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Jackson makes four for HSM

Jackson makes four for HSM Post-Honeywell, company continues to jazz things up with acquisitions

JUPITER, Fla.--HSM's Oct. 20 acquisition of Jackson Burglar Alarm of Denver is its fourth in five months. The sale brings 2,200 accounts to HSM. Terms of the deal were not released. "This purchase helps us increase our density in a market that we're happy to be in. It gives us a much more solid base," said Tim Whall, president and chief operating officer of HSM. JBA was founded in 1998 by Stewart Jackson, who owns several businesses in the area and whose family has been in the security market in Colorado for generations. Jackson, who is also a jazz musician, said he decided to sell to concentrate on his other businesses and his musical interests. Jackson Burglar Alarm's accounts are 40-percent residential and 60-percent commercial. Its customers include "everyone from the apartment on the corner to the Department of Defense," said Jackson. The company will assume the HSM name within 180 days. Up until a year-and-one-half ago, HSM was a subsidiary of Honeywell. HSM spent close to a year shoring up internal operations after separating from Honeywell. With that accomplished, HSM moved into acquisition mode this spring. Each of the four acquisitions filled a different void for HSM, Whall said. The Jackson acquisition is very simply a quality operation, with a solid customer base and low attrition. "I would be happy to acquire 25 more companies like Jackson if we could find them," he said. In May, HSM acquired 700 commercial accounts from ACS Security in Los Angeles. In July HSM made two acquisitions: Sylvester Security Alarms, a full-service alarm company in Santa Maria, Calif., and National Alarm Pro of Trumbell, Conn., which has a large presence in the retail market. Acquisitions are likely to continue. HSM has more than 175,000 customers, and 50 offices that serve more than 80 of the country's largest metropolitan markets, but "We are still undersized compared to what our infrastructure would dictate," Whall said.

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