Archive: June 2003

June 26, 2003 PLAINVILLE, Conn. - In its second acquisition this month, through its Industrial Systems Division, GE has agreed to buy Kampro Technology, a Taipei, Taiwan-based maker of image sensing technologies and plans to incorporate the company's products into GE's surveillance offerings, GE security officials said Wednesday. The privately held company, whose portfolio includes ultra-low light, ultra-high sensitive, high-resolution and harsh environment technologies, has been a supplier to...

June 26, 2003 BURBANK, Calif. - Radio and television production firm Phoenix Media Group in late June changed its name and company focus and was working on plans to enter the access control market. With its acquisition of TecScan International Inc., Phoenix will assume the name of that company, a firm that is working to market and sell biometric physical and logical access control solutions. The company is also looking to partner with OEM companies that produce biometrics products, according to...

June 26, 2003 HELSINGBORG, Sweden - Securitas AB, a security services company, based here, acquired Armored Motor Services of America in mid-June for $32 million. AMSA, Victor, N.Y., is a cash-handling services company operating in eight Northeast states. AMSA, which has annual sales of $55 million, joins Securitas' cash-handling division, with projected annual sales of $508 million. Securitas' other U.S. operations include Pinkerton's and Burns International Services Corp.

June 26, 2003 VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Infrared camera supplier Extreme CCTV has forged a business partnership with a Quebec City company that will add to Extreme CCTV's presence in the night vision video surveillance products, company officials said Tuesday. In tandem with a $7 million investment in Obzerv Technologies by Extreme CCTV, a commercial partnership between the two companies could include the licensing of Obzerv's night vision technologies, joint development of products to be...

June 19, 2003 l SAN ANTONIO, Texas - Less than a year after doubling the size of its monitoring center, United Central Control is expanding again. The company is in the process of adding another 2,300 square feet to its existing 4,000-square-foot monitoring center, driven mainly by the addition of a new customer service department, according to Mark Matlock, vice president of sales and marketing for UCC. Customer service representatives will handle incoming calls, freeing UCC’s dispatchers...

June 19, 2003 IRVINE, Calif. - GE Interlogix announced this week that it has completed the acquisition of well-known Monitoring Automation Systems, known to many simply as MAS, in a deal that’s being called a surprise by some. "It’s absolutely raising eyebrows," said John Mack, president of USBX Advisory Services, a consulting firm. Up until now, GE’s acquisitions in the security market have focused on the hardware side. This deal, said Mack, marks its first software company...

June 19, 2003 MIAMI, Fla. - Security products company Rokonet has relocated its New York office here, a move company officials say will help it better serve the Unite States and Latin American market. Plans call for the office to include sales, marketing and technical support for all Americas and support Rokonet’s network of distributors. "We have decided to relocate our offices to Miami and join forces with our Latin operation as we believe that together we could provide better service...

June 19, 2003 DALLAS - A new report by Parks Associates shows that consumers are beginning warm up to the idea of extending data networks beyond simple PC connectivity to turn such systems into multimedia hubs. The report, the Status of Digital Networks and Applications, shows the results of a survey of more than 1,000 Internet households. The results show that consumers are using home computer and electronic platforms into media centers for storage, aggregation and streaming of audio and video...

June 12, 2003 SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - A bill granting Illinois townships the same rights as other municipalities regarding the imposition of fines for false fire alarms is awaiting the signature of Gov. Rod Blagojevich here. House Bill 116 amends the Fire Protection District Act to allow township boards "of any town providing fire protection service (to) impose reasonable civil penalties on individuals who repeatedly cause false fire alarms." Introduced in the Illinois House by Rep. Michael K. Smith,...

June 12, 2003 VANCOUVER, B. C. - Surveillance equipment manufacturer Extreme CCTV has been recognized as Canada’s second fastest growing company. The company was given the distinction in the June issue of PROFIT Magazine, which annually tracks the top 100 fastest growing companies in the country. According to Extreme CCTV, the company earned the ranking by recording five years of growth of 12,735 percent, growing from $137,505 in sales in 1997 to more than $17.6 million in 2002. Already...