SuperNova Screen Reader Case Study: SuperNova supports Gloucestershire Fire Service.

Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service provides a key function for the people of Gloucestershire. Based in the heart of the community, the Service not only uses cutting edge technology on board its tenders, it also has well equipped offices making use of modern computer facilities providing key support roles to back up the fire crews.

Norina Staples is the Fire Service Headquarters’ front line Receptionist and as a visually impaired employee, Norina has a number of products to call on to provide access to the computer systems she uses.

My main tasks are acting as Receptionist and operating the headquarters’ switchboard console, being the first point of contact for both visitors and telephone callers. Security is obviously important. The front door to Headquarters is kept locked, codes being used to gain access, and I also look after the door entry phone system to our buildings.”

Fire Service staff are constantly in demand, and with the Gloucestershire Headquarters needing to contact personnel who may be based in many parts of the site, spread over locations within the county, technology plays an important role.

As Norina explains;

I have to know the whereabouts of all Officers in the Service so that I can contact them either via the telephone or via their pagers. I also use a Tannoy system which links the sites within the Headquarters’ buildings. I also compile the telephone lists, keep them up to-date and ensure they are distributed. As you can imagine, operating the switchboard means I am first to hear about telephone faults within the Service, and I deal with these problems, liaising with the Telephone Companies”.

On her PC she has Dolphin’s SuperNova Screen Reader to provide the audible speech output. Installed onto the computer, SuperNova works within the operating system and when on screen changes occur, produces speech output. This then enables a visually impaired user to operate the computer in the natural sense, but by listening to the audible output, rather than looking at the monitor. SuperNova is compatible with a wide range of application software, without the need for any additional configuration files. However, for users with particular requirements SuperNova’s settings can be adjusted to provide levels of speech output. For example, punctuation announcement, whether capital letters are indicated, automatic description of font colours, font size and character attributes. These settings can also be saved for specific application programs, SuperNova loading them in automatically when the application starts.

Modern telecommunications systems have revolutionised the way that business organisations are able to keep in touch with employees who are on the move. But with the support of the latest developments in screen reading technology, a visually impaired person can make use of these new technologies.

I use Microsoft Exchange for our E-Mail system. I also use SuperNova to gain access to Staffnet which is an Intranet within Gloucestershire County Council of which the Fire Service is a part. Part of my duties are to check the internal telephone system for the Service, making sure that entries are correct. If they need updating I send an email to the relevant Section to make amendments within the Council.”

In line with many organisations, the Fire Service has just switched to a new paging system. As Norina explains;

I also use SuperNova to send paging messages to the Officers within the Fire Service, using Page One’s software called Alpha Page. The Paging Company had never experienced a visually impaired person using their software before so it has been a good learning curve for them. It was very simple. No adjustments had to be made to SuperNova and I have not had any problems with the compatibility.”

The search for employment, and being able to maintain a secure position within a high profile employment situation is difficult. The design of access products needs to consider the pressures of work, and provide an effective tool which does not add to the daily pressures. Norina’s experiences highlight what is possible with a sophisticated, adaptable access product.

With the products that are available from a company like Dolphin today, adaptions to computer systems can easily be made. I never thought in the first instance that I would be able to use this new paging system but once we held discussions with the Paging Company and I told them what I required, there were no problems. Technology has been a godsend for visually impaired people in the form of speech systems, I remember the days of just being a touch typist and using a Braille bar on a typewriter and if you made a mistake you had to rip it up and start again, now with screen readers and computers this has all gone. If I did not have access to the types of products that Dolphin supply, I would not be able to fulfil my job criteria.”

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