What elements in the larger economic climate have the greatest impact on security purchases? How are people responding to these changes?

Today’s economic climate has an impact on all aspects of an organization, including security purchases.  Security managers are not immune from the need to weigh budgets and performance demands.  However emerging technology may prove to be the element that has the greatest impact in this area.  When you consider that no one wants to compromise security the burden shifts from simply meeting a budget, to demonstrating the greatest return.  The advent of improved analytics, the flexibility that comes with improved resolution, and feature sets in VMS mean that the security spend can be shown to be an investment, not just a line item cost.  It may seem like a distinction of syntax alone, but can be enough to insulate the security budget when the economy gets tough.   

Mass media commentators have probably used one word most since the crash of 2008. For several years it was by preceded by “collapse in…” and more recently it morphed into “growing…”. That word is “confidence”.  Naturally, when buyers are hunkered down with their cash bags gripped tightly and a strategy of basic survival they need, at the very least, an overwhelmingly strong ROI case for new purchases. As discussed in an earlier panel question, for security purchases, ROI can be particularly vague. In the few cases when ROI is believed, or simply ignored for other reasons, in the absence of cash the buyer needs a credit arrangement. The turmoil in the banking world made this scarce or, at best, expensive and likely to undermine the ROI argument. With credit and confidence improving a little in recent years we can expect to see security purchasing policies develop.

Today, there is actually a price on safety, ranging from lower insurance premiums to potential costs of mitigation. Vehicle attack is a harsh reality in our modern society and public gatherings must be considered to be potential terrorist targets. Keeping retail shoppers safe, shielding structures from accidental or intentional automobile crashes, protecting hotel patrons from suicide car bombers, and keeping employees and visitors from harm have always been a concern…today more so than ever.  From pedestrian-filled farmers markets and universities to new and used car lots, a wide variety of agencies find peace of mind through the use of barriers, bollards, barricades and crash gates for vehicle-based physical access control at the perimeter. For those areas where a vehicle will never enter, fixed bollards and barriers are the norm.  However, at entrances, barriers that go up and down are needed to let authorised vehicles through.

Whether the economic climate is in growth or decline, demand for surveillance / CCTV systems continues to increase. There are some exceptions with bespoke solutions, for example in the construction industry which typically sees a decline in a downturn, but the general trend remains steady growth. An economic downturn can create an increase in security risks, due to social unrest and increased crime. As a result, businesses are automating systems over increasing security staff and guards. At the same time, the advent of ‘big data’ and the ability to analyse surveillance footage means businesses are finding new ways to increase efficiency. Retailers can analyse footfall patterns through surveillance footage, optimising store lay out as well as deterring theft. Selecting the right drive for these applications is critical. Purpose-built surveillance drives cost only slightly more than desktop equivalents, yet deliver higher capacity, consume less energy, generate less heat, and are specifically designed to handle 24/7 workloads.