Archive: December 2017

YARMOUTH, Maine—Now that we are in the second half of December, it seems like a natural time to look back over the year and some of the common topics from the monitoring side of the industry in 2017. The Monitoring Association had some notable developments this year, including changing its name from CSAA in March—a change made to better portray the focus of the organization. It was great to attend TMA's Annual Meeting this year. You can read an overview of that event here. At...

On the Move Systems recently announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary Robotic Assistance Devices has executed a strategic agreement to supply its intelligent robotic solutions through Allied Universal, a leading facility services company and one of the largest security forces in North America with more than 150,000 employees. The robots will be leveraged to help Allied Universal customers supplement existing security professionals and improve safety, increase situational awareness and drive efficiency...

CARLSBAD and PETALUMA, Calif.—Nortek Security & Control (NSC) and Core Brands yesterday announced a merger.Mike O'Neal leads the new combined company, operating under the NSC brand, as its president. The companies are currently being integrated, O'Neal told Security Systems News, and the process should be mostly finalized by the end of the year.Nortek Security & Control provides smart connected devices and systems for residential, security, access control, and digital health markets. The company's...

YARMOUTH, Maine—ADT recently finalized its acquisition of DATASHIELD, which will operate under the newly formed brand ADT Cybersecurity. In Security Systems News' most recent poll, traditional security companies see a space in the cybersecurity world.“Cyber is merely another dimension of security. The security professional who chooses to ignore a dimension will quickly find themselves on the wrong end of an attack and likely unemployed,” Nick Weber, security manager with Grant County...

Peter Goldring has been the chief operating officer for ADR Security since October 2015, and added on the executive vice president role at the beginning of 2017. “I literally grew up in this space. My family was in the business from 1923,” he said. Security Systems News caught up with Goldring in early November to talk about his home security system and how he has it configured.What kind of system do you have?I have a DMP XR150N. � My philosophy is: you have to live with your technology....

SCHAUMBURG, Ill.—Convergint Technologies announced this week the acquisition of Maryland-based Genesis Security Systems, making it 14 acquisitions in 24 months for the global systems integration company based here.Founded in 2002, Genesis Security Systems employs 75 colleagues at its headquarters in Germantown, Md., and serves a mid-Atlantic base of high-profile clients that includes AstraZeneca, Exelon, FEMA, National Public Radio, the International Monetary Fund, PEPCO, and the World Bank...

NEW HAVEN, Conn.—For a company like ASSA ABLOY, it would be easy to rest on its laurels as a leader in the lock and intrusion business for nearly 25 years. But that is not the case with this international company that was formed in 1994 through the merger of ASSA in Sweden and Abloy in Finland. Since then, the company has grown from a regional entity into an international group with approximately 47,000 employees and annual sales of more than $8 billion.In addition to the continued innovations...

FRESNO, Calif.—The Partnership for Priority Verified Alarm Response is working to release updated best practices on video and audio verified alarms and put out new verification training modules for operators in the coming year.PPVAR recently opened the standards for feedback and is looking to publish the new versions in Q1 2018. “We tried to put some framework around how verification should be handled, since we have greater technologies and things now,” Joey Rao-Russell, PPVAR's...

No one can refute the impact that Amazon's Echo device has had in the home—if I had a nickel for every time someone yelled out the name Alexa in the home, I would be on a warm beach somewhere instead of trying to keep the cold drafts at bay in my office here is chilly Maine. But I digress. With the success that Amazon has had with Alexa in the home, it is not surprising to see the company try to move into the office with the introduction of Alexa for Business, which was announced earlier this...

DALLAS—MONI Smart Security on Dec. 11 announced a renewed relationship with Skyline Smart Home Protection, based out of Los Angeles. Starting on Jan. 1, 2018, Skyline will begin selling exclusively for MONI. “We're really excited about it and it really comes at a good time for us—to start off the year with a great new partner,” Jeff Gardner, CEO of MONI, told Security Systems News. “One of the things that drives our revenue growth at our company is the strength of our...