Tony Varco

Siklu Inc., the global supplier of mmWave wireless solutions, has awarded Convergint Technologies, worldwide service-based systems integrator, as their Top Security Systems Integrator Partner in North America in 2017-2018. This decision was based upon the successful partnership between the companies over the past 2 years.  Siklu Wireless Fiber Solutions Siklu’s wireless fiber solutions were chosen by Convergint in a number of video surveillance projects across North America, including University Village in Seattle, the cities of Gardena, Lakewood, Bakersfield and many more. Recent projects include the Columbus International Airport, where Convergint upgraded local area network connectivity by installing Siklu’s multi-gigabit radios in two days. This solution provided interference-free connectivity as a fiber extension throughout inclement weather conditions. A broad selection of Siklu mmWave wireless products with a range of frequencies and distances are supported in the partnership, including P2P as well as P2MP, leveraging narrow beams in the uncongested frequency bands of 60-70/80 GHz, which are immune to heavy Wi-Fi signals. Transmitting high bandwidth information across security networks, the mmWave solutions are ideal for mission critical and smart cities deployments that demand secured always-on connectivity. We are extremely pleased with the overall performance of Siklu’s solutions" mmWave Wireless Products “We are extremely pleased with the overall performance of Siklu’s solutions,” said Tony Varco, VP Security Division at Convergint. “Our customers increasingly demand advanced solutions that perform at a high level combined with a low cost of ownership, and Siklu’s technology delivers in both areas. They offer a scalable, high-capacity wireless solution without compromising reliability and enables Convergint to continue to deliver high-quality service.” “We’re pleased to work with Convergint as one of our leading security partners,” said Eyal Assa, CEO of Siklu. “Siklu expands the infrastructure offering for Convergint customers, enabling them to benefit from industry-leading performance to create a network which is ready for the next generation of IoT.”

Quantum Corp. announced that its complete line of scale-out tiered storage, archive and data protection solutions for video surveillance environments is now available through Convergint Technologies. Certified with the industry-leading camera, VMS and analytics offerings, these award-winning, intelligent solutions will provide Convergint’s global user community with the foundation for next-generation security, analytics and AI infrastructures — a key challenge facing customers in this evolving market. With an extensive heritage of implementations for environments such as federal installations, transportation, healthcare, higher education and city surveillance, Quantum’s storage portfolio for video surveillance offers a logical fit with Convergint’s strategic direction. Customers can not only keep surveillance data longer but also have more budget available to spend on cameras and real-time analytics Affordable Storage And Data Protection The partnership with Quantum enables Convergint to provide its video surveillance and security customers with an expanded range of integrated, scalable solutions for data protection and retention. Powered by its StorNext parallel file system and data management platform, Quantum’s multitier storage makes the combination of storage performance and data retention more affordable. As a result, customers can not only keep surveillance data longer but also have more budget available to spend on cameras and real-time analytics, for a more effective video surveillance environment. Intelligent Storage Solutions Convergint Technologies (booth 14099) and Quantum (booth 22125) will highlight their solutions for video surveillance environments at ISC West 2018, Las Vegas, April 11-13. “Convergint’s success stems from the level of service we provide to our clients, and we are continually looking to enhance our ability to meet our customers’ needs. Our partnership with Quantum allows us to maintain our growth strategy with intelligent storage solutions to further deepen and expand the portfolio we offer to customers,” said Tony Varco, vice president, security division, Convergint Technologies. “Retention time for surveillance data continues to increase, and Convergint understands the value of storage as part of the surveillance and security infrastructure. With their global reach, reputation of excellence, and extensive qualification and vetting process, I’m pleased to have Quantum included among Convergint’s select list of offerings,” commented Wayne Arvidson, vice president, intelligence, surveillance and security solutions, Quantum.

