04/09/2014
SSN Staff
LAS VEGAS—ISC West 2014 was big, and by all accounts, a successful show. Organizers reported that the event attracted more than 26,000 industry professionals and more than “1,000 exhibiting companies and brands.”
New this year was lots of talk about 4K, and like the past couple of years, there was continued talk of mobility, cloud, wireless tech, and home automation/security. During booth visits and social events, it seems everyone wanted to chat a bit about new players. New players come in two forms. For those involved with residential security, the new players are the cablecos and telecoms. For those who do systems integration, the new players are the IT integrators who are keeping a very close eye on physical security.
Below is our a roundup of visits paid and events attended by SSN and SDN editors: Martha Entwistle, Tess Nacelewicz, Leif Kothe and Amy Canfield.
Martha’s round up
On the first day, I heard from several exhibitors that they saw more people in the first half of today than they normally see in two days. I even heard that from one access control provider who is located in the more far flung reaches of the hall.
I started the day at the Axis Communications breakfast. I don’t really love events before the event, but the Axis breakfast/press conference proves to be worthwhile year after year. The theme this year was 4. Yup, you guessed it, Axis introduced its 4k line, the P14 Series. Fredrik Nilsson Axis GM Americas touted the P14 28E. It’s better, he said, because: it follows the ITU standard (4k res in 30 fps); it’s easy to install; the lens fits the solution ‘perfectly’ (IR corrected 8MP lens0; correct depth of field and image clarity; and , it’s $999 and “ready for outdoors.”
Axis folks talked about other “4s” as well. After asking if people would be running the annual Security 5K race tomorrow, Nilsson said: “some of us will wish it’s a 4k tomorrow.” Axis co-founder Martin Gren gave a brief (and really amusing) history of Axis and the company’s “culture of innovation.” He noted that 2014 is the 30th anniversary of Axis, and mentioned that the original name of the company was G&K Firmware. “Isn’t that a cool name?” he said.
We saw a demo of the P14 28E. Cool, clear picture. And we also saw a demo of Axis’ (4th generation) camera station.
Next up, was the BRS Labs press conference, where Ray Davis spoke about the company’s new Saas solution. This means that BRS Labs is bringing “the same technology that the US military, several cities and some countries” use to commercial customers. The company wants its customers to include not only the “Googles, Amazons and FedExes” but small and medium size businesses. It also has its eye on the residential market.
Davis called the offering a “pre-crime systems” that is better than an alert or alarm that only goes off once a criminal is on premises.
BRS Labs will be making a concerted effort to woo integrators, dealers and residential installers and will launch a full channel partner program this summer.
At Pivot3, Ron Nash spoke about VSTAC edge product “a first class solutions for a customer with multiple locations” and how the company’s VDI product line can help make mobile access secure.
Scan Source has a brand new booth, dedicated to its new “security on demand,” an educational and information portal that the distribution company launched today. For all current and (for a time)prospective clients, the portal features short videos with content that’s relevant to resellers.
I spoke to Joe Morgan at FLIR was the company’s new low cost thermal bullet camera ($499) which the company expects to “open doors to more vertical markets.”
Most of the afternoon was spent at the SSN Media studio doing video interviews with readers. I spoke to:
Joe Liguori, partner at ACT, an integration company (and Security-Net member) based in New Jersey. Ligouri is planning to grow his company from about a $13m to $20m in revenue over the next few years. He talked about the training-intensive culture at ACT and how that’s necessary to customer service, internal efficiency, and also to the planned rapid growth the company is looking for.
So, one of my favorite activities at ISC West is generally HID’s Denis Hebert’s lunchtime trends talk. He generally draws a great crowd and generates some good discussion. Well, HID had alternate plans this year, but Hebert agreed to come talk to ssnTVnews about trends. The most important, this year, he said, is convergence and secured identity solutions. We talked about HID’s decision to leverage Bluetooth LE (in addition to NFC) with its mobile solutions. Finally he talked about the complexity of solutions for integrators—and what HID is doing to help its integrator partners with sales and education.
Holly Tsourides, CEO of Matrix Systems, talked about the integration arm of Matrix, “Xentry.” She believes the newly named business unit has great potential to increase the services it sells to existing customers and to bring on new customers.
G4S Technology president Sam Belbina talked about providing the “total solution” to customers and how G4S is in a unique position to do just that because its sister companies offer monitoring and guard solutions.
