E A COMBS LTD
QUANTUM HOUSE
EASTWOOD CLOSE
LONDON
GT LONDON E18 1BX
Tel: 0208 530 4216
Fax:
Suppliers of: Commercial Clocks, Synchronous Clock Systems, Master Clock Systems, Wireless Clock Controls, Hospital Clocks, Synchronized clocks, digital clocks, analogue clocks
E A COMBS Timing Solutions - Design and supply of commercial clocks and systems.
E A Combs is the most established commercial clock supplier in the UK, with a long-standing reputation since 1895. We have been providing commercial wall clocks, industrial clocks, synchronised clock systems and beyond, for the likes of schools, hospitals, railway stations and many more. We also offer a huge selection of digital, analogue, LCD, LED and other commercial wall clocks for our clients. E A Combs is also the most cost effective supplier of master clock systems in the UK, without compromising on quality. Our UK-based clock suppliers are also able to help international customers, from areas such as Australia and Europe.
Main Sectors:
Healthcare Master Clocks: Synchronised Hospital Clock Systems
Having a synchronised clock system will help ensure that all departments are exactly on the same time – essential for effective patient care and the correct timing of emergency situations. The EA Combs clock systems can incorporate wireless remote count up/down timers; these are crucial in today’s hospital care for monitoring procedures such as patients being under anaesthetic or controlled breathing.
Education Master Clocks: Synchronised School Clock Systems
An effective master clock system in your school is an essential part of school management and vital to the smooth running of your school. Setting up a synchronised clock system for newer school buildings allows schools to take advantage of cabling infrastructure to install a school clock system using PoE (Power over Ethernet) while older buildings and schools can easily upgrade their current school clocks by using wireless clocks with a lengthy battery life.
Commercial & Retail Clocks: Synchronised Clock Systems
Efficient time keeping is one of the hallmarks of a successful business. Commercial offices and retail businesses need to ensure that all systems, departments and employees have access to and utilise the most effective time keeping solutions.
Transport Master Clocks: Synchronised Transport Clock Systems
Organisations in the transportation industry are unique in that they don’t offer a physical product, but instead offer dependable, on-time logistics. Delivering this requires efficiency, time management skills, and dependability from both the organisation’s employees and equipment.
Leisure Master Clocks: Synchronised Sports & Leisure Centre Clock Systems
To keep a record of sports timing or simply to make customers and members aware of the correct time, EA Combs produces and supplies a range of analogue and LED synchronised sports clocks. The analogue clocks are mains or battery operated and offer a range of styles to suit clients’ requirements.
Warehouse Master Clocks: Synchronised Warehouse & Distribution Clock Systems
Distribution procedures, shift changes and shipping schedules are dependent upon accurate timing. Synchronised time is essential to managing daily operations, harmonising the workplace, and streamlining processes.
Main Products:
Analogue Clocks
A comprehensive range of high-quality clocks in a large variety of styles, sizes and movement types. The E.A Combs range of Analogue clocks offers a fine selection with sizes from 215mm to 850mm in diameter that you will find something suitable for almost all applications. The clocks have a wide range of movement options available from battery quartz, radio controlled, silent sweeping second hand movements, mains powered and slave movements for clock systems.
LED & LCD Clocks
Our digital range of clocks to provide precision timing in a clear, bold manner. EA Combs also offers a range of high-quality LCD clocks with larger displays as well as time zone options and calendar clocks. These can be either stand-alone quartz clocks or linked within the AirTime 868 wireless clock system for 100% accuracy.
PA & Lockdown Systems
Keep your classroom, office or warehouse up to date and secure with announcements, bells and alerts. EA Combs supplies and installs the DIVA range of PA Systems lockdown systems sound systems public announcements based on direct interfacing to LAN (local area network) and Peer-To-Peer communication infrastructure. The systems can range from a basic lockdown system to a full system offering lockdown, PA, audio streaming, timed announcements for schools and workplace. The DIVA system is a compact PA/VA system specifically designed for small to medium scale installations. It has all the essential functionality to comply with EN54-16 and BS5839/8 requirements for Voice Alarm, including full system monitoring, loudspeaker line impedance surveillance, microphone surveillance and monitored interfacing with remote devices.
