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Experts share advice on choosing, designing and installing access control equipment for harsh environments.

 Advancements in reliability and features of analytics, thermal imaging, and wireless and solar technology-based products have enabled perimeter security to be accessible to a more mainstream market than ever before. 

 Don’t let the three wise monkeys fool you. Hearing, seeing and announcing danger is proving very useful to the industry. SDM looks at products that are helping detect and verify alarms using audio/visual technologies.  

 Integrators are finding that their customers are more interested in intercoms today than ever, because having an IP backbone gives them mobility and interactivity features, and video offers greater situational awareness. 

Unlimited Technology, SDM’s 2014 Systems Integrator of the Year, knows it can handle anything and everything its customers and projects demand, because it is built upon a foundation of strong engineering capabilities and internal processes it has developed over the last year.

 Cultural institutions, such as museums and libraries, have a unique set of characteristics that make fire and life safety requirements different from those of other buildings. A life safety system must simultaneously safeguard precious objects and protect patrons — and do so with minimal distractions or disruptions. 

The days of carting around a jumble of keys are coming to a close, thanks to new technology for home access controls in the form of keyless, cellphone-enabled locks for residences. Millions of people, all over the world, use the key-and-lock solution for safeguarding their homes every day. But today’s keys have gone electric, thanks to the evolution of smartphone.

No matter how great a video surveillance camera may be, if it has no power source — primary and/or backup — or can’t send images to the head end for viewing and archiving, it is no more useful for security than a painting hanging on the wall. This is why transmission and power solutions are crucial to providing the highest possible level of video security. 

For decades smart cards and biometrics have been part of the access credentialing conversation. More recently, the potential of mobile credentials on a phone have entered the discussion. But in an industry that has been historically slow to move off the entrenched platforms of proximity or even mag stripe, these discussions have often revolved around the question, ‘What’s next?’ rather than, ‘What’s happening now?’

Operational costs savings and energy efficiency are major drivers of BAS installations and retrofits. Industry surveys have determined that building owners and managers are realizing the many financial benefits of intelligent technologies, such as lower energy costs, lower maintenance costs and lower repair and replacement costs.