A DOZEN pieces of life-saving equipment have been installed throughout business parks and industrial estates in the Wee County.

Clacksfirst Business Improvement District (BID) invested in 12 automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and to make sure the devices can save lives, it also paid for training courses delivered by St Andrew’s First Aid.

The kit alone is not enough – effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is essential to keep oxygen flowing to the brain when a person collapses and stops breathing.

Delegates from a cross section of businesses and organisations from the BID took part and learnt how to manage critical situations, deliver CPR, operate the electronic devices and more.

Kevin Deighan, manager at Clacksfirst BID, said: “The BID is extremely focussed on delivering projects and services that help our member businesses and organisations to focus on what they do best.

“From a county-wide CCTV network, our weekly free recycling service, partnerships with - amongst others - the council and Police Scotland we aim to deliver holistic returns for our levy-paying members.

“So, basically, we are focussed on crime prevention, safety and security, environmental surroundings and now, with our AED investment, the wellbeing of our member’s employees and customers.”

The equipment has also been registered with the Scottish Ambulance Service, meaning their call handlers can direct people who dialled 999 or 112 to the nearest AED in the area.

Ambulance crews work hard to arrive to a cardiac arrest within their eight minute target time, but bystanders can play a crucial part in the chain of survival and their actions can make the difference between life and death.

For every minute CPR is not utilised, the probability of the casualty making a recovery drops by around 12.5 per cent.

However, if the techniques and equipment are put to good use within the first four minutes of an incident, the possibility of a good outcome can jump as high as 60 to 80 per cent, as the service’s Murray McEwan, national community resilience manager, told the Advertiser last week.

And thanks to the outstanding uptake of the course, the BID hopes to do more in the coming year.

Kevin added: “The response to the training course was incredible and we aim to roll out more in 2018. We have also registered all of our AED’s with the Scottish Ambulance Service which means that their call handlers can direct a 999 caller to the nearest AED in the BID area.”