When a city or local government is looking at putting in a camera system there are a number of technology decision it has to make. Eli Gorovici, president and chief executive officer of DVTel, Inc., a provider of IP physical security solutions, recently made a case for using IP-base systems. Below is an excerpt from an article by Gorovici.
"'In these economic times' are words leaders seldom like to mutter. Everywhere we turn, jobs are being lost, budgets are being cut, and resources are continually being evaluated. The troubles of the banking, retail, construction and automobile industries are felt everywhere, including physical security. But all is not doom and gloom. As the saying goes – necessity is the mother of invention. When put to the test, we band together –whether as a country and community or a company and industry.
So – Why IP? When using IP-based solutions, customers begin to realize the cost benefits immediately through reduced installation, training and lifetime service costs. The use of COTS (Commercial Off-The-Shelf) IT equipment means lower initial investments and ongoing maintenance costs while intuitive user screens, wizards and productivity plug-ins means there is no need for expensive operator training in positions where there is often high turnover. Systems that are built with rules-based engines allow for easy integration with other business solutions and API and SDKs are always readily available.
The foundation of any solution should start with a proven return on investment (ROI). It is critical to ask – is this IP-based solution in strict adherence to open IT standards thereby eliminating proprietary hardware, software and legacy infrastructures? As such, a standards-based solution is an integral part of business continuity planning and procedures, enhancing the overall corporate operation.
IP-based solutions also allow for customization to meet end user needs. In today’s demanding environments, it is necessary to quickly respond to security threats and breaches. Situational awareness and agility is often through dynamic workspace solutions. Dynamic workspaces bring together many software and hardware solutions from multiple vendors and customizes software in one, easy-to-use graphical user interface so that the software works the way the customer needs it to work, rather than the customer working the way the software needs.
Above are only a few of the many reasons to look to technology to guide us through the tough economic times that we are facing. Although we know we are in for a challenge, it is good to know that because of technology that the future looks very bright indeed."
