Panel Raises the Stakes, Siemens Combines Security and Fire

While our own Security Products magazine celebrated 15 years of publishing, we joined in the fun of the 15th anniversary of the IP camera, hosting an interesting question and answer session with six key security bosses on Wednesday at ASIS.

We had a great, enthusiastic lineup of panelists: Eric Fullerton, Milestone Systems; Fredrik Nilsson, Axis Communications; Bill Taylor, Panasonic Network Security Systems; Mike McCann, Sony; Lee Caswell, Pivot3; and Bud Broomhead, Intransa.

I’ll tell you right now, the speakers are polished professionals, and those people who attended were treated to a performance extraordinaire. Probably more interesting to me is watching these security pros willingly give of their time one-on-one to help the individual equally, if not more, than the masses.

I tip my Texas Longhorn’s baseball cap to these gentlemen for their time and expertise. Their time is valuable, and I appreciate their willingness to spend a couple hours with Security Products magazine staff and those who attended the 15th anniversary roundtable discussion.

Every year, and every tradeshow, I’m asked what I’ve seen that is new and/or exciting. It’s hard to put my finger on something at that moment because there is an abundance of information given over three days of tradeshow.

Here are a couple of thoughts that you will see on our website or in print because of this tradeshow. From my experience, I will be chasing more information on Panasonic solutions dealing with retail security. If you missed the presentation in their booth, we’ll be talking about it more in the months to come.

I visited with Ralph Maniscalco from Honeywell, and was quite intrigued with the company’s exploration of the connected building. What this means is that Honeywell is not only looking at the security of a building, but also viable opportunities in energy management. In other words, the security director will likely be working hand-in-hand with the building manager to not only make things more secure, but also eco-friendly.

“There’s no reason systems can’t talk to each other,” Maniscalco said.

In other news, Siemens announced the formation of its own Fire Safety and Security Solutions division.

The goal is to become the preferred partner of cities, businesses and organizations in solving life safety, security and emergency management needs with intelligent and efficient solutions. My congratulations to my friend Rob Hile, who becomes the senior director of enterprise solutions. I’ve known Rob a long time, and he is truly a security guru.

I’ve got a handful of flash drives to review with press releases and new products. I’m sure I’ll be sharing more news in coming e-news products or in my homepage column each week. Please stay tuned and we’ll talk about more of ASIS soon.

About the Author

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

Featured

  • From Surveillance to Intelligence

    Years ago, it would have been significantly more expensive to run an analytic like that — requiring a custom-built solution with burdensome infrastructure demands — but modern edge devices have made it accessible to everyone. It also saves time, which is a critical factor if a missing child is involved. Video compression technology has played a critical role as well. Over the years, significant advancements have been made in video coding standards — including H.263, MPEG formats, and H.264—alongside compression optimization technologies developed by IP video manufacturers to improve efficiency without sacrificing quality. The open-source AV1 codec developed by the Alliance for Open Media—a consortium including Google, Netflix, Microsoft, Amazon and others — is already the preferred decoder for cloud-based applications, and is quickly becoming the standard for video compression of all types. Read Now

  • Cost: Reactive vs. Proactive Security

    Security breaches often happen despite the availability of tools to prevent them. To combat this problem, the industry is shifting from reactive correction to proactive protection. This article will examine why so many security leaders have realized they must “lead before the breach” – not after. Read Now

  • Achieving Clear Audio

    In today’s ever-changing world of security and risk management, effective communication via an intercom and door entry communication system is a critical communication tool to keep a facility’s staff, visitors and vendors safe. Read Now

  • Beyond Apps: Access Control for Today’s Residents

    The modern resident lives in an app-saturated world. From banking to grocery delivery, fitness tracking to ridesharing, nearly every service demands another download. But when it comes to accessing the place you live, most people do not want to clutter their phone with yet another app, especially if its only purpose is to open a door. Read Now

  • Survey: 48 Percent of Worshippers Feel Less Safe Attending In-Person Services

    Almost half (48%) of those who attend religious services say they feel less safe attending in-person due to rising acts of violence at places of worship. In fact, 39% report these safety concerns have led them to change how often they attend in-person services, according to new research from Verkada conducted online by The Harris Poll among 1,123 U.S. adults who attend a religious service or event at least once a month. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • 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.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”

  • Unified VMS

    AxxonSoft introduces version 2.0 of the Axxon One VMS. The new release features integrations with various physical security systems, making Axxon One a unified VMS. Other enhancements include new AI video analytics and intelligent search functions, hardened cybersecurity, usability and performance improvements, and expanded cloud capabilities