G4S Fire & Security Systems (UK)- Experts & Thought Leaders

The British Security Industry Association (BSIA) has announced its regional security personnel winners for 2024, recognising frontline security officers across the United Kingdom for their commitment to keeping people, property and places professionally protected. The BSIA’s regional security personnel awards are part of the Association’s British Security Awards, which will be held from 2024 at the Royal Lancaster London. All regional winners will now go forward as national finalists – the full list will be published on 16 May along with the security business finalists. Exhibited by frontline security personnel Regional awards have recognised the talent, dedication, skill and bravery shown by frontline guard For 25 years, the regional awards have recognised the talent, dedication, skill and bravery exhibited by frontline security personnel in their roles. In 2024 the five categories, Best Newcomer, Best Team, Outstanding Act, Service to the Customer and Security Manager of the Year, saw a record number of entries. Mike Reddington, Chief Executive, BSIA said: “It is our honour to be able to recognise through the British Security Awards each year the work of security officers across the United Kingdom for their role in keeping people, property and places professionally protected. This year’s winners should be immensely proud of their achievements, and we wish them the best of luck as they now go forward to the national finals of the British Security Awards on 3 July.” Regional winning companies The 2024 regional winning companies are ABM, Bidvest Noonan, Dyson, G4S, Lodge Service, Land Sheriffs, Ministry of Defence, MAN Commercial Protection, Mitie, NG Bailey, OCS Group, Rockfort Secure, Samsic UK, SecuriGroup, Securitas UK, SGS, STM Group, Vigilance, Westgrove Group. The security personnel categories of the British Security Awards are sponsored by Darwin Clayton.

British universities are cited as some of the best in the world; working on cutting-edge and revolutionary research. Physical security measures The Director General of MI5 and senior politicians warned last week these institutions are being targeted for their intellectual property (IP) by hostile states and spies and as a result, this is a threat to national security. In the face of this, universities must work at speed to increase their physical security measures and keep their academia and research safe, while balancing the need for an open exchange of ideas that is vital to academic progress. Open sharing and collaboration Noah Price, G4S Academy International Director, said, “Threats against universities are on the increase and are expected to rise further." "Hostile states target universities because unlike government agencies or security services, these institutions prioritise the open sharing and collaboration of research, ideas, and education, which can make them more vulnerable to cyber-attacks and espionage." Multi-layered security Intellectual property theft committed by an external threat actor is expected to increase by 30% in the UK "Universities working on cutting-edge research need to implement targeted multi-layered security as a matter of urgency to protect sensitive research.” Intellectual property theft committed by an external threat actor is expected to increase by 30% in the UK in the next year, according to G4S’s first-ever World Security Report. Insider threats A preventative measure being considered by the UK government is for academics involved in critical scientific research at British universities to undergo vetting by security services. With internal threats expected to increase next year according to 94% of UK Chief Security Officers, vetting of university staff and regular re-vetting are actions G4S supports. Unauthorised access “Leaking of sensitive information, unauthorised access to company data or networks, and intellectual property theft are all expected by almost a third of respondents to our survey,” Price said. “Vetting and regular re-vetting are a really good physical security measure to detect those trying to infiltrate an organisation, or to see if anyone has been turned.” What physical security measures can be taken? AI surveillance systems may also be another; allowing security officers to monitor the movements Universities must implement a robust security operation preventing both physical and cyber threats. Implementing two-factor authentication on research devices, as well as passcode or biometric access controls are just two examples. AI surveillance systems may also be another; allowing security officers to monitor the movements of individuals ethically. Documents access Institutions should also monitor who is accessing certain documents on their devices. If there is no need for an individual to be reading a piece of research this could be a sign they are attempting to access confidential information and may be an insider. Price said, “While we all want universities to share academia, knowledge, and expertise, they must do so within a secure environment that protects IP from being stolen and also protects our national security. Implementing and maintaining a robust security operation is the best way to do this.”

