Bidvest Noonan appoints new director of operations for security solutions

Bidvest Noonan has appointed Sarah Cork as director of operations for security solutions. The appointment follows the Bidvest Noonan Group’s recent investment in a new operating structure that saw the development of separate leadership, operations and support teams for its businesses in Great Britain.

Cork’s appointment serves to strengthen Bidvest Noonan’s senior management team following a period of exceptional growth, which has seen the Group’s annual revenue exceed £700 million.

Cork brings a wealth of experience in the security industry to the role having previously served in senior security positions for many of the UK’s largest retail brands. Her substantial expertise and experience will enable the business to enhance the service and value delivered for myriad clients in key sectors ranging from corporate through to retail.

Sarah Cork

Commenting on the appointment, Bidvest Noonan’s managing director Eddie Ingram explained: “I’m delighted to welcome Sarah to our team. This appointment is an important investment in our business. Sarah’s expertise and passion for providing first-class security to clients will help us to pursue our growth strategy and drive innovation.”

Speaking about her new role, Sarah Cork told Security Matters: “This is a very exciting time to be part of Bidvest Noonan. I’m pleased to have joined such a skilled and talented team, and I’m very much looking forward to working with my new colleagues. I know that our team has all the skills and resources needed to achieve our ambitious plans. On a personal level, I want to help Bidvest Noonan to continue building on its success.”

*Further information is available online at www.bidvestnoonan.com

Trio of Incentive FM contracts for Shopping Centre services renewed by British Land

Facilities management company Incentive FM has been boosted by the renewal of three of its Shopping Centre contracts forged with British Land, one of the UK’s leading property companies, and has been awarded an additional contract for a retail development near Manchester. The news builds on the long-term partnership that has seen Incentive FM drive value for its prestigious client while delivering high standards to sites nationwide.

Under the new deals, Incentive FM will continue to be responsible for providing a range of security, cleaning and associated services at Drakes Circus in Plymouth, SouthGate in Bath and at the Inverness Shopping Park. These solutions have necessarily been revised of late to include some COVID-related changes and introduce new technology and equipment to support further financial efficiencies.

The Crownpoint Shopping Park in Denton, Manchester consists of 36 units with retailers including TK Maxx, Boots, River Island, Flannels, Tesco and JD Sports on the premises. This development now joins the Incentive FM portfolio. Twelve staff have transferred under the TUPE Regulations. Services at this site include security and cleaning with an emphasis on the customer experience. 

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Last year, British Land awarded Incentive FM contracts to provide a range of soft facilities services for Ealing Broadway in London, the Beaumont Shopping Centre in Leicester and the Crown Wharf Retail Park in Walsall.  The company also renewed Incentive FM’s contracts to provide similar services at the Whiteley Shopping Centre in Hampshire and at the Old Market in Hereford. 

Richard Nield, head of retail operations at British Land, commented: “Incentive FM has proven to be a highly supportive partner, adapting quickly to our changing needs that have been brought about by the pandemic. The company has helped to ensure that our visitors and retailers alike are able to enjoy a safe, secure and clean environment.”

Glenn Wilson, director of the retail and distribution sectors at Incentive FM, added: “Each of these sites has different needs based on variables such as footfall, demographic and location which demonstrates our ability to successfully deliver value with our flexible partnership approach while also ensuring the British Land ‘Places People Prefer’ strategy is at the forefront of everything we do. Our portfolio of Shopping Centres and retail parks has grown significantly. Indeed, we’re now responsible for over 40 sites across the UK.”

British Land awards Shopping Centre security contracts to Incentive FM

British Land, which is one of the largest property development and investment companies in the UK, has awarded Incentive FM three new Shopping Centre contracts and renewed a further two agreements.

Incentive FM has been awarded contracts to provide a range of soft facilities services for Ealing Broadway in London, the Beaumont Shopping Centre in Leicester and the Crown Wharf Retail Park in Walsall. 

British Land has also renewed Incentive FM’s existing contracts to provide similar services at the Whiteley Shopping Centre in Hampshire and at the Old Market in Hereford.

Under the Terms and Conditions of the three-year deals for each site, Incentive FM will be responsible for ensuring the Shopping Centres are secure, safe and clean as well as providing Front of House and customer service solutions in addition to looking after car parking at the busy locations.

