There are many organizations that could benefit from establishing an Integrated Operations Center (IOC), including those with a global presence, a public-facing role, a large operational footprint, or a large number of employees.
The main goal of an IOC is to unify operational control of all types of data sources – devices, systems, and applications – to enhance operational efficiency and improve collaboration between departments.
Operational complexity is a major challenge for many organizations today. From myriad applications to legacy systems and Internet of Things (IoT) devices, the operational landscape is rife with potential technology and information silos. An IOC serves as a central system that organizes all the data, assets, and analytics at your fingertips to enable efficient and informed decision-making.
Considerations for Building an Integrated Operations Center
The building blocks for an Integrated Operations Center are essential to 24/7 data monitoring and incident management. Design elements must all serve the purpose of better enabling efficient and effective operations. Here are some basic considerations as you begin to plan your IOC build:
Centrally located video walls create situational awareness
Operators in an integrated operations center have a number of information feeds to monitor: camera feeds, IoT devices, machine learning applications, incident alerts, and more can all be relevant to an operator’s informed decision-making. Video walls take all this important data and aggregate it into one location visible to everyone in the room.
Whether it’s a large-scale, wall-to-wall installation or a compact video wall, creating a central display is key to situational awareness in an operations center. Displays can also be located in adjacent situation rooms to ensure situational awareness and critical decision-making are empowered throughout your ops center.
Ergonomic choices for consoles and video wall placement
Any successful operations center must take “the human factor” into account. The ergonomics of an operations space make a significant impact on operator health, safety, and performance – especially in a high-pressure, 24/7 environment.
Selecting the right furniture for a command and control setting can make a difference in operator comfort and performance. Adjustable height consoles are a popular ergonomic furniture choice for operations centers because the ability to switch between sitting and standing positions results in less stress and fatigue.
Spatial design is also key to ergonomics. The best operations center design accounts for the working relationship between users, workstations, offices, common spaces, video walls, and more. A key way our designers determine the ideal placement of the video wall and consoles in relation to one another is through sight line analysis. A sight line analysis is a detailed ergonomic examination of operator placement and viewing angles to reduce strain on the eyes and neck. All of this detailed optimization is a delicate balancing act that requires the expertise of an experienced mission critical designer like Constant.
Functional consoles for mission critical
An integrated operations center is a 24/7 environment with significant equipment demands. In addition to operator comfort, the consoles in an IOC need to be durable and optimized for the kind of equipment your operators will use. From the ability to mount multiple monitors or the storage space to house a number of CPUS within an enclosed module, operations center consoles are built with the requirements of mission critical in mind. Clean and effective cable management is also a priority; mismanagement of cabling can cause crimping or other damage which can interrupt operations. Consoles built for mission critical functions will meet the requirements for equipment storage, cabling, and durability, but standard office desks will not.
Create your integrated operations center with Constant
Because operations centers are complex and critical to an organization’s daily operations, it’s essential that you choose wisely when selecting partners to create your ops space.
When it comes to mission critical partners, there’s no one quite like Constant. In addition to video wall system integration and custom console furniture, we also offer design services, project management, and long-term service. With over decades of experience in 24/7 operations center environments all over the world, our expertise in the field of mission critical is unmatched. Trust us– when you work with Constant, your operations center project will be in good hands.
To learn more about building your integrated operations center, contact us today to schedule a free design and budget consultation.
About Constant:
Constant Technologies, Inc. provides AV integration for 24/7 video walls and custom operation center furniture. With 30+ years of experience, we can work with sensitive environments in the public and private sectors. Constant designs and installs projects of all scopes and sizes around the world. We also offer long-term service and support. We create solutions with the highest levels of security, aesthetics and functionality in mind.
