Karen Duane Johnson : Under the Homeland Security Grant Program, funding has been increasing since the agency's establishment and made more readily available. In the budget there are monies available to be spent to update security systems in prisons and courthouses across the country. Sheriff departments across the U.S. are receiving grants to upgrade security cameras as hundreds of visitors will need to visit a courthouse for many reasons, ranging from a marriage license to a criminal proceeding. Emotions can run high, especially in domestic matters putting everyone at risk, and there have been several incidents that have turned deadly. As courthouse security is a public safety issue there is continuous need for technology, training and supervision to be regularly enhanced. What are the challenges facing this segment of the industry?
Joseph Menke, President, Electronic Security Concepts: In a recent application of providing security updating to the Arizona Supreme Court building, the project called for replacing and updating systems that were three generations old. I am seeing more money trickling down and being spent in an area of security that is finally getting some attention. Based on this historical lack of spending, up until recently, the challenge now is to work with the courts to get the systems in there and spend the money correctly.
Dave Jones, Field Operations Manager, Stanley Security Solutions: There are very few companies working with the Bureau of Prisons on inside installations. There is a lot of competition when we bid on work that involves perimeter security, but not for interior work. There are several reasons for this; the working environment inside a prison is very difficult. Each and every time we enter the facility the tools and equipment needs to be screened. Our technicians need to have background checks and frequent drug testing before entering the facility. All of this takes time out of the work day so as a result the projects take longer to complete.
B. Allen Fletcher, President and CEO, Resource Protection Management: Working with the courts, one recent challenge we encountered was that those in charge did not understand that the technology is there to protect everyone in practice and in theory. For instance in the Montgomery County, Texas Courthouse and its annex, our company provides not only the personnel for assisting in force security, backing up the uniformed police but also RPM runs much of the security systems such as the x-ray equipment and hands-on monitoring. We had several instances where the judges were unhappy with the fact witnesses and lawyers were getting held up in the security screening process. Some judges took it upon themselves to exempt certain people from this process. In reality the judges had increased the security risk on the courts. The High Sheriff stepped in and mandated that the process be followed by everyone.
Another challenge I have seen is some of the decision makers are under the impression that if law enforcement is everywhere, then why do we need technology? So there are still some decision makers that are slow to accept the expense of technology.
Gary Clinton, Vice President, Clinton Electronics: A big challenge to a lot of our customers is that these are normally city- or government-owned projects. This means there is a very long time from concept to bidding to actual approval and then installation. In some cases this process can take years and the equipment that was originally proposed is now different or not as effective by the time it comes to installing it. Getting changes done is very difficult and a challenge up and down the line. We work closely with the integrators to ensure they bid equipment that will have a long cycle life to it and will be available by the time the job actually goes through. This equipment tends to be the tried and true products that are not likely to change quickly.
Rodney Guinto, Senior Sales Engineer, EverFocus: Typically, applications like prisons and courthouses are requesting for vandal proof, high resolution cameras with a wide range viewing area.
Karen Duane Johnson : Federal Funding for Homeland Security can be seen as one of the major reasons for increased growth. In the fiscal year report for 2007 Homeland Security Grant Program it is reported that, “One of the core missions of DHS is to enhance the ability of state, local and tribal governments to prevent, protect against, respond to and recover from terrorist attacks and other disasters.” What are the contributing factors to the growth being witnessed with the increase in spending?
Menke: The technology has become so much better that integration between alarms, CCTV and access control is seamless. It used to be certain manufacturers only interfaced with their own equipment. This is not the case now as integrators have now been able to combine the best equipment possible. The manufacturers have been releasing product codes which really help our technicians to improve on the design and installation process.
In addition to overall technology getting better, the worthiness and application ability of cutting edge technologies such as intelligent video and biometrics are being realized. We are getting requests for technology that allows for the monitoring of behaviors in addition to face recognition. Essentially, our end user realizes that technology will make their jobs easier and more efficient.
DHS has made it possible for state governments to increase their security measures which have had an impact on growth. Many of our clients that are upgrading systems are not only concerned with the increase in violence but also being a target for terror. The overall mindset that we are at war and fighting against terrorism has definitely been a contributing factor.