Over 110 members of staff will be mobilised across all five sites where the teams will be using the latest equipment, technology and other systems coupled with Best-in-Class development training to enhance the quality of service delivery. 

Richard Nield, head of retail operations at British Land, informed Security Matters: “The successful relationship we have built up with Incentive FM at the Whiteley and Old Market Shopping Centres, along with other retail locations, made it an obvious choice for us to award more contracts. The business is undoubtedly our preferred partner of choice for these sites.”

Glenn Wilson, operations director at Incentive FM, responded: “We look forward to continuing to support British Land with our added value and partnership approach. Our portfolio of Shopping Centres and retail parks now stretches the length and breadth of the country, from Inverness Shopping Park in Scotland right down to Drakes Circus in Plymouth. We are now operational at over 40 such sites in the UK.”

Security & Safety Things “sparks new era” in video surveillance with commercial availability of supported cameras

Security & Safety Things is “set to reshape innovation in video analytics and computer vision” with the commercial availability of a number of new IP security cameras from a variety of vendors that leverage the Security & Safety Things open and secure Internet of Things platform. This new generation of security cameras will employ the free Security & Safety Things camera operating system, which enables the cameras to run multiple Artificial Intelligence-enabled applications in parallel.

The apps automate the analysis of video data to produce valuable operational intelligence for business optimisation as well as provide easy-to-deploy tools that can aid in re-opening measures from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Organisations of all sizes around the world need flexible and easy-to-deploy solutions that enable compliance with constantly changing pandemic-centric Health and Safety mandates and provide future value to ramp up and optimise their ongoing business operations,” stated Hartmut Schaper, CEO of Security & Safety Things.

He continued: “Companies can now deploy cameras running the Security & Safety Things operating system and use a selection of apps from our Application Store to detect the absence of facial coverings in a retail environment. The next day, that same camera can help the same retailer optimise merchandise placement based on store footfall, in one store or throughout the enterprise, along with further optimisations.”

First camera manufacturer

This month, Qisda/Topview will be the first camera manufacturer to launch a camera running the Security & Safety Things operating system, followed in quick succession by AndroVideo, who will also start shipping its own Security & Safety Things-enabled cameras in Q2.

Bosch is making its INTEOX camera line available as of July followed by Vivotek and BSTsecurity, who plan to ship a bit later in Q3. The first devices from Hanwha Techwin that run the Security & Safety Things operating system are expected to be commercially available in Q4. Security & Safety Things, Hanwha Techwin, Vivotek, Bosch, Qisda/Topview and AndroVideo are all members of the Open Security and Safety Alliance.

The free Security & Safety Things operating system is built on the Android Open Source Project. It leverages the expanding processing and analytic power of modern IP cameras to exponentially increase the amount of operational intelligence that can be mined from traditional IP-based surveillance footage.

The applications that can be installed on these cameras, both in an on-premise as well as a remote setting, are created by highly specialised third party developers and available through the platform’s open Application Store. This already features more than 50 applications from more than 35 developer partners, with more than 30 additional apps expected to be available the store very soon.

Typical use cases

In addition to pandemic applications, use cases include the detection of weapons, behavioural analysis, payment systems for garages, drone threat detection and even identifying objects presented for purchase in a cash register transaction for cashier-free retail environments.

Together with some of its camera and system integration partners, Security & Safety Things is already running projects in a live setting. These projects use, for example, heat mapping and queue analysis in retail stores and automated payment processing and license plate recognition for barrier-free traffic.

These types of applications are running in pilots with the parking management solutions provider Peter Park as well as with the leading mobility provider SIXT.

*More information about the Security & Safety Things platform and how businesses can benefit from the platform can be found at www.securityandsafetythings.com

**For an overview of the Artificial Intelligence video apps currently available for the Security & Safety Things-supported cameras, the Application Store may be viewed at https://store.securityandsafetythings.com

 

London jeweller strikes gold with Mul-T-Lock CLIQ

Mul-T-Lock has supplied a high-end jeweller in London with CLIQ locks in order to help the business manage access to cabinets holding valuable items. 

Stocking bespoke pieces and precious stones, the jeweller was looking for a high-level security solution that allowed sales personnel access to individual glass cabinets, without the worry that if one of the keys was lost or misplaced that they would then have to replace the entire suite. 

