Shea Electric & Communications introduces Biamp sound masking solutions

Heather Graves

Staff

October 7, 2024

OSHKOSH – Since its inception, COO Dan Shea said Shea Electric & Communications LLC has focused on helping businesses solve problems.

“Our job is to find where our customers’ problems are and be a solution provider,” Dan said. “We’re an electrical contractor, but we specialize in low voltage. So we do voice, data, video, fiber optics, card access, camera, sound, music, paging, fire alarm and the list goes on. We do the full gamut, and we do it in-house – we don’t sub our work out.”

It’s that focus on being a go-to problem solver, Dan said, that led Shea Electric to add sound masking to its inventory of offerings. 

In today’s world, Dan said open-plan offices and shared spaces have become the norm.

With that, he said effective sound control is essential to maintaining focus, productivity and privacy.

To do its part in addressing these challenges for its current and future customers, Dan said Shea Electric has partnered with Biamp to introduce advanced sound masking solutions.

This cutting-edge technology, he said, introduces subtle background sound to environments, making conversations less audible and minimizing distractions.

“Little, three-inch speakers add background sound that sounds a little like ‘schhh,’ which adds sound pressure to the room,” he said.

The result, Dan said, is enhanced privacy, reduced distractions and improved comfort in workplaces, healthcare facilities and educational institutions.

“There is only so much sound batting you can put in a wall, so by putting in sound masking technology, it knocks down the ambient noise in the room so you can have comfortable conversations,” he said.

Dan said this type of technology works well in “cube farm” settings when 200-plus individuals are sharing the same space.

“You can imagine what the talk-up noise is in decibels there,” he said. “In a call center environment, it’s used to knock that down so that it’s not too congestive.”

In a HIPAA-related environment – “we have customers that are health care” – Dan said sound masking is used for the safety and security of private information.

“Banks use it as well,” he said.

Dan said there are four key advantages to Biamp sound masking solutions, including:

• Enhanced privacy: Protect confidential conversations in open areas, meeting rooms and patient consultation rooms, ensuring compliance with privacy regulations, such as HIPAA
• Boosted productivity: Minimizes distractions, which enables employees, healthcare staff and students to focus better and create a more efficient work or learning environment
• Improved comfort: Balanced acoustic levels create a more pleasant atmosphere and reduce the impact of disruptive noises
• Flexible customization: Tailored to fit the unique needs of a facility with seamless integration into existing infrastructure and systems

The success of anything Shea Electric does, Dan said, is education.

“People don’t know what they don’t know,” he said. “Customers (may not) know what sound masking is – they just know they have a problem. For us, it’s about asking questions, articulating the problem back to them and then giving them some solutions.”

Instead of telling customers what they need, Dan said Shea Electric focuses on providing solution options and allowing them to decide what’s best for their situations.

“When you say, ‘I have a problem,’ I should be asking you questions instead of just saying, ‘you need this,’” he said. “We ask questions to peel the onion, provide the education and then a good, better, best solution. Sometimes, you can’t give a good, better, best. Sometimes, it’s only good and better, and sometimes it’s only better and best. But we always provide the education behind it because you have to know why you’re doing it.”

Otherwise, Dan said, it is just Shea Electric telling customers what to do – “and we don’t work like that.”

“The wheels fall off the bus when you don’t communicate effectively and efficiently,” he said.

Why Biamp?

When Shea Electric added camera work to its repertoire, Dan said they scoured the country for suppliers.

“We started with more than 100 different camera lines, then we drilled it down to 60, then we drilled it down to 30, then we drilled it down to 10 and then we drilled it down to five,” he said. “We then went to their sites, met with their R&D people and beat the snot out of their products.”

For Shea Electric’s sound masking supplier, Dan said the company followed the same process.

“We met with three different companies,” he said. “We narrowed it down through customer service. We looked at warranties. We looked at what their backlog of materials is.”

Though Shea Electric does nearly all of its engineering work in-house, Dan said supplier engineering capabilities were also a deciding factor when choosing Biamp.

“We have a decibel meter, so we actually go out and look at the ambient noise of the room and adjust the settings accordingly and do our own walkthroughs,” he said. “But if we do need help, Biamp would be here for us in a New York second. They have a Midwest person who will come in. Their engineers have been in our building. They helped train our in-house engineers.”

Everything Shea Electric does, Dan said, “we have at least two, typically three, people completely certified in that area.”

“We have three of our people who are certified in Biamp,” he said. “Our experienced team ensures a smooth, minimally invasive installation process.”

A specialized touch

Though sound masking solutions are available for folks to purchase online, Dan said the problem is “yes, you can do it, but that doesn’t mean it is done well.”

“With this type of equipment – filling an area with too much sound is not good either,” he said. “It’s kind of like the story of the porridge – ‘mine’s too hot, mine’s too cold, mine’s just right.’ That’s why you put your people through the training. That is why we have a process in place for our employees to be certified.”

Unlike many other companies that focus on one service or another, Dan said Shea Electric is an “and” company.

“A lot of my peers, if you will, electrical contractors – they do this or this,” he said. “They may put their toe in the water, but it’s ‘or.’ Shea Electric is ‘and.’ We do electrical work and lighting layouts and sound masking and camera and access control and DAS (distributed antenna system), etc.”

Shea Electric, Dan said, is doing stuff that no one else is – “and we’re doing it well.”

“And we’re doing it across all spectrums – that’s the key,” he said.

Some of the work Shea Electric does, Dan said, also “cross-pollinates” other work.

“Because we can do everything – we may have been brought in on sound masking or we may have been brought in on camera – now we’re doing all their electrical work,” he said.

When doing work for customers, Dan said Shea Electric is always looking at ROI.

“When I talk to you about your problem, I’ve already assessed it and applied the solution – I’m going to tell you what the ROI is,” he said. “Sometimes it’s money, sometimes it’s convenience and sometimes it’s aesthetics.”

Some in the industry, Dan said, are money-driven – “I want to make the maximum amount of profit and get out.”

“Profit is good – obviously, I need to be profitable or I won’t be around,” he said. “But the only way to get the next job is to do a good job on the current one. I need to make sure you’re happy so that you come back.”

Other solutions on the horizon

As they continue to look for ways to help solve their customers’ problems, Dan said Shea Electric is looking at other solution offerings – including 5G, DAS and EV charging.

“We’ve been installing EV chargers for our customers,” he said. “Many young professionals have electric vehicles – if they don’t have a charger at their residence (house or apartment), where is the next logical place they spend six to eight hours at a time – work. So I’m out there talking with my current and future customers about EV charging stations.”

To be ahead of, or even lead the charge, in what solutions customers will need for the future, Dan said Shea Electric has a one-, three- and five-year plan.

“We’re driven by our customers and their needs…,” he said. “We’re always going to be on to what’s next. I’m never satisfied.”

Dan said he celebrates a win for one day – “and then I reset the bar.”

“I’m always happy – but I’m happy chasing something,” he said.

For more on Shea Electric & Communications LLC, visit sheaelectricllc.com.