ACRE, LLC News

The Security Industry Association (SIA) announced its 2019 executive committee and welcomed five new members to the SIA Board of Directors at The Advance, SIA’s annual membership meeting, during ISC West 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. New voting members At The Advance – held Tuesday, April 9, at the Sands Expo Center – the SIA Board of Directors ratified the selection of five new voting members of the Board of Directors to serve two-year terms from 2019 to 2021: Greg Hill, dir...

Vanderbilt, a global provider of state-of-the-art security systems, announced that they will jointly attend this year’s IFSEC International with sister-company ComNet. The 2019 tradeshow takes place between June 18-20, at ExCeL London. In addition to their flagship products and prominence in open platforms and integrations, both companies, under the ACRE banner, will also highlight their ability to aid customers in every step of their security journey. “From the moment our customers...

Our Expert Panel is an opinionated group on a wide variety of topics, and we are dedicated to providing a useful and flexible forum to share those opinions. This week, our panelists address a range of opinions about several self-selected topics, culled from the large number of Expert Panelist responses we have collected in the last year. In this Expert Panel Roundtable article, we will share these varied and insightful responses to ensure they are not lost to posterity!

A rapid string of merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions as 2018 passed into 2019 suggests the physical security industry may be on the verge of a busy year of companies buying other companies. Observers have noted a large amount of investment capital currently available to be invested in security M&A, and plenty of entrepreneurial companies are looking to be acquired. Joe Grillo, CEO of ACRE, previously hinted at upcoming M&A activity for his company by the end of 2018, foreshad...

Open Options (acquired by ACRE, LLC), the pioneer in open platform access control solutions, has appointed Steve Wagner as the company’s new President. Steve began his career in the industry in 1986 as VP of Sales & Marketing for Checkpoint Systems. He moved on to become the COO with HID Global for 8 years. In 2009, Steve became the President of Mercury Security and successfully grew that business which was eventually sold to HID Global/Assa Abloy. Steve brings a wide breadth of knowl...

Open Options, based in Addison, Texas, provides a truly open access control architecture that will strengthen the ACRE portfolio and increase the breadth of solutions offered by the global provider of security systems. The acquisition of Open Options is also an opportunity for ACRE to focus on growth opportunities in North America and “balance the scales a bit,” says Joe Grillo, CEO of ACRE, which significantly grew its reach in Europe, the Middle East and Africa with the acquisitio...

ACRE, global provider of state-of-the-art security systems, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Open Options based in Addison, Texas. Strategic acquisition of ComNet and ACT This purchase will enhance ACRE’s strategic expansion plans for strengthening its access control business and product portfolio. This is the latest M&A activity since ACRE completed the acquisitions of ComNet (Danbury, Conn.) and Access Control Technologies “ACT” (D...

One of the biggest recent security divestitures in the news was the sale of Mercury Security to HID Global, which occurred around a year ago. The seller in that transaction was ACRE (Access Control Related Enterprises), also the parent company of Vanderbilt and ComNet. We recently spoke to founder and CEO Joe Grillo, a 30-year industry veteran, about the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market, ACRE’s future, and new opportunities opened up by the Mercury sale. Q: What’s new wit...

The Global Security Exchange (GSX) seems smaller this year, which is not surprising given the absence on the show floor of several big companies such as Hikvision and ASSA ABLOY (although their subsidiary HID Global has a big booth). A trend affecting the number of companies exhibiting at GSX 2018, and other trade shows, is industry consolidation, which is impacting the show even beyond the fewer exhibitors this year in Las Vegas. GSX is the new branding for the trade show formerly kno...

Using a smart phone as an access control credential is an idea whose time has come – or has it? The flexible uses of smart phones are transforming our lives in multiple ways, and the devices are replacing everything from our alarm clocks to our wallets to our televisions. However, the transformation from using a card to using a mobile credential for access control is far from a no-brainer for many organisations, which obstacles to a fast or easy transition. We asked this week’s Exper...