Jones: Fueling the growth for prison projects is coming from the growing amount of violence in this country and the need to incarcerate those responsible. In addition to building more prisons there has been a trend for a long time to increase capacity at current facilities. This has led to tremendous need for technology to assist the guards in performing their jobs. All equipment used inside the prison is proprietary and cannot be discussed.
For security work inside courthouses there is a need to always know what is going on. There has always been uniformed police but now security technology is playing a greater role. Also the public access to these buildings has decreased with many areas no longer accessible to the general public. In order to control access, the courts are relying on technology. They are realizing the need and are therefore specifying technology.
There has been a transformation in government facilities from nearly zero controls on access to now where visitors are being funneled into one or two entrances and exits. There is a lot of acceptance on the part of the courts that this is the way it needs to be—control who goes where. While the need has been there for sometime now the money is now available from the DHS to accomplish what needed to be done awhile ago.
Fletcher: I have been working with the courts for over seven years and what I see that has contributed to the growth in this area is the sheer number of people who use our courts. As these communities continue to grow so too does the need to use the legal system. The area where I currently have been doing a lot of work in courthouses is located directly north of Houston , which is now the fourth largest city in the U.S. To keep up with the increase in population using the court system, they have had to come to rely on outsourcing to handle the need in the increase for security. We have supplied manpower for security installations, guard services and monitoring services that these outsourcing opportunities represent. In addition this technology is serving an important role in assisting the overall security protocol. The growth of the community is having a tremendous impact on the needs of the courts to maintain a safe environment.
Clinton : We are seeing growth in both segments. Obviously prisons and jails have had CCTV equipment for many years but courthouses are fairly new to the idea. Instead of an afterthought or a retrofit it is now an integral part of the building plan and treated with the importance of other traditional systems like burglar or fire systems.
Guinto : There has been an upward trend in the government and state sectors mainly due to the ongoing threat of terrorism stemming from September 11. An emerging market, or maybe I should say an already hot market, which as a company we are closely involved in is the mobile digital video recording market. We are seeing requests for this market grow for such applications as police squad cars, school and transit buses and even airplanes.
Karen Duane Johnson : How are you positioning your company to grow and meet the needs of this market segment?
Menke: We have positioned ourselves to serve this market niche, which to us means serving all entities of the state government including campus buildings and the court system. The advances in access control and other equipment updates are helping to make this possible.
Jones: The entire security industry we have taken on and grown. Through this process we have witnessed niche markets such as this one and we have been able to serve these markets through not only a sales role but a compulsory role. In essence, hiring the right people who know this market has helped us succeed. We also have a partnership-type relationship with our clients. We will look at projects and together create a worst-case scenario vision and from there we will build and design proprietary systems for these specific applications.
Fletcher: When I first started I did so with law enforcement needs in mind. I serve on many boards including the Montgomery County, Texas 9-1-1 Board of Managers. My work with law enforcement has led me to develop a new product that uses dual notification to increase police response. I am launching this product in Montgomery County . Our clients will come to us because of my company's work in other areas, not just the courts, but certainly related. We are seen as being able to service this segment's growing needs.
Clinton : We work with our clients on learning what this segment needs. We sell to both segments but they normally want completely different products. For prisons and jails they normally want vandal resistant products or PTZ cameras. A lot of the jails and prisons have low ceilings and they want a camera in these areas so vandal resistant domes are a good fit. Wiring is always a challenge due to the amount of concrete in most of these applications. We don't sell wireless products but I know of several integrators that have tried wireless in prisons without much luck. There is too much concrete and steel with too many walls to be effective at this point. Courthouses fall into a more general product line for CCTV. They are more concerned about aesthetics and being able to blend in with the existing décor so we get a lot of requests for special painted housings and cameras. Both applications demand very high recording rates so they tend to buy upper end DVRs.
Guinto: What are needed in these facilities are high-resolution digital images with a means of recording these images for an extended time period (6 months). When we say “digital images that are high-resolution,” we mean a resolution NO LESS then 720x480. So this means IP cameras using POE (Power over Ethernet). Currently we have equipment on the market to meet the demand.