Wi-Fi Clocks
Wi-Fi Clocks represent the most up to date and cost effective solutions for any organisation. With built-in web interface, self diagnostics, advanced synchronicity, Wi-Fi monitoring software and optional master clock set up; our range of Wi-Fi Clocks provide cost effective and advanced timing solutions for all types of projects. Futhermore, our range of Wi-Fi Clocks are fully compliant with the latest safety standards.
Outdoor Clocks & Heritage Clocks
Here at EA Combs, we boast an incredible range of outdoor clocks. From large analogue faces to LED digital clocks, our reliable selection can be seamlessly integrated into an existing wired system or we can help you ensure your organisation gets the synchronised time system you need. Robust without compromising on style, we have a variety of sizes and styles available with changeable brightness alongside our fantastic customer service. This means you can find exactly what you need at a great price from a team of experts that have the experience to give you all your options and help you find the right solution for your unique requirements.
Further technical information is available to download from the BPi Download Library or from the Manufacturer’s own website.
Lost Time Calculator: How Much Time is Saved with Synchronisation?
How much time do you spend making coffee in the morning, making the bed, brushing your teeth – how about putting on your socks? Wait, don’t answer that question; it’s best not to think about how many hours of your life are consumed with mundane tasks.
The reality is that while we pursue meaningful lives, so much of our days are used up by chores that we would automate if we could, freeing up more time for the things we care about. This translates to work, too.
For facility managers, there are few aspects of routine maintenance that can be put on autopilot, but adjusting the clocks is one of those. Here, we’ll calculate just how much time you must spend making sure your clocks are on pace, time that you could get back with a synchronised clock system.
Why Daylight Saving Time Actually Costs You Time:
If you run a particularly large complex such as a high school or hospital, you might have 100-plus wall clocks that help keep everyone in sync as they adhere to a tight schedule. That schedule is likely so refined that if those clocks are off by just a minute or two, that highly calibrated schedule is no longer efficient. So, you make sure to adjust your clocks on a regular basis.
If you can’t afford to have your clocks be off by a couple minutes, then you can’t afford to have them off by an hour. But if your clocks aren’t automated to adjust for Daylight Saving Time, also known as DST, you must send someone out twice a year to adjust for the time change, making the rounds room by room as they set the clocks forward or backward an hour.
Let’s say that task averages out to five minutes for each clock. If you have 100 clocks to adjust, that adds up to more than a full 8-hour workday. That’s two precious workdays each year that are dedicated to the thankless task of making sure your clocks adjust for Daylight Saving Time. Here’s the equation:
5 minutes x 100 clocks x 2 DST = 1000 minutes per year
1000 minutes ÷ 60 = 16 hours
If you want to calculate how much time your facility can save, plug in your information in the equation below. Keep in mind the different factors that can affect the speed of correcting the clock such as the experience of the person responsible for adjusting them, the time it takes to walk to each room, if the clock is located somewhere that is only accessible by ladder, and the availability of the room. Also, DST occurs twice a year so make sure to multiply your results by 2.
[average amount of time to change one clock] x [number of clocks] x 2 DST = [minutes per year it takes to adjust the clocks]
What Happens When Clocks Go Rogue?
Maybe you’re fine with dedicating 16-plus work hours a year to keep up with the rest of the world but updating for DST isn’t the only thing you have to worry about when it comes to adjusting your clocks.
Quartz clocks, the most common type, keep their time based on the crystal’s tiny vibrations. Those vibrations aren’t perfect, though. The quartz vibrations will be slightly different in each clock, meaning a collection of independent clocks will become out of sync.
