Industry Perspective
A conversation with Jack Fernandes
- By Security Products Staff
- Feb 05, 2007
AMERICAN Fibertek has always prided itself on building products
based on innovation. And even today, that continues to be the norm, but
what has taken a turn for the greater is a partnership with global
suppliers and manufacturers to provide core competency in network and
software-driven technologies. We talked to AFI President and CEO Jack
Fernandes about the trend.
Q. The industry continues to undergo both organizational and technological changes. How is this affecting your business?
A. The security industry is in a significant transitory
period, as digital technologies have become mainstream in more areas of
security system deployment -- most notably video surveillance and
access control. To aid in this migration, transmission products and
technologies are now being employed to create control capabilities on a
networked platform. The rapid development of digital and network system
technologies and products is affecting equipment suppliers, system
designers, integrators and dealers in different ways.
From a manufacturer's perspective, the race is on to see who can
develop new products and systems that encompass digital and networking
technologies and establish market share with proof of performance.
Consequently, we are seeing more and more companies that traditionally
conducted R&D and new product development autonomously now
partnering with equipment manufacturers and software developers with
expertise in previously unrelated categories such as networking. This
has accelerated companies' abilities to bring new and more versatile
solutions to market in even shorter development cycles. American
Fibertek is no exception. We continue to build relationships with
companies around the world that have core competencies lie in
networking and software-driven technologies.
From the perspective of security system designers, integrators and
dealers, the learning curve is steeper than ever, as they need to
acclimate themselves with new systems parameters encompassing
software-driven digital recording, system control and networked
transmission systems. Education from manufacturers and suppliers is
critical to remain competitive in a market that has dramatically
shifted from product-centric solutions to system-centric solutions.
As American Fibertek pioneers new network system solutions, such as
our new Video Network Enterprise Solution (V'nes) we will continue to
provide our reseller partners and customers with education and training
on how to apply and take full advantage of the system's capabilities.
Q. What trends do you see in the security industry and how is AFI addressing them?
A. The most prevalent trend in the security industry involves
systems integration and the ability to monitor and control these
systems over a network. There are numerous inherent advantages to this,
including advanced system performance and functionality, greater
installation versatility and virtually unlimited remote capabilities
using numerous transmission mediums such as LAN/WANs, wireless and even
the Internet.
All of these were influences driving the development of the V'nes
system -- an integrated and standardized network transmission solution
designed specifically for the security marketplace with a unique, open
path to integrate IP and analog systems operation. V'nes is comprised
of several product series designed to accommodate increased network
bandwidth and traffic required for comprehensive security systems
operation on an IP platform. The system addresses the different set-up
and operational needs of security and IT directors to provide easy
system integration and balance between personnel responsible for
security applications and the IP transmission backbone. Additionally,
V'nes features an open path to deliver extensive network capabilities.
It allows the integration of IP products from various manufacturers
with any selection of V'nes components and software.
Q. How is AFI positioning itself in this changing technology and business model climate?
A. We are actively repositioning American Fibertek -- now
simply referred to as AFI -- as the industry's only comprehensive
source for security-specific transmission solutions. The introduction
of V'nes signals a significant evolution for American Fibertek and we
believe the industry as a whole. It is a transition to a more advanced
and comprehensive transmission solution that integrates technologies
previously relegated to parallel industries such as IT. As the security
industry continues to evolve, it continues to assimilate more of the
characteristics of IT networking such as providing a common platform
for hardware and software integration. This is the heart of V'nes.
However, we also recognize the continued need for high-performance
transmission solutions for analog systems. With this in mind, the
introduction of V'nes and all that surrounds it has not clouded our
perception of who we are and where we came from. As a result, AFI will
continue to develop and expand its core point-to-point, fiber-optics
products while actively pursuing innovative ways to enhance
transmission technologies. By expanding our solutions set to include
V'nes, along with our proven fiber line of analog and digital
point-to-point transmission devices, AFI is in a unique position in the
security industry.
Q. What challenges do you foresee for AFI moving forward?
A. The development of new network solutions involves
input and cooperation of many different companies working together with
our new product development and engineering team. This requires a great
deal of coordination behind this effort to ensure that all parties
involved are in tune with the latest developments affecting overall
operational parameters of new products in development. We have been
fortunate to partner with some of the biggest names in the IT
marketplace throughout the development of V'nes. We will continue to
work with existing partners and cultivate new relationships to develop
new network solutions. Although a challenge, we see this as a
tremendous growth opportunity for the company.
Q. What does the future hold for AFI?
A. We believe the new direction is on track from a business
perspective as V'nes and the core fiber product lines continue to
evolve concurrently. From a technology perspective, AFI now offers the
security industry a comprehensive range of transmission solutions for
any system platform, as well as new and more efficient means of
implementing a network infrastructure with unique capabilities. The
diversity of transmission solutions AFI now offers with new feature
capabilities and functionality provides an opportunity for continued
growth and additional, new business development.
This article originally appeared in the February 2007 issue of Security Products, pg. 44.