Recent developments have polarised the industry into what can be characterised as two separate tiers – a lower tier based on supplying and installing smaller systems with a relatively simple specification, and an upper tier that is capable of installing and exploiting the top end complex systems at the leading edge of the industry.
The two-tier model
Looking first at the lower tier of the industry, we identify three key trends:
- The ease of installation of the latest entry-level "plug and play" devices. The new generation of devices at the lower end can indeed be considered plug and play in terms of their technical installation; the level of skill and experience required for connection and sometimes set-up are ever decreasing.
- The high number of first time users with little experience of CCTV procurement. Many users are now installing simple security camera systems for the first time, for example in retail or commercial premises. These buyers have little or no experience of the pitfalls of purchase, and how to ensure that the system they buy is fit for purpose and the best value buy over the full life cycle.
- Strong price competition. Despite falling prices across the industry, (reflecting the general trend of components becoming less expensive year by year), price competition remains very strong, sometimes to an excessive degree when compared to other purchasing considerations such as long term support and maintenance.
Now let us characterise the higher tier of the industry, and its trends:
- An increasing number of very high function products that require high skill levels to install. At the other end of the spectrum to "plug and play" products, there are a range of top tier products that – because of their sophistication and number of options – require high skill to install correctly. If incorrectly set up, these products may provide basic system functionality, but cannot deliver the top-level value-for-money performance of which the product is capable.
- A rapid and fundamental recent change to the basic technology, with digital PC based technology becoming the norm. The inexorable march of the PC and IP (Internet Protocol) communications means that the basic reference points of the industry are changing. All installations and maintenance of modern digital products and digital communications requires knowledge of a technology that was not part of the industry until some five years ago. Over this time, most of the developments have been in the hardware and comms areas. We are now seeing the start of the impact of software on developments in the industry that will dominate innovation in the coming years. For example, pattern matching software that underlies such applications as number plate recognition and iris recognition.
- Sophisticated users with good purchasing practices based on specifications and operational requirements. The higher tier users tend to have security specialists purchasing their systems, with a good understanding of their operational requirements and the potential snags in the purchasing, installation, and use of the system.
- As with the lower tier user, the upper tier is still strongly price competitive, but with delivery, service and support requirements also being major components of the buying decision. More sophisticated purchasers, with experience of the costs of running a system over its full life cycle, are aware of the potential pitfall of very high maintenance costs, or unacceptable system down-times, that may result from an initial under investment in the system.
To characterise the industry in these two tiers is of course a simplification. There will be some companies that do not fit the model, such as specialist companies in niche markets delivering high function systems to inexperienced users, and this limitation of the model is accepted.
There is also an implication that companies in the upper tier are in some way "better" than those in the lower tier, which is incorrect. Let us be very clear that good companies – companies that are delivering well designed, well maintained, robust, and cost effective systems – exist across the industry in both tiers and will continue to do so.
So, what's the problem?
There is no inherent problem in this two-tier structure, and it is indeed the way many industries can be viewed. However, when companies used to operating in the lower tier try to move onto upper tier projects without the skills and practices to do so, problems inevitably arise. The gap they face, in making this move, can be so great as to justify the phrase "crossing the chasm".
All installations and maintenance of modern digital products requires knowledge of a technology that was not part of the industry five years ago
The problem happens in two steps. It starts with an inexperienced user wanting to jump into upper tier systems. In itself, this is not a problem – provided the installer has all the skills to design, install, and maintain the system. However, the inexperienced user, unaware of the pitfalls can select the installer who, though entirely competent in lower tier work, lacks the skills for the upper level system. Then, predictably, the installation can be fraught with difficulties from design through installation and on to long-term maintenance.
What's the solution?
The solution requires an increase in skill levels across both parties involved in the system, both client and installer, and this means training. In particular, three different types of training are needed. First, there is the training of the user company staff in the technical aspects of purchasing. After that, there are two issues to address with installers – design training, because so many system problems start at the design stage, and then training in the installation and set up of advanced systems.
Purchaser training – The problem for inexperienced purchasers starts with the process of defining the requirement. Too many purchasers, and installers, start with a very informal and imprecise statement of what the system is required to do, and then jump rapidly to an equipment spec, identifying camera types, numbers, and locations. The fundamental purpose of the system, which involves identifying the risks to be addressed and reduced by the system and specifying the operational requirement, is at best skimmed over and at worst missed.
Training alone will not bring inexperienced purchasers up to speed in drawing up an operational requirement – but it can give them the skills to select installers qualified to lead them through the process.
It is very easy to make the mistake of seeing the installation of a security system as a purely technical problem, simply the challenge of connecting and powering up a series of devices so that an image from a specific camera appears on a specific screen, which is then recorded by a VCR or DVR. New entrants to the industry from other technical backgrounds, such as IT, can be particularly prone to this view. The system must work to this extent, of course, but there is more to a well-designed system. The key test is, are the images fit for the purpose? Are both the live and the recorded images of adequate quality, frequency, and content to fully address the risks identified in the operational requirement, against a formal definition of adequate (using for example rotakin tests).
This is not an issue of hardware competence, but of understanding that the output of the system is the image, and that a system's image quality in all its aspects should be the basis of acceptance testing against the operational requirement.
Badly configured systems can pass a cursory acceptance test, yet fail to operate adequately in the longer term
Installation training – just as some installers fail to understand the importance of image, others lack the skills in the new technologies, especially digital technology. Traditional companies that have failed to update staff skills can be caught out by the specifics of digital technology. Sometimes this can be clear at the start of the technical installation, resulting in overspend in setting up the system. However, there is also the problem that badly configured systems can pass a cursory acceptance test, yet fail to operate adequately in the longer term.
Installers accustomed to plugging in a 12v camera with a pre-assembled lens may be unaware that such cameras will have problems of independent synchronisation, and will not work well on matrix screens, due to problems of rolling of the new image, leading to user fatigue and recording failures.
Without sync, the VCR recording will suffer a re-set period to catch up with the new sync to the new camera, and it may be that the first time this becomes known is when the tape is viewed after an incident. The multiplexers and matrix controllers at the heart of modern systems with telemetry, or command and control, are complex technologies requiring skill and knowledge to install competently. Less than that is short-changing the client.
A look to the future
There are two possible scenarios for the future, and which one turns out to be true depends on how seriously the industry takes the need for training, and specifically how seriously it is taken by the companies who are trying to cross the chasm.
Scenario 1 sees the situation getting worse before it gets better. A few high profile implementation failures hit the press. The industry gets some general knocking copy. The industry then has to respond formally, either through its existing NSI and SSAIB bodies, or perhaps a new one is established. Memberships or approved lists are created, qualifications are reviewed, and the industry suffers a twelve-month setback to accommodate this process.
Scenario 2 is the good news scenario. Recognising the serious training issues we face, companies across the entire industry – installers, suppliers, and end users – regularly review the training needs of their staff, draw up training plans and budget for their fulfilment, and then meet those plans. Under this scenario, the industry will take current and future develop-ments in its stride, and, most importantly, the users and society in general will get the full benefit of all the exciting and powerful technology on offer now and in the future.
Source
Security Installer
Postscript
Ian Fowler is Technical Training Manager at Norbain SD. Tel: +44 (0) 118 944 01234 or email Ian.fowler@norbain.co.uk
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