We’ve all been in a building with subpar reception. It can be annoying to have a call dropped or a text not go through immediately. But what’s more than annoying is the real risk that those areas with a shoddy signal can put someone’s life at risk. A public safety call that can’t connect—or where the voice signal is hard to make out—can result in serious injury or death because emergency personnel can’t respond quickly enough.

Throughout the expo portion of the show, I spoke with innovative companies whose products are ensuring every part of every building supports good communication. Whether it’s replacements for Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) or cellular boosting technologies, these vendors were excited to help solve in-building communications issues. Here’s what they told me.

1. Reliable Connectivity is Now a Building Essential

Strong in-building wireless coverage is no longer a nice-to-have—it’s an expectation for tenants, employees, residents, and visitors, said Kate Sheehy, director of business development at Communication Technology Services (CTS).

“People expect their devices to work everywhere they go,” Sheehy said. “Reliable in-building connectivity improves the occupant experience and helps properties remain competitive.”

Sheehy added that building owners should also consider Emergency Responder Radio Communication Systems (ERRCS/ERCES) to help ensure first responders have reliable radio communications inside buildings where public safety signals are weak.

2. POTS Decommissioning is Putting Your Building at Risk

You’ve heard about the major carriers decommissioning copper lines commonly used for emergency services—but despite all the talk about them, many building owners and management teams are holding off on transitioning to a modernized system, explained Vincent D’Aria, senior executive director for Granite Telecommunications LLC.

“They’re saying, ‘We’re just going to keep it. It’s reliable, we don’t want to mess with it, and we don’t want downtime,’” D’Aria said. “But they’re basically being decommissioned without any notice, and then they’re down completely and they have to hire fire watch 24/7, which is very costly.”

The FCC deregulated copper POTS lines a few years ago, but major carriers are now actively physically decommissioning their copper-based infrastructure. There is no single cutoff date; however, AT&T has announced it will start shutting down copper facilities in about 500 wire centers nationwide on June 30, 2026, so time is of the essence. Facilities that don’t put in a replacement solution before copper service is discontinued will have fire panels, elevator phones, and more that simply don’t work, putting them at risk for code non-compliance—not to mention the risk that comes with having a fire panel that doesn’t notify you in an emergency.

Property decision-makers can mitigate their risk by investing in systems that provide a cellular and/or internet connection for emergency communications. Granite’s system, Epic, provides triple redundancy for these communications, as well as proactive troubleshooting.

Gabbit, a phone service provider, also has a POTS solution that installs quickly. CEO and founder Harry Orchard explained that the more time that passes, the more building owners and managers are risking not being able to implement a solution before the copper lines stop working. Starting now could help you identify the best solution for you and get it installed across your portfolio before you run into trouble.

“Think about how reliable the network is that they’re actually plugged into,” Orchard said. “The questions they ought to be asking vendors like us are, is your network monitored 24/7? Are you monitoring these phone lines 24/7? Do you have a way of alerting us if there’s an actual outage or if our equipment is down?”

3. Your Mass Communication Strategy Needs Redundancy

Emergency communications to tenants and their employees are critical in an emergency, said Lee Johnson, senior account executive for RedFlag—and if you’re not communicating over multiple channels, there’s a chance people could miss your most important messages, putting them—and your reputation—at risk.

“Buildings have been communicating very simply,” Johnson said. “We enhance it for critical situations.”

The company’s SaaS offering sends your messages over email, text, voice calls, and an app, giving people multiple chances to see your emergency messages. It also allows two-way communication. “With our system, you know they received [your message], when they received it, and they can communicate back to you if they need to with where they’re located,” Johnson said. Those responses, even something as simple as “I need help,” could make the difference between life and death or serious injury for a building occupant.

4. Start Smart with a Network Assessment

Improving your building’s connectivity, cybersecurity, or any other important quality starts with understanding your current situation and where you need to go. Matt McLaughlin, vice president of the Southwest for building technology for Montgomery Technologies, urged show attendees to be proactive about finding a starting point to improve your building—even if that starting point is just a better understanding of where you are today.

“We have a network assessment that shows where you’re starting from—these are the systems you have in your building, this is where it’s located, and this is what’s secure and what’s not,” McLaughlin said. “You’ve just got to find a place to start and put a plan in place. You don’t have to tackle your whole building’s cybersecurity issues all at once, but you should have a plan. If you’re building a reason to exist in the future, you should have a plan to get it secured.”