HOUSTON—Waste Management is looking to significantly grow its third-party monitoring operation, Waste Management Security Services, or WM SSI. Begun in 2006, it has grown slowly over the last three years. Now, according to Sarah Conley, director, physical security operations for WM, the company, based here, is ready to expand its client base of intrusion and fire monitoring, environmental monitoring and access control customers.

“We are a dedicated security department for our own customers, but we also have an offering that is of interest to other companies, as well,” Conley said. “And we feel that that is unique. We offer third-party services and frankly we want to grow this business … We’ve made a lot of progress in the last year or so.”

WM SSI is a full-service security organization that provides a wide range of monitoring services from the Waste Management Security Operations Center. It’s the same nerve center that has monitored hundreds of Waste Management facilities nationwide without interruption since 2002. In an effort to grow its security business, Conley said the company is taking certain steps, including researching the development of a dealer program, and rolling out a video surveillance solution powered by SureView Systems’ Immix platform that supports both fixed and mobile systems.

“We are in the initial stages of [developing a dealer program]. We’re looking at those kind of arrangements … But to take it to the next level, to leverage WM’s sales strength, we’re partnering with our integrators and the WM national accounts group,” Conley said. “Also, last summer, we purchased a small company in Houston. It provides mobile security—its initial target was the construction industry, but we also think it has a lot of applications in other industrial settings like ports, parking lots, special events, law enforcement—we bought this company and it’s now part of our program. We’re now providing mobile video monitoring using SureView. We call it WM Security Onsite.”

Matt Krebs, executive vice president for SureView, is excited about the opportunity to work with WM SSI, and feels Cam-V, the video surveillance solution, is groundbreaking. “This is a very unique type of offering they’re putting out in the field. They’re able to do real time, mobile video monitoring because of our software,” Krebs said. “They have a really great operation down there, and everybody in that station is just top notch. Most of them are ex-FBI … They started the group for corporate espionage and counter intelligence—the trash business can be very competitive—so it branched out from there. We’re thrilled to be working with them.”

WM SSI’s security service areas include fire and burglar alarm monitoring, video management (technical support and monitoring), lone worker and environmental condition monitoring, access control, and security system project management. WM SSI is UL-certified and FM-approved, is a CSAA Five Diamond certified central station, and is also associated with the NBFAA and SIA.