Eric Yunag, CEO of Dakota Security, talked about what he’s seeing on and what he’s not seeing on the show floor. Incremental technology feature improvements he sees a lot of. That can be interesting, he said, but what he wants to see from manufacturers is the showcasing of security outcomes. He also talked about his frustration with standards and how this industry needs to feel a little more urgency about standards. IT companies—“have the potential to exert a technical advantage … and exploit a significant weakness [of security companies], he said, unless this industry gets up to speed on standards.
I talked some more on this topic with Brent Franklin, president of Unlimited Technology. IT companies have their eye on the security space, he said. All integration companies need to understand that, he said. We also talked about Franklin’s plans to grow Unlimited Technology’s revenues 30 percent in 2014. It added 15 staff in 2013 and plans to add 16 this year.
At the Brivo Labs press conference Lee Odess talked about the company’s launch of its SAM API (social access management), which allows developers to create applications that allow people to use their social identities for access control to places and identities. He also demo’ed OKDoor which allows a person to use their social media identity to send a message when they arrive at a destination.
Among the receptions I attended tonight: DVTel, alarm.com, Affiliated Monitoring, Samsung, and my personal favorite Women’s Security Council. The WSC threw another great event to honor the 2014 Women of the Year. Read about that here. [http://www.securitysystemsnews.com/article/wsc-ann...
Day two started with the fifth annual Security 5K, a benefit race for the wonderful organization, Mission 500. More than 700 people registered for the race and we raised $90,000 to help save lives.
We had a very special guest at the Security 5K events this year, someone who knows well the good work of Mission 500. Before the race, and also at the Security 5K race reception we heard from Dr. Diego Alejandro Garcia, a pediatrician who was sponsored at the age of 3 through World Vision/Mission 500. Today he is Director of the Colombian Ministry of Health Vaccination Program..
He spoke about his experience with Mission 500 and what a real impact it has on young children.
I don’t think I was the only one in the crowd who found Diego’s remarks—and presence at the even this year—very moving
The Security 5k was founded by United Publications, publishers of Security Systems News and Security Director News, and we’re the organizing sponsor of the event. Other sponsors are Reed Exhibitions, proprietors of ISC Expos; and Mission 500. Core sponsors of the 2014 Mission 500 5K/2K are Alarm.com, Altronix Corporation, Axis Communications, Ditek, HID Global, Honeywell, LRG Marketing Communications, Pelco by Schneider Electric, and Safety Technology International. Additional sponsors include Cops Monitoring, Digital Monitoring Products (DMP), Samsung, Brivo, Freeman, Monitronics, Qolsys, Bolide Technology Group, Security Industry Association, and PSA Security Network.
Find out more about this wonderful organization here. http://mission500.org/2014/
After the race I had 30 minutes to get back to the show floor where I got to participate (with Mission 500’s George Fletcher, Diego Garcia, Charlene Foglio) in the opening ceremony for ISC West Day 2.
I met with Jay Hauhn of TycoIS and we talked about the hosted video cloud service that TycoIS is planning to launch in June. TycoIS is working with Next Level Security Systems on project. I asked Jay how he feels about ADT getting into larger commercial security projects (greater than 7,500 square feet after its non-compete with TycoIS expires in September.) “Just another competitor,” Hauhn said.
John Romanowich of Sightlogix filled me in on the company’s newest camera—it’s faster, more accurate and the price has come way down. He said it “brings accurate outdoor security to the mass market.” And because the power requirements are so low, it can be wireless and run on solar. He noted that it's the trenching for wiring that costs money and necessitates design work.
Steve Gorski of MOBOTIX said he’s talking to lots of integrators about the company’s new VMS software, which he called “user-friendly, icon-driven, Apple-ish.”
At Speco Technologies, Laura Mastroberti and Jim Pascale showed me the new IP version of Speco’s mini-cams. I also saw their a recreation of their H2H training center they have in their booth this year.
I spoke to Pierre Racz Genetec. They’re showing Bosch’s 4K camera and he called Genetec’s collaboration with Bosch on the 4k cameras proof that "the best of breed is the way to go.”
Had an interesting chat with Brian Schmode at Avigilon. We were talking about how much work the company does with IT resellers. He said it’s the end user that drives which reseller Avigilon uses, and said the company is definitely seeing more end users working with IT resellers.
Off the show floor I caught up with Marty Guay and Paul Barratta at the Stanley Security suite. We talked about the new version of Stanley’s eSuite customer portal.
I missed the AMAG A&E event this year, so when I spoke to Matt Barnette, we caught up on goings-on at that event. He also reported that activity picking up with Symmetry SR.
Paul Muto showed me a very cool demo of ery cool demo of @ICRealtime 's new IC 720 camera and software.
