Access to profit

It hardly needs stating that the new mood of increased security within the UK has opened up additional business opportunities for the security installation market. It is not just the raised threat of terrorism, but the recognition by public and private sector organisations alike that they are under threat: high tech businesses from industrial espionage; hospitals from people stealing drugs; airports from terrorists etc, and the list continues to grow. The ease with which undercover journalists have made their way into sensitive locations has come as a long overdue wake up call for many.

Organisations that would have "made do" with a single receptionist or solitary security guard in days gone by are now looking for a cost effective way to ensure that unwelcome intruders are kept out.

Access control is the perfect option. It is simple to operate, unobtrusive and (when operated properly) does not interfere with the day-to-day activities of the business. We know from our many hospital installations, for instance, that proximity readers keep the wrong people out while allowing pressured doctors and nurses to move rapidly from ward to ward unimpeded.

Invariably, staff recognise access control for what it is: a simple way to enhance security and their own safety. It is also highly affordable and can act as a platform for other aspects of business and building management, including monitoring staff hours, managing assets, and providing real time information on who and what is in a building - vital in an emergency.

Total control

Using PC-based administration systems to control the supply of cards gives total command to an organisation's security personnel, and affords them precise control of what level of staff can access which areas - and at what time. If a card is lost, (or when a card is lost) it is simply invalidated and a new one can be issued.

This has become a profitable area of work for installers, which has increased substantially in recent years, and holds out the prospect for long-term business relationships. Many installers who use our Bewator security equipment tell us that initial installations are far less significant to them in total financial terms than the ongoing orders for upgrades and extensions.

And this is my point: to emphasise that these contracts provide installers with access to profitable, long term business, but only if they are undertaken with an eye to the future requirements of the client as well as those that are current.

For example, at any one time, while some clients are installing access control equipment for the first time, even more of them are upgrading existing solutions with more precise control at the 'sensitive' areas, such as integration of video images with the card transactions and alarm inputs.

The more 'technically aware' are using their existing data communications infrastructure with the latest IP based access control and video equipment to add remote site monitoring.

Separate markets

In many ways these are two separate markets: the "clean sheet" and the "upgrade". But both need treating carefully if you seek to establish a long-term relationship with the client. And the most critical factor here is future proofing.

For example, access control systems are now being used to provide high level security across the UK (and beyond), drawn from the dozens of different contracts for a wide variety of applications created each week by installers using our equipment, including:

• Hospitals, health care and nursing accommodation
• Finance and banking
• Multi-tenanted residential apartments
• Food processing
• Software and IT companies
• Research laboratories
• Universities and halls of residence
• Sports facilities
• Tourist attractions
• Airports and port authorities

The opportunities are virtually limitless, but the critical choice that every installer has to make is: which equipment should I specify? Several key criteria will always take priority.

1 Familiarity is always high on the list. If you have used one brand before and it has performed, the natural inclination is to use it again.

2 Reputation for reliability. No installer wants to go back to undertake repairs within the warranty period and erode the profit made.

3 Technology. How does one security solution perform against another? This is often quite a tricky issue as new technology is moving so quickly that product specifications are changing all the time. Today's state of the art is tomorrow's Betamax.

My advice is always to specify a product that can handle the task with room to spare. our products at Bewator, for example, have been designed to be forwards compatible and scaleable - starting small and adding more as you need it - for both quantity and functionality, with little in the way of component redundancy.

4 Integration. How well will a product stand up when you try to combine it with existing third party hardware or when the client wants to add new technology?

System 'integration' has become the key security technology buzzword in recent years, but which of the manufacturers are providing real 'plug and play' solutions to meet the client and installer needs?

Step by step

The Bewator product development programme, for example, has two steps. The first is an integrated common application platform. The software graphical user interface forms the basis for a fully integrated modular security system which can control and monitor access, video, and intruder detection and provide a fire 'warning' or early warning across single or multiple site applications.

The second step moves us away from the "proprietary" nature of control controller hardware. We are moving to a modular platform of control equipment and this approach will provide for a solution that is totally scaleable and future-proof whilst enabling installers to employ a "building block" approach to implementing a bespoke solution to the client's needs from standardised components.