End users at ASIS 2017 in Dallas may feel overwhelmed by all the new technology on display, but often their integrator partners can offer a helping hand. Traffic continued through much of Day 2 of the ASIS exhibition, but the foot traffic appeared to slow considerably as the day wore on. Convergint Seeks Closer Manufacturer Relationship Integrators are prominent at ASIS and play an important role connecting end user customers with manufacturers' products that meet their need. "We are taking them by the hand and introducing them to our [manufacturer] partners and to the solutions," said Tony Varco, Vice President Security Division, Convergint Technologies. Convergint has a global presence and is one of several large integrators with booths at ASIS. "We want a closer relationship with the manufacturers we work with," Varco said. Previously manufacturers may have preferred to keep their distance from end users, but not anymore. "They want us to facilitate the relationship between manufacturers and customers at a very high level," says Varco. In addition to their booth presence, Convergint personnel are escorting their big clients through the exhibit hall, one-on-one, to view the latest products. "It's not about whiz-bang technology, but about the technology that can produce business results. We may spend half a day or several days, depending on the client. We map it out ahead of time, and talk with them weeks ahead about their objectives. They may not be looking to make an immediate investment, but more looking ahead three to five years: These are the things you need to start thinking about." Digitising Building Systems "It's not about whiz-bang technology, but about the technology that can produce business results" Varco sees a trend in the market to digitise more building systems, including power-over-Ethernet lighting (using low-voltage LEDs), occupancy sensors, HVAC, fire alarms/life safety and physical security. These technologies are being combined in the "digital ceiling," which refers literally to the space above the ceiling tiles of a building and the network and cabling infrastructure that accommodates all the digitised operations for various functions. As a large-scale integrator, Varco points to managing customer expectations as a challenge, both at ASIS and in general. "What the customer expects and what's being sold to them may be two different things," he said. "When solving problems and creating business outcomes, you have to control expectations so they understand what they're getting, and what they're not getting. If the customer doesn't believe they got what they were sold, it causes problems." ADT And Cybersecurity Cybersecurity continues to be top-of-mind, both among attendees and exhibitors. Protection 1 (now ADT) is a company that has been talking about cybersecurity and other networking issues for several years now, dating back to before it was such as "hot" topic. "It's irresponsible to just provide physical security without addressing what that entails in your cyber environment," said Morgan Harris, ADT's Senior Director of Enterprise Solutions. Ironically, security systems are often the cause of vulnerabilities on a network, and ADT's cybersecurity and network management approach seeks to minimize the vulnerabilities.  Avigilon Blue is a subscription-based cloud service that enables integrators to manage more sites with fewer resources ADT's network operations center offers health management, network services and cybersecurity to business customers. Services that previously targeted national commercial accounts are now being brought downmarket to help smaller commercial customers, which can be even more vulnerable to cyber-attack. Meeting Cybersecurity Challenges The entire market -- manufacturers, integrators and end users -- all have a stake in meeting cybersecurity challenges, according to Harris. "Everyone has ownership in it," he said. "It starts with the products, but cybersecurity also has to be considered during installation, operation and maintenance." "We try to be out on the edge looking at vulnerabilities," Harris said. "If you are using our managed video recorders, we can push a patch out to the devices fairly quickly." He provided an example of a recent deployment of video systems at a national grocery store chain – more than 300 locations installed over 90 days. A couple of weeks into the deployment, a Windows vulnerability was discovered related to the NVR. Because ADT had a remediation plan in place, they were agile enough to solve the vulnerability problem and continue to deploy on schedule. Leveraging Protection 1's historically successful approach to customerservice has benefited both customers and employees Bringing back national commercial accounts to ADT (which gave up the business in a non-compete provision when the company separated from Tyco) is just one of the benefits of combining Protection 1 and ADT, which will use the more familiar ADT brand going forward. New national account business has also been added by recent acquisitions. Cloud Service Platforms For Video Since the merger with Protection 1, ADT has been working to up its game by improving customer service, drastically lowering customer wait times, and replacing automated audio recordings with live people. Leveraging Protection 1's historically successful approach to customer service has benefited both customers and employees, who don't have to deal with as many angry and frustrated customers. Therefore, employee turnover is going down. "We are proud of the results we are seeing," said Bob Tucker, ADT Director, Corporate Affairs. Cloud services are another hot topic at ASIS 2017, and Avigilon is the latest company to introduce a cloud service platform for video. Avigilon Blue is a subscription-based cloud service that enables integrators to manage more sites with fewer resources, and to add recurring monthly revenue (RMR) based on site subscriptions. A twist is use of "self-monitoring”, in effect, self-learning video analytics, to provide alarm notifications to bring attention to events as triggered by analytics. The customer can also view live and/or archived video through a browser. The system is powered by Microsoft Azure.

The relationship with Convergint will solidify PlateSmart’s leadership position in the video analytics security industry PlateSmart, the industry pioneer in software-only automatic license plate recognition (ALPR)-based video analytics solutions, announced recently that it has signed security giant Convergint Technologies as an authorized reseller. The agreement marks a major leap forward for the two companies, both trendsetters in the security industry, which have united to bring affordable, reliable video data analytics technology to verticals never before considered as viable markets for such advanced video surveillance methodologies. Based in Illinois, Convergint is a leading provider of electronic security, healthcare technologies, and automation, with offices in 14 countries including the U.S. and Canada. The company serves a broad spectrum of vertical markets including banking, petrochemical, education, healthcare, utilities and transportation, just to name a few. ALPR-Based Video Analytics For Enterprise Use Convergint’s efforts regarding PlateSmart will center primarily on ARES, PlateSmart’s flagship ALPR-based video analytics solution for enterprise use. The winner of the 2014 and 2015 Govies Awards for Video Analytics and a 2013 Best Practices Award from Frost & Sullivan, ARES has established itself as the premier disruptive video data analytics product currently available. Its unique qualities include the ability to fully integrate with any video management software (VMS) solution and provide value added data never before available to any VMS system. The product also sends mission-critical alerts to any VMS in real time for complete situational awareness. Furthermore, ARES is available at an affordable price point that is unprecedented in the marketplace, which means that any size organization, public or private, can now add ALPR and ALPR-based analytics to its video security. Additionally, ARES is implementing a comprehensive auditing feature set and policy and procedure platform to ensure complete accountability for all data access. It is the first ALPR-based video data analytics solution to include this feature, which will help to safeguard privacy rights without compromising the technology’s effectiveness. Proactive Solutions For Actionable Intelligence The agreement between Convergint and PlateSmart comes at an opportune time for both as recent events in the VMS market have created conditions that make ALPR a must-have feature in VMS systems. PlateSmart CEO John Chigos stated, “Our relationship with Convergint will continue to solidify PlateSmart’s leadership position in the video analytics security industry. It is important to us that our solutions, which have been proven to be best of breed, are represented by a reseller that is at the pinnacle of the industry, and Convergint is indisputably such a company. This agreement will further PlateSmart’s mission to provide real-time value-added data for security agencies to use for investigative purposes. Furthermore, both companies share the belief that together we will further promote the use and development of more proactive VMS systems with real time video analytical information such as those provided by PlateSmart’s ARES. The end result will be better and more reliable security for everyone.” “Our clients continue to demand practical solutions that can help them improve the overall safety and security of their facilities and employees,” said Tony Varco, vice president of marketing and security at Convergint. “They also look to Convergint to provide cost effective and proactive solutions that can turn real-time big data into immediate actionable intelligence. The PlateSmart solution continues to resonate with our clients because of its ability to cost effectively and seamlessly integrate with multiple third party video management platforms.”