The security industry is waking up to the many advantages of IT technology, and open architecture allows integration of once-disparate systems into efficient and effective solutions. Open Options is on the forefront of this trend with an integration between their NPower DNA™ access control and Milestone XProtect™ IP video management software. This solution makes it easy for operators to easily call up live images or search and view recorded video that can be associated with any NPower DNA access control event: critical video data is available by simply clicking on the event or alarm.
"We are very excited about the partnership between Open Options and Milestone. The open platform of XProtect is a perfect fit for our NPower DNA security management system and offers our customers more flexibility in both access control and video management. This integration adds tremendous value to our overall product offering," says Steve Fisher, President of Open Options, based out of Texas.
Milestone XProtect IP video software is based on open architecture and has APIs (Application Program Interfaces) for enterprising partners like Open Options to integrate their offerings. NPower DNA™ is a scalable access control solution designed to work with Mercury Security open controllers and interface modules. NPower DNA's unique InfoReady™ architecture, "drag and drop" technology, and multi-document interface offers customers powerful access control. The interoperability with IP video improves the security system significantly; operators can now view access points live, on alert, or by easy searching of video recordings by event, date or time, sharing evidence with authorities if necessary. Incidences can be managed proactively and resolved faster.
"This partnership illustrates a natural synergy; both Milestone Systems and Open Options are forward thinking leaders in the security industry, with business concepts that embrace a core ethic of independence, flexibility and choice for customers. We both provide solutions based on the concept of open architecture," states Eric Fullerton, President of Milestone Systems Inc.
The benefits for the customer are obvious. They are no longer tied to the product line of a specific manufacturer. Such freedom of choice means the customer is able to combine a best-of-breed solution. As system needs grow, new components can easily be added, and this reduces the need to overhaul the security system every 3-5 years.Open Options uses the Mercury standard for its access control hardware, and as a Microsoft-certified Partner uses Microsoft's open technology standards for its software. Milestone XProtect IP video management software runs on standard equipment and Microsoft operating systems.