As your clocks drift apart, you might not notice it at first. But over a long enough period, those differences will become obvious.
The Cost of Falling Off the Pace:
If you don’t have synchronised clocks, then you’ll have to put effort into making sure your clocks stay in sync, that is if you value being on a schedule. Perhaps you’ll develop a routine to check the clocks, or maybe you’ll respond to complaints from staff members as they come in. Either way, you’re spending more resources to make sure everyone is on time.
And that’s if you’re able to keep up with the necessary adjustments in the first place. The cost is even greater if you let your clocks drift so far apart that meetings, appointments, and classes start late.
Synchronisation by EA Combs:
There’s a reason so many large institutions opt for synchronised clocks, and at EA Combs, you will find several types of synchronised time systems. Whether you choose wired, wireless or IP Network clocks, these systems give you one less thing to worry about while saving you valuable staff hours in the process.
Steve Choppen
National Sales Manager
E A Combs Limited
Quantum House
London
E18 1BX
Mobile: 07340 172894
Main Telephone: 0208 530 4216
Email: steve@eacombs.com
Sales@eacombs.com
www.eacombs.com
What Type of Clock is Best for My Organization?
If you’re tasked with selecting a clock system for your organisation, the idea might be easy at first: You just buy some clocks and hang them on the walls, right?
But synchronised clock technology offers many options, and the best decision for you depends on the needs of your organization. Here, we’ll help determine which type of clock is best for you depending on your industry and the type of building you’re responsible for keeping on time.
Healthcare
In a facility as large as a hospital, synchronised time is critical. A wireless clock system may be good option, in which individual clocks stay in sync by receiving a radio signal from the master controller as opposed to connecting via wiring. A quality wireless clock system will have a signal strong enough to easily cover a facility as expansive as a hospital, all while avoiding interference with medical equipment by using its own radio frequency.
Always consider the size of your facility when picking out a synchronised clock system. In a facility the size of a clinic, for instance, an investment in a master controller may not be warranted. In that case, IP network clocks such as Power over Ethernet (PoE) or Wi-Fi Network clocks may suffice. Rather than requiring a master clock, IP network clocks connect directly to your LAN or WLAN to receive a time signal for a fast, efficient way to get synchronised time.
Once you’ve selected your clock system, you’ll need to decide between analogue and digital displays. Analogue clocks may be designed with images or a logo, which makes them a good fit for waiting areas or other patient-facing rooms, whereas the brightness of digital clocks is helpful in places like surgery rooms or low-light areas. Digital can also come with enhanced functionality, such as a time-elapsed setting that allows staff to track how much time has gone by during a specific task. This can prove vital during events like time-sensitive surgeries.
Education
Synchronised time in primary and higher education schools is important for keeping students and staff on time. Choosing between wired and wireless depends on the status of your building. For new construction, a wireless clock system presents the ideal option due to the flexibility and ease of integration it offers. If you are outfitting a pre-existing building that already has a wired clock system installed, pick a clock model that’s compatible with the existing master controller. 24v clocks can work with your legacy wired system and with the new wireless system in your expansion.
Manufacturing
IP network clocks should also adequately serve a production facility. In this sector, though, you need to carefully consider your display format. Office settings do fine with analogue, but digital is most suitable for a factory floor because of its enhanced readability, making it easier for personnel operating heavy equipment to keep track of the time while doing their job safely. A LED digital clock system can be controlled by NTP, GPS or Wi-Fi
Small Business
Wi-Fi clocks are a fast and economical choice for nearly any small business that need synchronised clocks with little fuss. Just connect the clock to your Wi-Fi network and hang it where needed – no master clock required. Batteries are good for up to five years. Beyond that, you don’t have to give your Wi-Fi clocks a second thought. They’ll stay in sync with the official time as set by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Talk to us about Clocks or Clock Systems
Request More information or a demo or call 0208 530 4218 .