In practical terms, this means that any company that wants to start with a simple security system controlling a few doors and cameras can, later, add levels of security functionality, additional remote sites with monitoring and management control as they grow and as the need for security increases.

In reality, it would seem logical that some time later, when the client wishes to upgrade their system or add more functionality, the process ought to be straightforward. However, in practice there are very few equipment manufacturers that allow for this level of flexibility without massive re-engineering of the infrastructure or redundancy of part or all of the existing hardware. This is an important point that needs careful consideration at the point of making a recommendation or writing the requirements specification.

Looking to the future

This new 'integrated common application platform' from Bewator (INCA) will also anticipate the move to new technology as well as catering for existing equipment. Clients will be able to manage their security system through a combination of existing and new technology; analogue or digital; IP or not; networked or hard wired and LAN, WAN or Internet communication. Bewator clients will benefit from the flexibility this solution provides as well as our economies of scale via this 'standard' graphical user interface (GUI) that will give reduced life cycle costs while utilising state of the art technology without the expense of a bespoke and unique 'traditional' integrated system solution.

We all know that technology is moving quickly in our sector but there is now no reason to get left behind. One thing is for sure, the security industry is an exciting place to be - after all, it is an industry with a real future. To be part of that future, we will need to make sure that the equipment we supply for you to install is also forward looking.

Access in practice

An example of a recent successful application is one that took place at Lord's cricket ground, the home of cricket, at St John's Wood in London.

Security at the ground is a major concern, especially at key events. The ground has had a CCTV system in operation for some years, but last year the cricket ground decided to install a completely new and ultramodern system in time for the 2005 season.

Elstree-based Parker Security was selected to specify and install a system for them. Parker Security has many years experience installing quality security equipment for the commercial and private sectors across the UK and in Northern Europe.

"The brief was one of the larger ones we have dealt with recently," said Parker Security's managing director Kevin Parker. "There was a total of 90 cameras around the ground, complete with monitoring and recording equipment, and some 17 access control points.

"We specified Bewator equipment because they could provide a totally integrated, high quality security system."

Parker Security installed Bewator's Granta security management system providing access control, and a Bewator Eventys RMC (Remote Monitoring Centre), together with 90 cameras to handle the CCTV end of the contract.

The installation

The main benefit of Bewator's Granta system is that it enables users to connect multiple PC workstations to provide distributed monitoring and control of the system across any number of separate sites - including remote locations, via TCP/IP technology. This is particularly important for the installation at Lord's as it allows security monitoring at a number of peripheral points in the ground as well as centrally.

Images from the 90 cameras are processed through the Bewator Visilynx 3i - a powerful, integrated video matrix system - and then fed into the Eventys Digital Video Monitoring System (DVMS). This is an advanced digital and audio recorder/server - effectively a hard disk recorder.

The Granta software integrates with the Eventys DVR platform to allow for event-triggered video recordings. Bewator Eventys has enormous storage capacity (900Gb) and can view real time and recorded footage simultaneously, as well as search events to pinpoint an incident and synchronise all the cameras to the time of an incident and watch it unfold. Its other features include counter monitor function - ideal for managing security for large public access areas, such as recording entrances to public stadiums.

The 17 access points, which have all been fitted with proximity readers to control entry, are linked to an administration PC and supported with cameras placed in key locations. The client produces its own entry cards - up to several hundred being current at any one time - which are individually programmed to only allow the bearer access to specified parts of the ground, at specified times.

Results

"The client was looking for a flexible system that provided discrete but highly effective security," says Parker, "and one which could be totally integrated to enable the whole system to be controlled from a single point.

"The Bewator platform allowed us to do that - including integrating another make of camera.

"What we also now have is a set up that can be expanded whenever we wish, and upgraded as new technology options arrive."

Feature-rich Range

Designed for smaller applications, yet rich in features, the Standalone Two Door Access Controller from Inner Range is a powerful access control solution in an economical package.

