When asking exhibitors at IFSEC International 2015 about what drives their markets, many cite system integration as a key factor. And they want more of it.
Integration as business “driving force”
For example, John Davies of TDSI says customers are now seeking out system integration. “They want a solution rather than components, such as linking access control with building management systems or with an organisation’s IT network to control access to its computers,” he says.
Suprema – a specialist in fingerprint biometrics based in South Korea – is also reaping the benefits of a drive towards greater integration. Baudouin Genouville, global alliances and integration manager, says the main driver for their business is the integration of the company’s fingerprint readers with third-party access control software. “This is possible because we provide an SDK (Software Development Kit), and the industry understands it well. The more people who know your SDK, the more integration there is. Another example of integration is that we can embed our BioStar2 software in a NVR to run access control – that is what I mean by integration. Every year I come to IFSEC I see the trend towards more integration. This is a big trend and won’t change,” says Baudouin Genouville.
TDSI’s John Davies says Europe was in the doldrums until three or four months ago, but is starting to show promise. The UK market is buoyant with sales up 10% while the Middle East, Southeast Asia and China are very buoyant |
Video and access control integration
According to video solutions company Avigilon, we are also seeing more integration of access control with video surveillance. An example is video verification, according to Willem Ryan, director of product marketing. “To have video verification of alarms, for example, to have those integrated tightly is a good thing. Another example is managing doors and identities over IP. Our products have to work together with IT security. You need to have the technology to play well within that IT ecosystem.”
At video specialists Wavestore, integration is their raison d’etre. “With a truly open platform, what we do well is to bring disparate technologies together. We can put it all together and run it seamlessly," says James Smith, director of marketing.
Market trends
At IFSEC International, exhibitors also share their views on the wider security market and technological trends. TDSI’s John Davies says Europe was in the doldrums until three or four months ago, but is starting to show promise. The UK market is buoyant with sales up 10% while the Middle East, Southeast Asia and China are very buoyant. “There are a lot of infrastructure projects going on in China. All in all, we are experiencing double-digit sales growth since 2012.”
A few years ago, video analytics was over-hyped and under-delivered. Now it is quickly becoming part of a system, and is being used beyond security as a business tool |
Avigilon’s Willem Ryan says it’s an interesting time in the security market, and it is being driven by the increased need for and development of high-definition surveillance, with 4K (8 megapixels) being “part of the conversation”.
We are also seeing a resurgence in video analytics, says Ryan. A few years ago, video analytics was over-hyped and under-delivered. Now it is quickly becoming part of a system, and is being used beyond security as a business tool, with the security department being transformed from a cost centre to a value centre. He goes on to say that the consumer market now expects high-definition video, so that creates a demand for better and better resolution in the surveillance market.
IFSEC exhibitors mostly agreed: Integration is critical in the development of new security solutions, while the growing presence of IP contributes to their ease of implementation.