FAQs • Wheaton, IL • CivicEngage

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Radio Fire Alarm Monitoring System

1. What is DU-COMM?: DU-COMM is the 911 emergency telephone service provided to a number of municipalities within DuPage County. DU-COMM provides fire and police dispatching directly for the City of Wheaton. DU-COMM is located in Glendale Heights. When you call 911, you are actually speaking with a dispatcher from DU-COMM. All fire alarms are directly transmitted to DU-COMM for dispatching the appropriate fire personnel.

2. Why is Chicago Metro Fire Prevention Company supplying the equipment?: When the City decided to change equipment and convert to a new radio technology, the City sent out requests for proposals and received four local vendors who deal with this type of equipment. Chicago Metro submitted the best overall proposal.

3. If I pay a fee to the City of Wheaton, can I stop paying fees to my current alarm company?: Not entirely. You are required to maintain your alarm systems and have a service contract with a licensed fire alarm contractor. Fire alarm systems must be regularly inspected, tested and maintained. Your current alarm company provides these services. You may continue to use your current alarm company; however, if part of the fee you paid your alarm company includes monitoring, you may want to speak with them about adjusting your bill.

4. I have a security system that is monitored by a private company. Does the radio fire alarm system affect my security alarm?: The radio fire alarm network system is only for fire alarms. However, the ordinance approved by the City Council requiring connection to the radio alarm network also requires all hold-up/panic alarms to be directly connected to the alarm panel owned by the City. Therefore, if you have a hold-up or panic alarm, it will be required to connect to the City’s alarm panel with a separate radio connection.

5. I have a fire alarm system that is currently monitored by a private company. Do I have to connect to the city?: Yes. In fact Chapter 22, Article XV of the Wheaton City Code requires all fire and discretionary alarm signals to be transmitted to receiving equipment housed by the City of Wheaton. In order to reduce response times and maintain better oversight of fire alarms, it is important to have fire alarms directly connected to the City’s channel.

6. Can I purchase a radio from another vendor?: No. The radios located throughout the city will operate as a network, each relying on the other to transmit signals. As radios are added or removed from the network, the system must be rebalanced to provide optimum performance. The system runs most effectively when one vendor oversees it.

7. Do other communities use radios?: Yes. The largest network is in Naperville and has operated smoothly since 2001. Other communities include Algonquin, Northbrook, Hoffman Estates, Highland Park, Lisle/Woodridge and Elmhurst.

8. Have there been any problems with the radios?: Yes. In some cases, a community had problems with their network that were caused by the municipality allowing multiple vendors to install and maintain the radios. This caused the network to operate inefficiently, leading to slow-downs in alarm signal transmissions.