Archive: October 2010

AUSTIN, Texas—Interoperability and open standards are the keys to making the “connected home” a reality, say executives from uControl, a home security and automation provider. This week they announced the formation of “OpenSMA,” a consortium of service and product providers who are committed to “complete compatibility and integration across all products and services.” “We want to give service providers the best of breed of everything, make it a free...

I expected to learn lots of new things when I started writing about the security industry, but I didn't expect to start looking at mid-term elections from a security angle. But a recent comment from Ackerman Security Systems CEO Jim Callahan about that Atlanta-based company's new branch in Beltsville, Md., which opened in May to serve customers in the Washington, D.C. area, has made me do just that. Callahan said Washington's revolving election cycle is one reason that Ackerman, one of the nation's...

ALBANY, N.Y.—Security alarm investors Timothy McGinn and David Smith—whom the SEC charged earlier this year with bilking investors of at least $80 million in a Ponzi scheme—are reportedly involved in a new investment venture. Their new business, Security Alarm Credit, has come under the SEC's radar. “We are aware of it and have alerted the court to it,” Andrew Calamari, associate director of the SEC's New York Regional Office, said Oct. 27. “But at the moment,...

I've had lots of news about 2GIG Technologies coming across my desk in the past week or so. In case you don't know 2GIG, they're a newish (about three years old now) manufacturer of residential and home management solutions, notably its GO!Control panel. Just yesterday I spoke to Mary Miller at the Z-Wave Alliance, which is an open consortium of companies that wants to establish Z-Wave as the standard in wireless home control. Miller announced that 2GIG is its newest principal member. 2GIG president...

ATLANTA—At a time when many security companies are branching out into energy management and other building controls, McKenney's, a major mechanical contracting company here, is doing the opposite—branching out into security. McKenney's hired industry veteran Phil Mosley, who's worked in business development and sales roles for ADT, Security Link and Johnson Controls, to develop and run the company's security department in November of 2009. One year into his tenure with McKenney's, the...

WEST ALLIS, Wis.—Marsha Kopan, former executive director of the Illinois Electronic Security Association, is the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation that began when the West Allis Police arrested her on Sept. 24. Police brought Kopan in on check fraud and forgery charges stemming from work she did with a non-security association. Upon further investigation into Kopan's business ties, authorities contacted the IESA, and suggested they take a look at their accounts. Kopan's paper and...

ATLANTA—In a deal that brings detection and assessment capabilities together, night vision camera manufacturer Vumii announced Oct. 26 that it had been acquired by Israel-based Opgal Optronics, a maker of thermal imaging systems and infrared cameras. The two privately held companies declined to release terms of the agreement. Randall Foster, Vumii CEO, told Security Systems News the two companies have worked together for close to four years and the deal is the “result of working together....

NAPERVILLE, Ill.—Stanley Convergent Security Solutions this year took its innovative employee fire-training initiative and made it more employee-friendly and cost-effective, company executives told Security Systems News in October. Stanley's On Fire initiative to provide in-house training for its employees in fire alarms and code safety made the news when it began in 2008. This year, enhancements made the program even better, according to Felix Gonzales, VP of strategic initiatives & business...

Going through my email this morning, I noticed a little further discussion of video at Ken Kirschenbaum's newsletter. I've done a lot of writing about video. Specifically, I've written a lot about verification and companies like G4S, Westec, Stealth Monitoring and Viewpoint CRM who go beyond simple verification. A reader named John asked a simple question: "Hi Ken, Whom do you recommend for off site video storage and monitoring, including live look-ins? John" To which Ken responded, "I invited...

Hmm. It's interesting to see that David L. Smith and Timothy M. McGinn, two security alarm industry investors who made headlines this spring after the SEC charged them with bilking investors in a Ponzi scheme, are back in the news--with a new investment venture. Smith and McGinn have started a new investment company and have been trying to raise more than $500,000 to loan a small Georgia-based alarm company $425,000 at an annual interest rate of 19.62 percent, according to the Times Union, a newspaper...