MINNEAPOLIS – Honeywell announces a contract with Ware County School District – which serves almost 6,500 students in the Waycross, Ga. area – to implement Honeywell Instant Alert for Schools. The Web-based notification service will allow the district to quickly reach parents with emergency or school news. In addition, Honeywell will install its Digital Video Manager (DVM), a video management and surveillance system that will increase visibility into activities at the county’s schools.

“In today’s sensitive security environment, we have to be more prepared around safety and security issues,” said Dr. Joseph Barrow, superintendent, Ware County School District. “Honeywell was a perfect choice because its technology gives the district a proven method to inform our parents and staff, and we had a previous relationship with the company.”

Ware County faces unique communication challenges because of its location in Georgia, a state that is vulnerable to severe tropical storms forming in both the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. An hour from the coast, the district is often used as a receiving ground for evacuees during a hurricane warning – an agreement the district maintains with the Georgia Emergency Management Association. Instant Alert, used by nearly 1,000 schools nationwide, gives Ware County the ability to reach thousands of people within minutes, and notify the community of a potential shutdown when a hurricane strikes and evacuees need a place to stay.

To use the service, which broadcasts messages to phones, cell phones, pagers, e-mail or PDAs, a representative from the district initiates an alert via the Internet or phone. Once it’s finished, the message is instantly broadcast to all relevant contact points. Parents can update their contact information online and specify how they prefer to be reached – e-mail for routine communication, and e-mail and cell phone for emergency messages, for example.

Instant Alert will replace the phone trees the district currently uses for emergency notification. In addition, Ware County plans to use the service to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of routine communications (currently handled by auto dialers), such as notifying parents when a bus is running late.

As part of the contract, Honeywell also will install a closed-circuit television (CCTV) system and cameras at the district’s two middle schools, as well as upgrade existing cameras at the high school. Powered by DVM and Honeywell Enterprise Buildings Integrator (EBI), the CCTV system allows school personnel to view, record, play back and store security video clips. As a result, the district will have a better line of sight into activities in and around its buildings.

Along with managing the surveillance system, EBI will allow the district to monitor and control heating ventilation and air conditioning components in the buildings from a single point. This will help streamline operations and reduce energy costs.

“New technologies can help schools meet a number of the challenges, from upgrading security to improving communication with parents,” said Joe Puishys, president of Honeywell Building Solutions. “With offerings like DVM and Instant Alert, we’re able to help districts keep students safe, and provide an environment where teachers and administrators can focus on what’s truly important – educating students.”

For more information about Honeywell’s offerings for schools, visit www.honeywell.com/buildingsolutions.

Honeywell International is a $31 billion diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes and industry; automotive products; turbochargers; and specialty materials. Based in Morris Township, N.J., Honeywell’s shares are traded on the New York, London, Chicago and Pacific Stock Exchanges. It is one of the 30 stocks that make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is also a component of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index. For additional information, please visit www.honeywell.com. Honeywell Building Solutions is part of the Honeywell Automation and Control Solutions business group, a global leader in providing product and service solutions that improve efficiency and profitability, support regulatory compliance, and maintain safe, comfortable environments in homes, buildings and industry. For more information about Building Solutions, access www.honeywell.com/buildingsolutions.

This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other than statements of fact, that address activities, events or developments that we or our management intend, expect, project, believe or anticipate will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s assumptions and assessments in light of past experience and trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other relevant factors. They are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results, developments and business decisions may differ from those envisaged by our forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements are also subject to risks and uncertainties, which can affect our performance in both the near- and long-term. We identify the principal risks and uncertainties that affect our performance in our Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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Honeywell press release

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