Manufacturer’s Profile Ed Ballam
Doug Baker
SoundOff Signal’s Chief Innovation Officer and Senior Vice President of Technology
FA: Please provide a short overview of SoundOff Signal.
DB: SoundOff Signal is a global leader in vehicle LED lighting, controls systems, and electronic warning solutions for the emergency, amber, government, and off-road markets. We are committed to a strategic focus on innovation, continuous improvement and quality, and providing systems that work together seamlessly to improve vehicle visibility and communication when needed most. SoundOff Signal is an ESOP company, headquartered in Hudsonville, MI. Our 400 employees are dedicated to providing superior products that are designed and manufactured in the USA of domestic and foreign material. We are celebrating our 30th anniversary this year, and I’ve enjoyed seeing how our products and technology have grown from individual products to integrated systems.
FA: How did SoundOff Signal evolve to include the fire and EMS markets?
DB: SoundOff Signal has been providing products within in the fire market for over 10 years, with origins primarily in warning products on command staff and investigator vehicles. In more recent years, as a proud member of the Fire Apparatus Manufacturers’ Association (FAMA), we have expanded further into larger fire apparatus platforms with our larger portfolio of products and solutions. Included in our portfolio of products for the fire and EMS markets are the mpower 6×4 and mpower 7×3 lights. Our mpower line of products, designed with silicone lenses, is the first and only of its kind and has transformed LED lighting.
1 2021 Chevrolet HD4500 4×2 chassis with SoundOff Signal products including a bluePRINT® control system and mpower 7×3, mpower 6×4, and mpower 4×2 lights. (Photos courtesy of SoundOff Signal.)
FA: Describe the process used to come up with the product line.
DB: From a technology perspective, I often describe our company as a communications company—with visual, audio, and data/connectivity aspects of the communication we can provide. We are centered on safety solutions and work hard to serve our customers and partners every day. We have a dedicated innovation team exploring disruptive technology, products, and next-generation ideas for emerging safety needs.
FA: Describe the attributes of your products and the problems they’re designed to solve.
DB: As mentioned earlier, one of the innovations our team developed is the mpower® product line. When developing these mpower lights, we used a new material technology to lighting and, ironically, it is a well-known high temperature safety material that has been used in the fire market for decades, and that material is silicone. The optical-grade silicone used in this patented approach was a huge reliability breakthrough, as the unique properties allow the inclusion of precise optics, a supportive housing, and the weather seal—all in a single part. No need for separate “O-rings” to seal. And, by the way, those “O-rings” have been used in most every other lighting product in the industry and most all of them are, you guessed it, made of silicone. To sum it up, our mpower line of products provides an extremely durable product that has great resistance to gravel pitting, scratching, and cracking and a high UV and thermal stability to help prevent yellowing over time. These lights can stand up to heat, force, and pressure, kind of like the men and women on the front lines. In addition to the durability of these lights, they have a powerful and strategic light output to keep those on the front lines and passersby safe.
Another innovative initiative our team has led the way in was to evaluate how modern safety signal lighting is no longer just about being brighter. In fact, many departments and agencies have faced legal challenges about the lights being too bright and the siren too loud. In 2019, SoundOff Signal led a technology symposium taking this issue head on. What more can be done? With a trend of brighter lights and more lighting options included on equipment, the public will often see visual “chaos” at a scene. The first product we developed to “calm the chaos” is a control system series called bluePRINT®. With bluePRINT, you can manage when and how lights operate. By coordinating the total flashing environment with various intensities, flash patterns, colors, and a few other parameters, the safety of all vehicles and people involved is enhanced greatly. The concept was evaluated by the Lighting Research Center, now part of Mount Sinai, and is formally reviewed and published by SAE International as publication 2022-01-0801.
2 mpower® Exterior Lightbar—revolutionizing emergency lightbars with durable silicone lenses in a sleek, low-profile design.
FA: What keeps you up at night?
DB: We all want every responder who answers the call to make it home after a shift. Improving safety is never “done.” Every area we can look to improve, whether it is a process within our organization, safer products for today, or researching what items will improve safety with the emerging needs of the future, we remain committed and motivated to serve.