It can control and monitor two doors with one reader, or one door with two readers. A wide range of Wiegand card formats are supported. Each reader and door can be controlled independently. Up to 100 users with full names can be catered for by the Controller.

For each door, there are inputs for door reed, fire alarm (smoke and/or fire), and entry/exit buttons. Heavy duty lock relays are provided for each door, in addition to Door Forced/DOTL and fire alarm outputs. Separate timers for door unlock time and DOTL time are provided for each door.

The Standalone Two Door Access Controller also features a 64 event, time stamped, rolling review buffer and six 'Time Zones', of which four are programmable. It comes with free management software incorporating full review log functionality.

Reader Service No 0132

New reader is Magic

Deister Electronic claims its new proxMagic is "the world's first multi-technology access control reader".

"ProxMagic brings a new dimension to access control, being the world's first multi-frequency, multi-modulation and multi-protocol reader," the company says. "It reads proven HID 125KHz and state of the art Mifare, ISO 15693 and iClass cards, and many other card formats at both 125KHz and 13.56MHz, on a single reader platform, providing the powerful capability for users to mix and match multiple card technologies in a single system.

"This enables organisations to realise the long-awaited advantages of smart cards, upgrading to more powerful technology on a phased basis, whilst minimising the system configuration and retaining all existing cards."

Deister says that cost of ownership is also reduced through using proxMagic. "On the principle that 'cards may come and go but readers are forever', the capital cost of the multi-technology readers is quickly outweighed by the ongoing saving of reduced support costs and lower cost cards, as users are no longer locked into a single source of supply," Deister says.

Reader Service No 133

To the power of X1

BPT Security Systems has launched the X1 two wire video entry system, designed to allow transmission of all data signals and power supply on a single non-polarised twisted pair.

Signals include telephone, audio, video - colour and mono - and controls - door-lock release, stair light, auxiliary service, call-timer, self-connection to entry panel, and sequential switching between entry panels - all of which can be transferred without any loss of quality.

"Installers will find that fitting a non-polarised twisted pair is much easier than traditional wiring systems, especially when running cable through already congested ducts," BPT says. "Immediate financial returns will be realised, as problematic installations where it is difficult to estimate an installation time are diminished due to simplicity of installation. The final configuration of the installation is particularly straightforward and convenient thanks to the coding and self-learning procedure, which reduces the need to set jumper or dip-switches." The X1 can be used to manage up to four entrances, 100 calls and up to eight receivers activated by the same call. This can be expanded to cater for multi-block sites with the simple addition of a BPT control unit.

Reader Service No 134

Superbug zapper

Door and window control manufacturer GEZE UK has launched a new product which it claims could help to prevent the spread of 'superbugs' such as MRSA.

The product, called Airwave, is a 'wave at' sensor which can be mounted on or behind glass and has the advantage of not needing to be touched to open an automatic door. this makes it fully hygienic and ideal for use in hospitals and food preparation areas where infections and germs can spread quickly through physical contact.

It can operate at a range of up to 10cm, and offers reliable operation, durable 'wipe clean' plates and the high visibility 'white light' LED has 11 custom settings offering significant versatility to the user.

It also provides high impact visual and audible signals in order for it to be suitable for almost any environment and comply with DDA regulations.

It is available in a range of specifications, so it can be tailored for any project. The system can include custom print designs and include corporate logos, and is available in a variety of shapes and dimensions. It is also available in a battery powered version, allowing multiple units to be situated in close proximity without interference.

Reader Service No 135

Version therapy

TDSi has released Version 2.1 of the PC software for both MicroGarde 1 (one door/two reader) and Microgarde 2 (two door/four reader) controllers.

The company says the new software delivers low total cost of ownership by offering a highly flexible and easily configurable platform. This is done by increasing the potential number of connected controllers to 200 across 32 ports.

Version 2.1 incorporates informative real-time event, retrieval and reporting capabilities, enabling the user to save time on administration. The retrieved information can now be used more easily and readily by other applications, such as time and attendance packages.

Power failure events and the operation of the controller tamper switch are now also shown in the event list.