Over 50 CLIQ cam locks from Mul-T-Lock were installed at the jewellers on each of the cabinets, offering maximum security with the added benefit of audit trail capabilities. 

These capabilities include the ability to schedule individual access permissions for each key, as well as to provide time-limited access. In the case of this particular jewellers, each member of staff was given access to a selection of cabinets at varying times, with individual permissions set by the administrator.

For example, access could be set for only business hours, meaning that the cabinet could not be accessed at evenings or weekends. Similarly, each time a user opens a lock, that action will be recorded in the system, meaning that the administrator can keep an eye on operations electronically. 

Specialist Mul-T-Lock integrator Elelock Systems specified and installed the CLIQ locks at the jewellers after weeks of careful consultation with the business owner to better understand the store’s requirements. 

Chrys Chrysostomou, managing director of Elelock, told Risk Xtra: “One of the biggest concerns for this particular jeweller was the threat of compromised security if cabinet keys were lost. Mul-T-Lock’s CLIQ technology means you can revoke access in minutes, whereas with a traditional system you would have needed to replace the whole lock, in turn costing time and money. With no cabling, the system was easy to configure and install, making it suitable for a variety of applications. The store manager also received hands-on training from ourselves and Mul-T-Lock, alongside the jeweller’s head of IT and its security representative.” 

Suresh Peri, commercial and technical manager at Mul-T-Lock, added: “Our CLIQ system is ideal for retail applications where there are a number of members of staff who need access at varying times, or that require individual permissions for access to high security storage rooms, cabinets or drawers. Being able to revoke access permissions when a member of staff leaves the business also allows retailers to uphold their security and reduce ongoing maintenance costs.”

Connelly Security Systems Ltd boosts market share following AFA Fire & Security Ltd acquisition

A Glasgow-based firm has “become the premier provider of security solutions in central Scotland” following the acquisition of a security alarm business.

Connelly Security Systems Ltd (CSS) has acquired AFA Fire & Security Ltd of Bathgate in a seven-figure transaction. The deal has allowed CSS to increase its market share and boost its turnover to over £9 million per annum.

Serving both the commercial and residential sectors, CSS provides a comprehensive range of products and services which allow customers to fulfil all of their security requirements with a single provider. The CSS product range includes intruder alarms, fire alarms, CCTV, retail product tagging, access control and monitoring (all of which are supported by comprehensive service and maintenance support).

The deal, which is supported by Clydesdale Bank Cashflow Finance, has also increased CSS’ customer base to over 25,000.

Paul Connelly, managing director at CSS, said: “This is a fantastic opportunity to increase both the customer base and geographic coverage of CSS through the acquisition of a quality business which the vendors have developed over the last 18 years. I was delighted to receive the continued support of Clydesdale Bank, whom we have worked with for over 30 years, which enabled the acquisition terms to be agreed quickly and completion achieved in a short timescale. It’s an important milestone in CSS’ journey and we look forward to continuing to grow the business and enhance the service we can offer to our customers.”

CSS, which launched in 1986, is based in the Possil Park area of Glasgow and the acquisition sees its headcount increase to 130.

Mark Young, director of SME Cashflow Finance at Clydesdale Bank, added: “We have developed an excellent working relationship with CSS. Its ongoing commitment to delivering the optimal customer experience at every interaction is an approach that makes the company a successful business. The business has been involved in a number of acquisitions which have been successfully integrated into the CSS operating model. This has created strong sustainable cashflow enabling this sizeable acquisition to be funded through our Cashflow Finance offering.”

David MacKay, the previous owner of AFA Fire & Security Ltd, will continue to be involved in the business in the short term to ensure a smooth transition. The acquisition will not result in any reduction in workforce.

Veracity set to join partners at BETT 2017 as education sector demands reliable and long-term storage of HD video

Veracity – a leading provider of innovative and intelligent solutions that solve real-world IP video challenges in transmission, storage and display – has just announced its inaugural attendance at the BETT Show.

The BETT Show takes place between 25-28 January at London’s ExCeL, and is the largest education technology event in Europe. By partnering with Kingsfield Computer Products Ltd on Stand G372 and Kent CCTV & Data Ltd on Stand E370, Veracity will show visitors from schools, colleges and the further education world that choosing to use higher definition cameras to record in much greater detail is now perfectly possible by dint of using the company’s award-winning surveillance storage product COLDSTORE.

