Archive: January 2015
ESA's Chwat rates the regulation and legislation of interest in 2015
January 30, 2015Amy Canfield
ALEXANDRIA, Va.—From changes in the way broadband will be expanded to federal funding for school security technology to nursing home surveillance, there is plenty of legislation of interest to security installers on Capitol Hill, according to John Chwat, ESA's director of government relations.Broadband's use within the industry for monitoring and alarms is on a front burner. ESA was in the process of preparing comments for the FCC on impacts of a major regulatory initiative that includes changes...
UL certifies first cloud-based automation platform, SBN Cloud
January 28, 2015Spencer Ives
DALLAS—Innovative Business Software, a provider of central station software, says its SBN Cloud could reduce the amount of infrastructure needed for a UL-listed central station, cutting costs of building a new monitoring center by up to 75 percent.SBN Cloud became UL- listed on Jan. 15. This is the first cloud-based monitoring software certification of its kind, said UL engineering manager Steve Schmit.“By putting automation and receivers in the cloud [a central station could consist...
Defender's Boyce promoted to CEO
January 28, 2015Amy Canfield
INDIANAPOLIS—Jim Boyce has been promoted from president to president and CEO of Defender, a provider of residential security and home automation services and the largest ADT dealer in the country.Defender's founder and former CEO, David P. Lindsey, will now serve as chairman of the board.Boyce told Security Systems News he will focus on the company's continued growth, working off the momentum from last year when it serviced 200,000 accounts. He also will work to keep up and expand the company's...
Creating the perfect image
January 28, 2015Martha Entwistle
BOSTON—She's been creating imaging systems for more than 25 years, but Scallop Imaging CTO Ellen Cargill says doing this kind of work in the security field is different.Security video “needs to run flawlessly 24-7. The reliability [requirement in security] is very different from other fields,” Cargill told Security Systems News.“In security, imaging is information, and you want to maximize the information contained in the images,” she said. “That is different.”“You...
Entries sought for ESX Innovation Awards
January 28, 2015Martha Entwistle
Organizers of the Electronic Security Expo put out a call for entries for the newly named "ESX 2015 Innovation Awards." Entries are due April 1, 2015. Winners will be notified on April 15.
ESX will take place June 24-26 in Baltimore this year.
Formerly called the Maximum Impact Awards, the ESX 2015 Innovation Awards will be given in 15 categories, which include several sub-categories. New subcategories include: DIY Security, Secure Wireless Communication Technology, and Activity Sensing/Medicine...
And the Morepheus Award goes to …
January 28, 2015Amy Canfield
REDONDO BEACH, Calif.—The Oscars are right around the corner. Forget about Best Actress or Best Supporting Actor, who should receive the Morepheus Award?
Moore Protection, a home security company based here that serves high-end clients, i.e., stars and others show biz VIPS, soon will present its annual Morepheus Award to a film that accurately provides “a good depiction of security technology,” according to president Don Moore.
It's all in good fun, but promoting the award...
Miami to install more cameras
January 28, 2015SSN Staff
MIAMI—The City of Miami plans to install more cameras around the city to help police fight crime, according to WSVN.
There are 25 cameras active now, with 250 to be installed in the next month, according to the report. The Miami police chief said the plan is to have 2,500 cameras in the system. All cameras will connect back to the Miami police station. The city plans to connect private cameras as well.
"What it provides is more eyes on the community and more eyes on individuals that might be...
Ten top integrators on tech trends
January 28, 2015Martha Entwistle
YARMOUTH, Maine—What technology trends should systems integrators be paying attention to in 2015 and why? Security Systems News posed that question to 10 top integrators based in cities across the country, from Scarborough, Maine to San Diego and many cities in between.While there were several recurring trends—among them: cybersecurity's impact on physical security, smartphones and security, cloud services, fuller integration and predictive capabilities of security systems—these...
TriStar looks toward second anniversary, new goals
January 28, 2015Spencer Ives
About a year ago, Tim Le Blanc president of TriStar monitoring, spoke with Security Systems News about the company's first year. Now, the third-party monitoring center central with its 10,000-square-foot facility in Corona, Calif., is reaching its second anniversary and LeBlanc talked about the significant, but “very realistic,” goals the company has for its next year.
Nearing the two-year mark, the company is approaching 30,000 accounts, according to Le Blanc. “At the end of the...
Five Questions: Melissa Hansen
January 27, 2015Amy Canfield
Melissa Hansen, the director of training for COPS Monitoring in Williamstown, N.J., started her career with the wholesale monitoring provider as a dispatcher 19 years ago. She now oversees COPS' complete training program across its six central stations, including educating new employees, CSAA Five Diamond certification, proprietary training for dispatchers, customer service and disaster preparedness instruction. She also is one of this year's Security System News' 20 under 40 winners. In early January,...