Hip Hip Philadelphia

For the past few years, prior to ASIS, members of the media have assembled by invitation in the city where the convention would be held. This year, Philadelphia was home to a few editors for three days.

ASIS officials set up security tours and visits throughout the city that are beyond your wildest imagination. Most of the time, the city’s visitors and convention bureau staff participate, as well as the local ASIS chapter. Philadelphia is a very cool place.

If you haven’t made plans to attend ASIS 2012 in Philly, I urge you not only to participate in the conference and exhibits but also to take in the sights, sounds and smells in this marvelous metropolis.

“We are thrilled to welcome the ASIS convention to Philadelphia in September,” said Jack Ferguson, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau. “This convention is proof why the Pennsylvania Convention Center expansion was vital to Philadelphia’s economic development because without the expanded center, ASIS couldn’t meet here.”

Ferguson also said that ASIS alone will have a $50 million impact to the city during the week-long event. The bureau expects about 25,000 visitors and conference attendees, requiring 35,000 hotel rooms. That also includes a lot of Philly cheese steak sandwiches.

The City Center District (CCD), where the convention center stands, was designated a special district in 1991 to spur growth in the area, and the convention center recently completed a renovation of the facility to now include 528,000 square feet of space. It is a gorgeous facility.

The district is serious about security and has employed community service representatives who work alongside the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD), including shift roll calls. Together, they are making the downtown area cleaner and safer for what is becoming a burgeoning residential base. CCD has changed the physical footprint by adding sidewalks, landscaping and additional lighting.

You will see all of this and more during ASIS 2012.

Our tour and travels took our group to the Constitution Center, which is very near the convention center and well worth two hours of your time. It just happens to be the 225th anniversary of the Constitution, of which members of Congress and the White House should take note.

The center is frequently used for gatherings and dignitary visits. Security is handled by Sherman Hopkins, who always works hand-in-hand with such agencies as PPD, U.S. Marshals, Secret Service, private security and many more agency security teams.

“Our mission is to protect visitors and employees who might rent the facility for an event,” Hopkins said.

The facility is part of the National Park Service and has more than 100 cameras monitoring the facility and grounds at the command center.

Our tour continued to the Comcast Center. Both Comcast and the property owner, Liberty Property Trust, have onsite security directors, and both command centers are linked by a “Red Phone.” The 58-story office tower is part of the city skyline and was the first skyscraper to be built after 9/11.

Following the events of 9/11, building architects and engineers reworked their plans to make the building safer and more secure for workers. The building is built around a center core into which, if necessary, all workers in the building, about 4,000, could be shepherded for safety and security. The core is built with three-and-a-half foot thick concrete walls and is fireproofed. Engineers also ensured that the building has redundant power, fire alarms and communications. Because the building is used 24/7, eight annual drills are planned where people in the building experience a “what to do” in case of emergency.

Four other tours took us to the Philadelphia Children’s Hospital, the Wells Fargo Center, the U.S. Postal Facility and the Philadelphia Federal Reserve.

With more than 12,000 employees, the hospital sees more than 1.19 million outpatients per year, and it has installed IP video technology to ensure safety and security of staff, patients and visitors. The facility has 74 security officers on staff in a very open environment, along with 1,600 card readers in place and more than 630 cameras. Cameras are not near medical procedures, respecting the patient’s privacy. At the Wells Fargo Center, cameras are in place to help control outbound traffic after an event; inside the venue, there are 128 suites that have card access.

At the Federal Reserve Bank, security is ever present. Even though I was standing behind a Plexiglas partition, I’m still amazed that I was that close to $2 million. One of the takeaways I learned from security staff there was in a single comment, “bank robbers are generally not very smart people.”

The Philadelphia Post Office handles half of the worldwide mail, and that could be why security is on the front burner when the organization begins planning or retrofitting an existing facility. In fact, any building under construction must meet the government’s USPS RE-5 building and site security requirements.

The ASIS staff put together one heck of a security tour in Philadelphia, and I’m looking forward to the return in September.

This article originally appeared in the Security Products Magazine - July 2012 issue of Security Today.

Featured

  • Allegion, Comfort Technologies Implement Mobile Credentials at the Artisan Apartment Homes in Florida

    Artisan Apartment Homes, a luxury apartment complex in Dunedin, Florida, recently transitioned from mechanical keys to electronic locks and centralized system software with support from Allegion US, a leading provider of security solutions, technology and services, and Florida-based Comfort Technologies, which specializes in deploying multifamily access control, IoT devices and software management solutions. Read Now

  • Mall of America Deploys AI-Powered Analytics to Enhance Parking Intelligence

    Mall of America®, the largest shopping and entertainment complex in North America, announced an expansion of its ongoing partnership with Axis Communications to deploy cutting-edge car-counting video analytics across more than a dozen locations. With this expansion, Mall of America (MOA) has boosted operational efficiency, improved safety and security, and enabled more informed decision-making around employee scheduling and streamlining transportation for large events. Read Now

  • Security Industry Association Launches New “askSIA” AI Tool

    The Security Industry Association (SIA) has unveiled a brand-new SIA member benefit – askSIA, a conversational AI agent designed to help users get the most out of their SIA membership, easily access SIA resources and find the latest information on SIA’s training and courses, reports and publications, events, certification offerings and more. SIA members can easily find askSIA by visiting the SIA homepage or looking for the askSIA icon in the top left of webpages. Read Now

    • Industry Events
  • Industry Embraces Mobile Access, Biometrics and AI

    A combination of evolving workplace dynamics, technology innovation and new user expectations is changing how people enter and interact with physical spaces. Access control is at the heart of these changes. Combined with biometrics and AI, mobile access control has become increasingly crucial for deploying entry solutions that are seamless, secure and adaptive to user needs. Read Now

  • Sustainable Video Solution Delivered for Landmark City of London Office Development

    An advanced, end-to-end video solution from IDIS, with a focus on reducing waste and costs, has helped a major office development in the City of London align its security with sustainability objectives. Read Now

New Products

  • Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems, an industry-leading manufacturer of pedestrian and vehicle secure entrance control access systems, is pleased to announce the release of its groundbreaking V07 software. The V07 software update is designed specifically to address cybersecurity concerns and will ensure the integrity and confidentiality of Automatic Systems applications. With the new V07 software, updates will be delivered by means of an encrypted file.

  • QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    The latest Qualcomm® Vision Intelligence Platform offers next-generation smart camera IoT solutions to improve safety and security across enterprises, cities and spaces. The Vision Intelligence Platform was expanded in March 2022 with the introduction of the QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC), which delivers superior artificial intelligence (AI) inferencing at the edge.

  • ResponderLink

    ResponderLink

    Shooter Detection Systems (SDS), an Alarm.com company and a global leader in gunshot detection solutions, has introduced ResponderLink, a groundbreaking new 911 notification service for gunshot events. ResponderLink completes the circle from detection to 911 notification to first responder awareness, giving law enforcement enhanced situational intelligence they urgently need to save lives. Integrating SDS’s proven gunshot detection system with Noonlight’s SendPolice platform, ResponderLink is the first solution to automatically deliver real-time gunshot detection data to 911 call centers and first responders. When shots are detected, the 911 dispatching center, also known as the Public Safety Answering Point or PSAP, is contacted based on the gunfire location, enabling faster initiation of life-saving emergency protocols.