Depending on the environment and the use of open platform cameras, it’s also possible to reduce the systems’ overall total cost of ownership by recording direct to COLDSTORE from the cameras, cutting out the additional hardware, VMS licence and energy costs of NVRs.

Alastair McLeod: Group CEO of Veracity

“No longer need you worry about reducing the recorded resolution from your cameras to conserve hard disk space,” explained Alastair McLeod, Group CEO of Veracity, to risk and security managers operational in the education sector, “or recording in high definition for short periods only. Security teams looking after retail centres are already realising the benefits of being able to record continuously in high definition, enabling them to retrospectively interrogate CCTV footage in greater detail than previously possible.”

McLeod added: “COLDSTORE’s recording design, which uses only two hard disk drives at a time in a mirrored overlapping pair sequence, extends the life of those disks considerably and reduces system energy consumption by around 90% when compared to similar-sized RAID systems.”

Veracity’s transmission products will be available for visitors to view. These include the industry-benchmark HIGHWIRE family of products, enabling the latest IP cameras to be installed over legacy coax networks without re-cabling and associated business disruption.

Also of interest will be the POINTSOURCE Wireless solution, which enables security installers to locally view IP cameras on a smart phone during installation

Milestone Systems and Community Partners deliver high profile retail surveillance solution across Middle East and North Africa

Milestone Systems, the developer of open platform IP VMS, has delivered a flexible and scalable surveillance solution for Majid Al Futtaim’s multi-site operations across the Middle East and North Africa. The solution integrates Best-in-Class technologies from Community Partners.

As a fast-growing business, Majid Al Futtaim realised that managing large camera networks and risks across multiple sites and countries posed several challenges. First, the outdated analogue surveillance infrastructure was in need of being modernised. Second, the sheer size of the operation, with multiple sites across several countries and more than a thousand cameras at some sites, had to be addressed.

Following a comprehensive vetting process, Majid Al Futtaim chose a state-of-the-art security and video surveillance solution in order for the business to remain at the forefront of operating safe and secure retail and leisure environments.

The Milestone XProtect Corporate VMS permits Majid Al Futtaim to operate the entire surveillance solution from a single management interface in the UAE. Being able to access all the sites from one location enables the operations team to co-ordinate surveillance and management efforts across those sites. Other relevant parties can also leverage the information directly from mobile clients, in turn enabling more efficient safety operations.

Top-of-the-range Axis Communications cameras and Pivot3 hyper-converged server infrastructure guarantee the host business lives up to Government regulations. iCetana’s dynamic live monitoring system helps offset the challenges of actively monitoring the large camera networks and enables a real-time assessment and response capability.

Operational costs related to the hardware, servers and cameras have been reduced from 23% to 7%. Real-time response capability helps make overall security operations more effective by immediately identifying risks. Today, there are approximately 10-12 incidents actioned per 300 cameras.

“We are honoured Majid Al Futtaim has chosen Milestone as its primary VMS and we look forward to continuing to support them now and into the future,” enthused Peter Biltsted, director for the Middle East and Africa at Milestone Systems.

“iCetana is proud to provide ongoing support to Majid Al Futtaim throughout the MENA region, and also to be part of Milestone’s Partner Community as key components of Majid Al Futtaim’s video surveillance infrastructure,” added Stephen Bose, head of business development at iCetana.

IFSEC International 2016: Smart Zone launched by UBM

IFSEC International organiser UBM has announced the new Smart Zone exhibition and feature area for the 2016 event, which takes place at London’s ExCeL from 21-23 June.

Security systems and services are playing increasingly vital roles in building automation which makes IFSEC a strategically significant platform to present current technologies and research to the market.

The IFSEC Smart Zone will concentrate on two key areas. #ifsecsmarthome will focus on the burgeoning home automation sector which will provide installers, integrators, housebuilders, housing professionals and architects with an opportunity to see and experience the latest in home automation technologies from leading suppliers such as Texecom, Y3K, Paxton Access, Yale and LILIN.

#ifsecsmarthome will come to life as an actual house located at the centre of the exhibition area wherein visitors can meet and discuss the systems’ capabilities with suppliers and trial the technologies on offer. Exhibitors will be able to showcase their products and solutions for all visiting IFSEC professionals with an interest in the home automation sector.