ACRE, a global provider of integrated technology solutions and services, announced that ACRE, Vanderbilt and its subsidiaries, has entered into a strategic alliance with AlertEnterprise to expand and diversify technology options for customers. The AlertEnterprise suite of security convergence software, including its Physical Identity and Access Management (PIAM) solution, combined with the Vanderbilt Security Management Solution (SMS), will offer predictive analytics, compliance and advanced in...

The physical security industry is embracing the cloud in a big way. Cloud-based systems – which involve accessing a shared pool of information technology resources via the Internet – are much higher-profile in the video and access control markets, and large and small companies are getting on the cloud bandwagon. We asked this week's Expert Panel Roundtable: What factors are contributing to growth in cloud systems in the security market?

The three-day IFSEC International Conference and Expo was a sight to see as more than 27,000 attendees from around the globe descended on London's ExCeL to attend the event. Central to the show was the exhibit hall, where manufacturers across the industry demonstrated the products, services, and solutions designed to keep people safe and add more intelligence to comprehensive security plans. In a time where threats are becoming more diverse and complex, caused in part by rapidly developing tech...

ACRE, global integrated technology solutions and services provider announced that CEO Joe Grillo has been named as a 2018 IFSEC Global Security & Fire Influencer in the Security Tech Leaders category for his ability to drive technological innovation and elevate the industry globally.  2018 IFSEC Global Security & Fire Influencer The list of influencers, which is selected by a panel of highly respected judges, seeks to recognise fire and security professionals who are influential i...

ISC West 2018 concluded as its largest and most successful show to-date, bringing more than 1,000 exhibitors and brands, 30,000 industry professionals, more than 85 educational sessions and more than 25 special events together in Las Vegas. That's why ACRE, the parent company of Vanderbilt and ComNet, chose this event to debut its brands in a co-located position on the show floor, allowing visitors to peruse both booths during their visits and chat with a more integrated team. Earlier this mont...

ACRE, a global supplier in providing security products and solutions for the access control, intrusion, smart traffic and video surveillance markets, announced the promotion of Andrew Acquarulo Jr. as President of ACRE Americas. Ronald Virden, who was recently named ACRE COO, will also assume the role of President of ACRE International. The evolution of the company's leadership roles will allow ACRE to refocus its efforts based on geographic regions, allowing greater alignment between its Vande...

ISC West 2018 is the largest physical, IT and IoT security industry trade show in the United States, which takes place April 11-13, at the Sands Expo. Vanderbilt is looking forward to a variety of conversations and technology demonstrations at booth 5083. The cloud and the IoT are the hottest topics in the security industry today, as their benefits are being recognised across a wide range of sectors and vertical markets. Access control is no exception; today’s users expect more of an inte...

ACRE, a global provider of security products and solutions for the access control, intrusion, smart traffic and video surveillance markets, has announced the appointment of Ronald Virden as Chief Operating Officer, effective April 1, 2018. With extensive experience in senior leadership roles with global entities, Virden will help to elevate ACRE’s position in the electronic security marketplace, seek new opportunities for growth, and strengthen the momentum following recent strategic deals...

Merger and acquisition activity has become a familiar topic in the physical security market. In 2016, SourceSecurity.com covered M&A news involving some of the industry’s largest companies, including high-profile names such as Tyco, Honeywell, Hikvision, ADT, and Ingram Micro. Here’s a look at the top 10 M&A stories in 2016, as covered by SourceSecurity.com:   1. Johnson Control and Tyco merge Johnson Controls and Tyco announced their merger into one comp...

ACRE continues to rapidly expand presence in the global security industry ACRE, LLC, the holding company that owns Vanderbilt Industries, Mercury Security, and recently acquired ACT in Ireland, announced the acquisition of Communication Networks LLC (dba ComNet), a manufacturer of video and data transmission equipment. Wireless video and data transmission The acquisition of ComNet builds on the ACRE family of companies, providing complimentary communication technologies util...