The last day of ISC West 2014 was the only day I did not run into Mark Sandler of SPP Advisors several times on the show floor and at receptions. He was everywhere. Wonder if there are some PERS deals in the works?
Tess’ Round up
Leif’s Round up
Amy’s Round up
I met with some very nice NICE folks first thing in the morning. Bob Grado of the Denver Regional Transportation District discussed his experience moving to NICE’s mobile video recording solution for its new bus fleet. The solution will significantly enhance RTD’s investigative efficiency when complaints are filed, he said. RTD approached NICE and a few other companies about its needs, but it was NICE that came through in the end, Grado said. William Lafave, NICE regional VP, major accounts, security group, said it was a win-win for the end-user and NICE. The solution was custom-built for RTD, but can easily be adapted to other end users.
Honeywell Fire Systems product manager William Brosig and public relations manager Beth Welch demonstrated how the mass communication RTZM Module is a good fit for smaller end users, such as churches, office buildings, warehouses and even schools. Tying into any brand of fire alarm system, it can send out emergency notifications through a facility’s emergency command center system via any phone. It is easy to use, with simple options and pre-programmed recordings and can be transmitted only to affected zones.
At the 3VR booth, Don Wright, director/physical security for the Carolinas Health Care System, discussed his long history with the company and the fact that when he wanted better use of his network assets it was 3VR that came through. “We have a sweet, symbiotic relationship,” he said. With 3,000 or so cameras for his many facilities, that was too many for real-time viewing. The new search features make his forensic investigations easier, and the on-board notifications of problems with specific cameras make his life easier, he said.
Sentry View System’s president and COO Justin Thompson said his power hybrid charge controller can handle up to three inputs, such as solar, wind power and generator, for example. The system, designed for power and surveillance needs at remote sites, has been successful for U.S.-Mexico border patrols, during the pope’s visit to Brazil, and for Nigerians who wanted to be able to worship as they wished despite terrorist attacks against them. It also is beneficial to critical infrastructure facilities, such as water utilities, which have a lot at stake, often in very far-flung locations.
March Networks’ Dan Cremins, director of product management, with a background of 21 years in the security industry, said that talking to end users “is the best way to learn.” He cited a number of examples, including janitors at a school who were dealing with graffiti. Those janitors turned out to be his end users, he said. He wouldn’t have known that without good communication with his customers. March Network’s goal is to reduce the time people in the field have to go out and check out what’s going on.
At SRI International, “Iris on the Move” has not only stopped time-and-attendance fraud at construction sites, it has helped at worldwide airports, at sporting events, U.S. financial institutions and at data centers, said Mark Clifton, VP, Products & Services Division and general manager. The system can work in all lighting environments and is more effective than fingerprint systems, he said.
Solink’s CEO Michael Matta is all about making better sense of videos and the Big Data they produce. “There’s lots of data coming in from multiple points,” he says. Proactive surveillance can “create a story of events,” to benefit the end user. He’s looking to take actionable decision-making to banking and retail customers with multiple locations with “smaller footprint spaces.”
I also had the delightful opportunity to meet up with three of Security Director News’ previous “20 under 40” winners. Patrick Wood of John Deere, Mike Wiley of Switch and Ralph Nerette of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute all stopped by our “Meet the Editors” event to check in and say hello. It’s always great to see these young pros again and find out what they’re up to. Such smart people!
I capped off the night with the Women’s Security Council reception to honor this year’s award winners. I had a great conversation with Silvia Fraser, manager of corporate security for the City of Toronto, about the challenges she faces each and every day. The WSC also had some exciting news to relay at the event: a new, sponsored scholarship for women in the security realm. Stay tuned for more about that.
After an early start to the day to see the runners off at the Security 5K, which raised $90,000 for Mission 500's disadvantaged children (yay!), it was back to the Sands where I conducted four on-camera interviews with four end users who had lots of good info to share. The videos will be posted soon on SDN, but for now here are a few takeaways from them.
Marilyn Hollier, director of security services for the University of Michigan Hospitals and Health Centers—and president of IAHSS—talked about “tapping into the talent of your team.” Security directors working under tight budgets certainly can’t do it all, she said, so she encourages all of her employees to get bachelor’s degrees and even master’s and as many professional certifications as they can. Employees are her resources, she says, and by showing you value their professional growth those resources become even more valuable. And when—or if—she retires? She'll know she has a good succession plan in place.
Phil Lisk, IT and security director for the Bergen County, N.J., Sheriff’s Dept., said the convergence of IT and physical security is not a new phenomenon for him. It’s necessary and makes his job easier. He also discussed LPR and how with the right privacy controls in place—and New Jersey’s are strict, he said—it can beneficially serve law enforcement.
