Wheelock (brand)
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Cooper Wheelock is a Long Branch, New Jersey, company founded in 1922[1] specializing in fire alarm and general signaling products. The company is known as an industry leader in fire and industrial signals.[2] Cooper Wheelock products are often used by other companies (such as Honeywell) to complement their products.
Corporate history
In March, 2006, Wheelock, Inc was acquired by Cooper Menvier of the United Kingdom, a division of Cooper Industries.[3]
Products
The 3x/700x series of electromechanical and vibratory horns and horn/strobes is an earlier Wheelock creation. In the early 1970s, Wheelock introduced the 31 and 34 series horns, a vibratory and electromechanical horn, respectively. Around 1976, Wheelock created the 7001 (flush-mount electromechanical), 7002 (surface-mount electromechanical), and 7004 (surface-mount vibratory) horn/strobes. These were the first audiovisual alarms to use xenon strobes instead of incandescent lights. The horn and strobe on the 7001 and 7002 models are wired together, resulting in a distinctive "skipping" sound. They skip because when the strobe charges, it draws power from the horn, and when the strobe flashes the power draw stops momentarily, causing it to skip. In 1985, Wheelock redesigned the horn's grilles, making them vandal resistant. These models contain the letter "T" in their model numbers (i.e. 34T, 7002T, etc.). This series became extremely popular among safety companies and resellers. In 1994, Wheelock discontinued this series, due to the ADA requiring that all strobes have clear lenses instead of translucent lenses. The 31T is still in production today for general signaling purposes.
The Series MT (Multi-tone) was introduced in 1993. It featured eight different tones including Continuous Horn, Code-3 Horn, March Time Horn, Code-3 Tone, Siren, Slow Whoop, Hi-Lo, and Bell. These could be set using DIP switches on the back of the horn. However, most of the tones did not grab the attention of bystanders. The most commonly used tones were Continuous Horn, Code-3 Horn, and March Time Horn. All three of the Horn tones sounded similar to another Wheelock horn/strobe, the AS. The MT has seen different strobe bodies over time, including translucent vertical strobes, transparent vertical strobes, and transparent horizontal strobes, which are still being produced to this day.
In 1995, Wheelock introduced the AS, a combination horn and strobe, which was one of their most commonly used products in the past. The AS was first created in a vertical position with the strobe on the right side of the horn facing vertically. Then in 1998 when the NS was introduced, the strobe was moved above the horn horizontally, like most other current Wheelock strobes.
In 1998, Wheelock released the NS series. The NS is similar to the AS, except the design is much less boxy, and the piezoelectric speaker disc is slightly visible through the grille. It uses a strobe similar to the RSS line.
The RSS strobe replaced the vertical LSM strobe series, since a horizontal strobe allows for greater coverage. They also introduced the RSSP, a retrofit plate which allows the easy addition of a strobe to older electromechanical horns and bells, such as the 3x series and 34T. Cooper Wheelock also produces several bells as well as speakers, synchronization modules, and voice evacuation products. Cooper Wheelock does not manufacture fire alarm control panels, smoke detectors, manual pull stations, or heat detectors. Many fire alarm control panels are compatible with Cooper Wheelock's line of notification appliances and other products.
In 2008, Wheelock discontinued the NS and introduced the ZNS and the ZRS horn/strobes and remote strobes. The ZNS and ZRS sounds the same as the NS. They also have the same circuitry. The ZNS and ZRS features a "snap-on" mounting system, which allows the base to be installed before the horn is attached. The ZNS and the ZRS mounting system didn't really catch on.
As of March 31, 2010, the ZNS, ZRS, and portions of the RSS and AS products have been discontinued and replaced by the Exceder series. The AS series is still being produced for outdoor applications.[4]
In 2013,Wheelock updated their Exceder LED series by introducing the industry's first LED notification appliances. The horn sounds the same as the original Exceder. At the same time, Wheelock made Exceder LED speaker strobes.[5]
Distribution Partners
The The Mircom Group of Companies is Cooper Wheelock's privately owned distribution partner.