Selis Manor, located in the heart of Manhattan, New York City, is a living and community space supporting the visually impaired and physically disabled. The resident portion of the building has over two hundred units, multiple amenity spaces including a bowling alley and common areas, as well as administrative offices. 

Selis Manor is facilitated by organizations like VISIONS and the Associated Blind Foundation, working together to provide the community with adaptable housing, resources, education, and support for their day-to-day lives. From group outings to technology lending to volunteer readers, Selis Manor creates a valuable space for connection. 

Challenges 

Prioritizing Accessibility 

As a residential and community space for people with vision impairment and physical disabilities, Selis Manor needed to ensure that everyone would be able to use their intercom system. This meant trying to avoid touchscreens, having tactile buttons, T-Coil compatibility, and intuitive use.  

Modern Intercom in an Older Building

Constructed in the early 1980s out of thick concrete, Selis Manor still had the original wiring from its first intercom system in place. Rather than pursuing a short-term upgrade, the team focused on long-term reliability and future readiness. Selis Manor made the decision to replace the legacy wiring with modern IP infrastructure, creating a foundation capable of supporting an advanced intercom system.

Dependability  

Between administrators, residents, visitors, and volunteers; Selis Manor experiences a high volume of traffic daily. Their previous system wasn’t reliable, and they knew that they needed a new system capable of handling heavy usage.

Solution & Benefits 

Aiphone’s IX | IXG Series met those challenges and was installed in Selis Manor. 205 IX-RS handset answering stations were placed in residential units with 5 more located in amenity spaces. The exterior of the building was equipped with an IXG-DM7-HIDA door station, and the vestibule was further secured with an IX-DVM door station for extra safety. 4 IX-MV7 answering stations were placed in the administrative offices, as well as 1 IXG-MK guard station at the 24-hour concierge desk.  

Accessibility 

Aiphone offers a variety of solutions, adaptable to meet anyone’s needs. Our IX | IXG Series IP video intercom can be built with a combination of components: IP handsets, open voice touch screens, or tactile buttons. With a customizable intercom, communication is convenient for everyone.  

Accessibility is such an afterthought for a lot of companies. The fact that Aiphone products had those features already baked in says a lot about the company.

Elijah Hobbs

Director of the Associated Blind Foundation 

Internal Communication 

Communicating internally is easy with the IX | IXG system. Selis Manor staff and residents can call the guard station from any answering station, as well as having the capability to page all systems for mass notification. Calls to the guard station can be rerouted to other answering stations, like the ones in the administrative offices, in case there’s ever a lapse in coverage. 

Emergency Notification  

In addition to being able to reach the concierge station at any time from any tenant station, Selis Manor connected their IX | IXG system with emergency pull cords and smoke detectors located throughout the building. When any of these are triggered, a visual alert outside the unit signals staff where assistance is needed, and the resident can use the intercom system to immediately communicate with the guard station.

Visitor Management & Access Control 

The IXG-DM7-HIDA door station allows tenants and staff to use their key fobs to let themselves into the building, while visitors can choose whether to call someone from the tenant directory or call the concierge.  

Increased Tenant Satisfaction 

The IX | IXG system is intuitive and user friendly. Tenants can easily press buttons to call answering stations, the guard station, or allow visitors into the building. With accessible design, the IX | IXG system allows the tenants of Selis Manor to communicate quickly and easily.

Modern and Future Proof 

Selis Manor wanted a system that could meet the future head on. They installed Cat6 cables to transmit data and power their IX | IXG system, ensuring the ability for future upgrades.  

Unmatched Technical Support from Aiphone 

Our dedicated sales and technical support teams are there to help every step of the way, from building your system to maintaining it years after installation. The Aiphone team delivers unparalleled customer support, keeping your life easier.  

Aiphone’s tech support is always helpful, respectful, and most importantly patient when they answer the phone.

Greg Stypulkowski

CEO of Digital Security Communications

Results 

The IX | IXG system transformed communication at Selis Manor, delivering an experience that residents describe as simple, intuitive, and easy to use from the start. With the IX | IXG Series in place, Selis Manor now operates with dependable security communication trusted by its management team while continuing to meet the accessibility needs of its residents.