Jason Hill, group vice-president at LILIN, stated: “IFSEC is embarking on an exciting new path with the introduction of #ifsecsmarthome as it’s an area of significant growth on the global stage. The integrated home is very much a reality today and represents a tremendous opportunity for progressive installers and integrators. With security consistently reported as the key driver for home automation, we feel this is the logical direction for IFSEC to move in. We feel we’re well placed to centrally support IFSEC with this new feature.”

#ifsecsmartbuildings for 2016

On a larger scale and of direct relevance to the commercial, public and residential sectors alike, #ifsecsmartbuildings will look at how a fully connected building provides cost and efficiency benefits to building managers.

#ifsecsmartbuildings will take the form of an interactive display showcasing a full range of integrated building management solutions. The feature will highlight integrated solutions aimed at property management, retail, transport, the utilities and energy, providing visitors with a complete overview of how real-time networked smart solutions interact and deliver tangible business information.

In addition to the IFSEC Smart Zone feature areas will be the Smart Zone Theatre which will provide free learning and development seminars focused on home automation and smart buildings. The programme will be delivered by a range of leading experts and concentrate on key areas such as the Internet of Things, systems integration, business intelligence, building information management, cyber security and a series of highly relevant Case Studies.

Continuing evolution of the show

Gerry Dunphy, event director for IFSEC International, explained: “The IFSEC Smart Zone is an important part of the show’s continuing evolution as we look to present new and diverse applications of security products and services as vital aspects of building management systems. #ifsecsmarthome will promote exciting developments in home automation that will be of direct interest to installers looking to supplement their range of services. For its part, #ifsecsmartbuildings will present integrators, consultants, architects, facilities directors, civic authorities and building owners with key solutions to make their assets more sustainable, productive and cost-effective.’’

IFSEC International will once again be presented as part of UBM EMEA’s Protection and Management Series, the UK’s largest event dedicated to protecting and managing property, people and information.

The series incorporates major events including FIREX International, The Facilities Show, Safety & Health Expo and Service Management Expo.

VCA introduces ‘Intelligent’ Public View Monitor for retail sector end users

VCA, the retail analytics specialist, has introduced a Public View Monitor designed to help retailers achieve so much more than just deter would-be thieves.

VCA has packed its Intelligent Public View Monitor (IPVM) with a long list of impressive features offering “tangible benefits” to retail marketing executives as well as loss prevention managers. 

Face Detection

The IPVM takes advantage of HD camera technology, supported by facial detection software, to record the faces of everyone entering a store. The face images captured by the built-in Full-HD camera, which is discretely located within the IPVM’s housing, can be used to verify where individuals have been within the store.

Business Intelligence

VCA refers to the IPVM as being ‘intelligent’ because the camera incorporates analytics technology. With people counting and tracking capabilities, the analytics can be used to produce heat maps as well as data on how long each customer dwells in specific areas of a store or how long they have queued when used in conjunction with Ucountit cloud-based software. It therefore provides a very powerful multi-purpose business intelligence tool offering a high potential RoI when installed in individual shopping aisles as well as at store entrances.

“Retailers have long understood the value of positioning a Public View Monitor at a store entrance to make shoplifters aware that they’re on camera,” said Kevin Waterhouse, executive vice-president for global sales at VCA. “Our IPVM takes this concept to a much higher level, with built-in powerful analytics allowing store management and marketing personnel to gain a greater understanding of customer behaviour.”

Reporting

As stated, the IPVM is supported by uCountit, VCA’s cloud-based analytics reporting solution that can be accessed via a web browser such as Internet Explorer, Google Chrome or Firefox.

As a cloud-based solution, it offers end users the convenience of access to the Dashboard from any location on the network. This presents the analysed metadata in the form of simple charts, heat maps and reports, allowing regional retail managers to monitor activity at individual stores and make comparisons with other stores while on the move.

In-House Promotions

The IPVM is also equipped with a built-in SD card slot for displaying welcome messages and advertisements in support of in-house promotions. The internal SD is able to hold the messages such that each monitor can have different and specific message depending on the location in the store.

Event Detection

Using the built-in camera and analytics, areas of particular interest can be set up as zones or tripwires and, when events occur, the images may be recorded and or sent to a mobile for instant review.

In addition, when an event does take place the monitor can instantly switch into live mode in order to show real-time activity.