good fit on paper. They've already been deployed in challenging environments across industries:

• Municipal buildings with legacy wiring and variable building layouts
• Military installations where security and uptime are non-negotiable
• Airports and transit systems that span multiple terminals, tunnels, and platforms
• Universities with dozens of academic buildings and residence halls, each with independent fire panels

In each of these cases, DGMs provided scalable, supervised input expansion - without compromising reliability, visibility, or code compliance.

Pair with the Prism LX for Full Visibility

Expansion means nothing without control.

The Prism LX monitoring platform gives you centralized visibility across all DGMs and monitored zones. That's true whether they're next door or across town.

From a single interface, your operators can:

• View zone statuses by location, priority, or event type
• Acknowledge and clear alarms
• Set up alerts based on specific input conditions
• Export time-stamped logs for NFPA 72 compliance
• Manage redundancy and failover paths

And since the Prism LX supports both modern protocols (Ethernet/IP) and legacy inputs (telegraph, dialers, dry contacts), it serves as a true bridge between eras.

You're not just expanding. You're building smarter.

A Better Way to Grow - Without Breaking the Bank

Whenever an expansion becomes a budget-breaking event for you, safety systems suffer.

With Digitize DGMs, you avoid that trap:

• No expensive panel swaps
• No re-engineering of the entire system
• No excess capacity purchases "just in case"
• No rushed decisions made under deadline pressure

You scale when you need to - on your terms, within your budget, and without technical trade-offs. That's what modern fire and life safety systems should look like.

What Should You Do Next?

If your facility is at or near its zone capacity, it's time to act - before you run out of options.

1. Talk to a Digitize Engineer
   We'll help you assess your current infrastructure and identify the cleanest expansion path.
2. Design a Scalable Architecture
   You don't need to predict the next 20 years. But you should always plan for the next 5, at least. A modular system lets you grow without surprises.
3. Avoid Costly Overhauls
   With DGMs and the Prism LX, you can modernize at your own pace - without scrapping what still works.

Call Today to Make Your Expansion Easy

Call 1-800-523-7232
Email us at info@digitize-inc.com

Tell us where you're running out of capacity - and we'll show you how to add thousands of new zones without replacing your core system.

Let's build a scalable, future-proof fire and alarm monitoring setup - one that grows with your needs (and not against them!).