Hard Work, Lots of Colour

There are several key differences between tradeshows in the United States and the United Kingdom. Spelling is one. But here on Day 1 at IFSEC, traffic at the show is a bit sparse. That could be why IFSEC is held four days straight.

Days 1 and 4 are for warm up and cool off, but the two days in between are serious business. There are also fire, and health and safety tradeshows collocated at the NEC Birmingham. Thousands of participants have made their way to the hall floors.

The first day of IFSEC was a great day for me as I have been able to visit with manufacturers and exhibitors without wading through the crowds. Today will be different with the torrent of attendees.

What I’ve noticed here today is that the show floor is smaller than last year, and booth sizes, in general, are smaller than those at ISC West or ASIS. The volume of business, however, is at a frenzied pace.

Pivot3 has introduced its vBank appliance, which addresses the growing influence of IT in video surveillance environments. This adds resources to support more virtual servers, solid state disk drives to extend storage performance across general business applications and bundles VMware vCenter Server technologies to simplify management.

SALTO Systems has released a number of access control systems at IFSEC, including the SALTO global electronic opening cylinder and an RFID designer lock that can be opened with a near-field communications-equipped smart phone.

I’m looking forward to learning more about security in the United Kingdom today, and how security is changing the lives of our neighbors on the other side of the Atlantic. It’s been an interesting tradeshow thus far, in fact, last night after dinner in the home town of Shakespeare, Stratford-upon-Avon; I bumped into Ed Davis, co-founder and vice president of marketing with AFI.

I also met up with Tony Byerly and Felix Gonzalez of Stanley Convergent Security Systems who manage part of their U.S.-based business in the United Kingdom. It’s always good to see friendly faces from home. Home, of course, being the United States.

I’m looking forward to the events of the day and reporting more for tomorrow.

About the Author

Ralph C. Jensen is the Publisher/Editor in chief of Security Today magazine.

Featured

  • 2025 Security LeadHER Conference Program Announced

    ASIS International and the Security Industry Association (SIA) – the leading membership associations for the security industry – have announced details for the 2025 Security LeadHER conference, a special event dedicated to advancing, connecting and empowering women in the security profession. The third annual Security LeadHER conference will be held Monday, June 9 – Tuesday, June 10, 2025, at the Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan. This carefully crafted program represents a comprehensive professional development opportunity for women in security this year. To view the full lineup at this year’s event, please visit securityleadher.org. Read Now

    • Industry Events

  • Report: 82 Percent of Phishing Emails Used AI

    KnowBe4, the world-renowned cybersecurity platform that comprehensively addresses human risk management, today launched its Phishing Threat Trend Report, detailing key trends, new data, and threat intelligence insights surrounding phishing threats targeting organizations at the start of 2025. Read Now

  • NRF Supports Federal Bill to Thwart Retail Crime

    The National Retail Federation recently announced its support for the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act of 2025. The act was introduced by Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., and Representative Dave Joyce, R-Ohio. Read Now

  • ISC West 2025 Brings Almost 29,000 Industry Professionals to Las Vegas

    ISC West 2025, organized by RX and in collaboration with the Security Industry Association, concluded at the Venetian Expo in Las Vegas last week. The nation’s leading comprehensive and converged security event attracted nearly 29,000 industry professionals and left a lasting impression on the global security community. Over five action-packed days, ISC West welcomed more than 19,000 attendees and featured 750 exhibiting brands. Read Now

    • Industry Events
    • ISC West

  • Tradeshow Work Can Be Fun

    While at ISC West last week, I ran into numerous friends and associates all of which was a pleasant experience. The first question always seemed to be, “How many does this make for you?” Read Now

    • Industry Events
    • ISC West
Most   Popular

New Products

  • FEP GameChanger

    FEP GameChanger

    Paige Datacom Solutions Introduces Important and Innovative Cabling Products GameChanger Cable, a proven and patented solution that significantly exceeds the reach of traditional category cable will now have a FEP/FEP construction.

  • Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden Door Controls is pleased to announce that, in response to soaring customer demand, it has expanded its range of ValueWave™ no-touch switches to include a narrow (slimline) version with manual override. This override button is designed to provide additional assurance that the request to exit switch will open a door, even if the no-touch sensor fails to operate. This new slimline switch also features a heavy gauge stainless steel faceplate, a red/green illuminated light ring, and is IP65 rated, making it ideal for indoor or outdoor use as part of an automatic door or access control system. ValueWave™ no-touch switches are designed for easy installation and trouble-free service in high traffic applications. In addition to this narrow version, the CM-221 & CM-222 Series switches are available in a range of other models with single and double gang heavy-gauge stainless steel faceplates and include illuminated light rings.

  • 4K Video Decoder

    3xLOGIC’s VH-DECODER-4K is perfect for use in organizations of all sizes in diverse vertical sectors such as retail, leisure and hospitality, education and commercial premises.