Fifth Third Bank’s Mike Neugebauer, VP and senior manager for safety and security, said changes in the brick-and-mortar banking industry have led to numerous challenges and opportunities for security. With more and more customers opting for automated services, branches are shrinking in size and have fewer employees. Where before two people might have opened a branch in the morning, now just one does. Protecting one employee can sometimes be more difficult than protecting two. Teller lines get smaller, so cameras may have to be repositioned. Neugebauer and I also discussed the recent rash of ATM thefts, the kind where thieves rip them out of the ground, and the use of sensors and GPS to combat that crime.
Ralph Nerette, manager of security for Dana Farber Cancer Institute, had interesting insights on the “green” movement in security equipment. He said he’s noticed more manufacturers promoting the energy-efficiency of their products and whether they were made with some recycled products, for example. He likes that. Taking that kind of information to the c-suite shows you’re part of the team, he said. Nerette is currently busy with numerous upgrades to his visitor management system and more.
Back on the floor, I met with Brivo’s Lee Odess, VP marketing, about Randivoo Mobile, Brivo’s new visitor management system. Security has been all about secure vs. secure, he said, “but now it’s about convenience.” Social access management through mobile devices is the wave of the future, he said. At a Starbucks and need to use the restroom? Randivoo can help you with that. Waiting in line for the key is no longer needed. If you arrive for a meeting at an office building, Randivoo can be pre-programmed to allow you acccess to the building and your specific meeting room, only. Very cutting-edge stuff.
Peter Robinski, EVP of Bosch, discussed the company’s work with end users to ensure they get what the need. In this world of IP, he said, users have many choices, many of them complex. Sometimes, too many parameters are just that, too many. One product had more than 600 parameters and end-user testing showed those could be easily cut to less than 100 to benefit the customer’s ease of use, he said. I was impressed with that and heard a number of times at the show how companies are working with end-users to accommodate their needs.
Michael Irvin, director of marketing, 3XLogic, talked me through a demo of Vigil Trends, a customizable single dashboard system for business intelligence. Unlike other business intelligence providers, Vigil Trends incorporates video data into the equation, delivering the data necessary for users to make informed, effective and timely decisions about their business, their assets and their employees, he said. Drilldowns allow users to focus in on suspect transactions at POS and on other LP needs as well as operations and marketing information.
After the awards ceremony for the race—complete with a performance by the most talented, cutest little boy group I have ever seen—I visited with Genetec at a reception at Tao. Nice to catch up with the folks I met there a few months ago at the company’s press summit in Montreal.
This year’s show could be the “breakout” point for video enabling that provides security along with diverse business intelligence, said Milestone System’s Karl Erik Traberg, head of corporate communications and business development. “We’ll look back and say, ‘That’s when it took off.’ “Why? The mindset is changing, and security pros are seeing the benefits of business intelligence. Security directors have been dealing with tight budgets for years, but now they can be the leaders in having conversations about business value. Last year's show was all about thermal imaging cameras and the new lower prices, he said—and biometrics, I might add—but this year's ISC West had a big focus on business intelligence.
In fact, video combined with access control was, indeed, one of the recurring themes I heard at the show, along with, importantly, manufacturers listening more to end users’ needs and working with them to develop those win-win solutions. And that’s a good thing.
Security directors should start working on their video enabling strategies, Daniel O’Connell, managing director for Definition Branding and Marketing, added at my meet-up with Milestone. With video enabling being the wave of the future, planning now will allow them to define their own professional futures.
Biometric technology is now an option for the little guy, according to Kirsten Pflomm, VP of marketing for Zwipe. The fingerprint-reading access control card can allow small businesses, or larger ones for that matter, to go to biometrics overnight. No new readers are needed. Maybe only five people at a small hospital need access to highly secure areas. Zwipe insures the person with the card is the person assigned to the card.
At MOOG, Chris Lindenau, global director of sales and marketing for sensor and surveillance systems, showed me the company’s new explosion-proof, high-def cameras. The cameras are designed for environments where explosion hazards arise from dangerous gases or vapors, such as petroleum plants, oil and gas rigs, mining companies and fertilizer plants. A pressure-regulating system protects the camera from gas and vapors, which could ignite an explosion. I’ve never had occasion to think of that kind of situation before, and Lindenau’s explanation to me was intriguing. I hope to follow up.
Assa Abloy’s Mark Duato, senior director for integration solutions, walked me through some “future-proof” lock/access control solutions suitable for campuses, the banking/financial sector and health care facilities and others. Great stuff.
And what a great, busy show!