Its the worse feeling for any business but sometimes security companies need to learn when the time is right to simply walk away from a potential client. There are times in the security business when we as installers need to know when we are being squeezed too hard. It is very tempting to keep cutting costs to keep a “big name” but if a client is looking for the lowest cost of service in order to fulfil their remit and your organization has built a reputation over the years as highly qualified and trained security professionals, giving a service that is second to none, then you need to have the balls to tell your potential client they need to look elsewhere.

Quite simply put, a company/client prepared to compromise service in favour of cost are not looking for an organization who provides your level of service and commitment. It’s always a fine line of course and we are all out there to make our business a success but some buyers are starting to take advantage of  too much good will as companies fight for the ever decreasing contracts on offer.

Most businesses will know when they are being taken for a ride but can’t they help themselves still trying to deliver even if it is at their own expense but they must realize they are just undermining the entire business for a valueless contract. Over the last 3 years or so there have been too many organizations out there prepared to buy business  and they will always bid lower then everyone else.

This results in awful service for end users and everyone is a loser, the good suppliers miss out , the customer gets disillusioned and the company  that wins the tender makes no profit, sometimes they even make a loss. Minimum wages result for engineers and this drives the good guys out of the industry. The problem is when the dust settles and all involved in the tender process realize the mistakes that have been made …its too late……… for everyone.

If this rings true with your organization then give this blog a retweet and lets put a stop to this practice once and for all.

The range will include a world first, an HD SDI PTZ dome camera. This will be complimented by a smart IR bullet camera and two HD SDI dome cameras and of course as the Cobra Alpha HD SDI DVR.

The new  Cobra Alpha HD SDI recorder offers HD clarity over coax and is targeted at installers who want to give HD to their end users without some of the complication involved in IP HD systems.

The Cobra Alpha  HD SDI CCTV range is priced to sell against analogue rather than IP and is looking to take a market share of camera systems that are in need of upgrade here in the UK and primarily run over coax.

The Cobra Alpha range offers crystal clear 1080P images and exceptional recording quality. HD SDI CCTV is simple to install and can use both new and existing coax. It is not an IP system so no expert IP training is required. It is an HD definition system for CCTV installers and is quite simply plug and play. This is what CCTV installers have been waiting for, a simple HD CCTV solution without the complication that can come with IP CCTV installations and what’s more at an affordable price.

So the Cobra Alpha HD SDI DVR will prove a big hit with installers looking for a simple solution but with 3 times the definition of analogue.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/avigilon-corporation-announces-first-quarter-200000580.html

Check the full set of financial results through the link above.

Avigilon encoder

Dallmeier  have announced the end of the Leonardo product range’ and h.264 DLS series recorders.

As from the 14th May 2012* the following h.264 recorder models will be discontinued:

DMS ‚In memory of Leonardo‘ recorders and h.264 DLS Series recorders.

With this change Dallmeier will from this point onwards be promoting only SMAVIA software. The new products are completely forwards and backwards compatible and Dallmeier offer full support in order that new products may be integrated into older systems.

Dallmeier state that “SMAVIA is a recording technology which is based on 25 years of experience and competence in professional video security technology, thus ensuring maximum reliability. SMAVIA enables the recording of video images and streams in a large variety of image compression and transmission codecs (H.264, MPEG-4, MJPEG). In addition to standard definitions, SMAVIA also supports Full HD (1080p) and up to 8 megapixel”.

“The SMAVIA Recording Server Software can be used on a wide range of different hardware platforms; either on special video recording servers made by Dallmeier or as stand-alone software on standard servers or PCs. SMAVIA is compatible with both Linux and Windows. The corresponding management software SMAVIA Viewing Client offers the perfect interface for the comfortable processing of live and recorded pictures”.

Dallmeier have always been a company who evolve through good ideas which in turn become quality CCTV equipment, which helps them stay at the forefront of the industry. With this commitment to software Dallmeier have committed themselves fully into IP CCTV and it will be interesting to see how they compete.

The questions we challenge Dallmeier to answer is why? Are they just following the trend or do they see this as the future. Was it a result of a loss in sales? Or an effort to keep up with others in the IP CCTV market place? Were their DVRs too expensive to sell and to maintain and was their returns policy one that put off prospective buyers of their hardware?

Lets hear from you Dallmeier!

What all the commentators seem to agree on is that IP is inevitable, analogue CCTV as a technology is finished and it is now just a matter of time before those who have invested in IP surveillance training, ICT staff and IP CCTV products will prevail. In market that before IP CCTV came along, was dominated by installers who generally operate with 5 or 6 hard working staff and have little or no time to invest in a discipline that is far more demanding than installing simple closed circuit analogue systems, this news is quite daunting!

Now it has to be noted that IP CCTV brings many benefits but the most obvious is HD quality. This is the driving force for IP CCTV to really take off and this is what will cause forward thinking end users to upgrade. It was noted that  in a later article on P40 there is a quote that suggests” if you want a high resolution system you have to go IP”, ironic then that the advert directly following the “Know IP or no IP” article is for the new HD SDI CCTV range from Videcon.

Now that is forward thinking!!!  HD SDI CCTV offers high definition images over coax. It is widely acknowledged that coax makes up over 70% of all CCTV systems here in the UK at present. Many of those systems consist of less than 16 cameras and many of those systems need upgrading. Many of those systems are installed and maintained by CCTV installers who have little desire to go over to IP CCTV technology.

It would therefore be fair to ask then who is looking beyond IP surveillance? Is HD SDI CCTV a technology that can allow smaller traditional CCTV companies to compete against the tide of IP CCTV products flooding the market place? We certainly think it is!

Avigilon are also expected to announce that they will be releasing  An HD CCTV PTZ dome camera. This is an interesting move when it was thought that HD CCTV could spell the end of the PTZ dome altogether.

We will keep you informed of developments.

Avigilon CCTV

http://www.integratedcctv.co.uk/2010/11/23/avigilon-talk-to-integrated-cctv-about-their-company-and-the-future/

How can companies cut costs on external remote monitoring but still maintain a high or even higher level of security than they already have? The answer it seems may be to install thermal CCTV cameras. The increasing reduction in the price of thermal security equipment is meaning that installers and end-users are increasingly more  interested in protecting sites with thermal imaging cameras instead of deploying traditional CCTV cameras.

The reasoning behind this shift is relatively simple. Thermal CCTV can cover far greater areas without the need for expensive lighting. The combination of the cost of installing this lighting together with the running costs associated with it over the lifetime of the security system means forward thinking installers can justify the cost of installing a more expensive thermal camera solution in the first instance.

Add to this the benefits that thermal cameras will operate in any weather conditions and in total darkness and will operate over far greater distance. Suddenly end users are starting to sit up and take notice.

With thermal security systems, false alarms are more or less a thing of the past. Objects become incredibly easy to identify on screen, either with the naked eye or with the use of advanced analytics.

The thermal solution is not of course of benefit for evidential purposes , however not many analogue CCTV systems are either. HD CCTV is the only way to tackle  the issue of identification.

So thermal CCTV is making in-roads into all areas of security now and as customers become ever more aware of the way thermal can help them, the price continues to fall. This is good news for all those involved with thermal CCTV.

Any exhibitors who are at IFSEC 2012 and would like us to run a product review on this site are welcome to contact us. So the run up to the show begins and we will watch with interest to see who’s products and what technology comes out on top this year .