G4S has launched a campaign to encourage employees to take advantage of apprenticeship training opportunities. Professional Security Operative The company believes that the new ‘Professional Security Operative’ apprenticeship provides an exciting opportunity for employees to enhance their skills. It is raising awareness of this apprenticeship, and of the huge range of other apprenticeships available, to help employees further their careers. Apprenticeship opportunities Apprenticeships are an important part of G4S’s investment in its employees and a key element Apprenticeships are an important part of G4S’s investment in its employees and a key element of its people strategy. The company offers apprenticeship opportunities to all employees, whether they are new to the company or have long service, regardless of their skillset and qualifications. Apprenticeship training Tony Summers, Head of Learning, Capability, and People Development at G4S comments, “We see the Professional Security Operative apprenticeship as a fantastic opportunity, not just for recruits to G4S, but also for existing employees in the first twelve months of their career." He adds, "G4S employees have benefited from apprenticeship training for many years, but until last year there was no specific security apprenticeship for those in the early stages of their career." Nationally recognised qualification Tony Summers continues, "The new apprenticeship provides a positive first step in employees’ training and career progression with G4S." He further said, "It provides the opportunity to obtain a nationally recognised qualification and can be followed by many other training opportunities, including the G4S Enhanced Security Officer level three course, which provides a blend of high-level skills, including conflict resolution and incident scene management." Employee communication campaign Tony Summers stated, "We have launched an employee communication campaign to raise awareness that there are apprenticeships to support a wide range of career aspirations and that work is done as part of the normal working week." He concludes, "Apprenticeships, including the Professional Security Operative, can have a positive effect on the skills and careers of a large number of front-line staff. We want to support our employees to become the G4S supervisors, managers, and pioneers of the future and we hope that many employees will take advantage of this opportunity."

Consolidation is a dominant trend in the security marketplace. Large companies typically swallow up smaller companies as a means of expanding both their technology portfolios and their geographic reach. Sometimes a big fish is swallowed up by an even bigger fish.   Despite the pandemic and resulting economic challenges, the security market has continued to be a desirable environment for both big players and startups, which then provide abundant acquisition targets for the larger companies. Acquisitions of Motorola Motorola Solutions has been among the most acquisitive of the larger players, recently adding several smaller companies to their growing portfolio. Just this year, Motorola has acquired Ava Security, a video security and analytics company; Calipsa, another analytics company; and Videotec, an Italian provider of ruggedized video solutions for critical infrastructure applications. Video solutions that help to enhance safety and streamline operations while supporting customers In one announcement, Motorola chairman and CEO Greg Brown stated the goal of acquisitions is “to support our customers’ evolving security needs by expanding our portfolio of intelligent video solutions that help to enhance safety and streamline operations.” Previously, Motorola Solutions acquired Envysion, a video analytics company for the retail market. On the access control side, Motorola acquired Openpath Security, a cloud-based, mobile access control provider, in 2021. Motorola entered the video surveillance business back in 2018 with the acquisition of Avigilon for around $1 billion. Also now a part of Motorola are IndigoVision and Pelco, among others. ACRE's mergers and acquisition Another company active in the mergers and acquisition market has been ACRE (Access Control Related Enterprises). The company began with a spinoff from Ingersoll Rand in 2012 to become Vanderbilt Industries. As ACRE, the parent company has been active both in acquisitions and divestitures over the next decade. Vanderbilt grew with the acquisition of Siemens’ Security Products in 2015. ACRE owned Mercury Security, a manufacturer of OEM hardware used by access control companies, from 2013 until it was sold to HID Global in 2017. The acquisition of Razberi enhances the ComNet portfolio while providing complementary technologies ACRE’s more recent access control acquisitions are RS2 Technologies (in 2019), Open Options (2018), Feenics (2021), and Matrix Systems (2021). They acquired ComNet, a manufacturer of video and data transmission equipment, in 2016. The acquisition of Razberi (in 2020) enhances the ComNet portfolio and provides complementary technologies to the access control brands. Acquisition of ACRE ACRE itself was acquired by European investment firm Triton in 2021, and Joseph Grillo, the company’s founder and CEO, announced his retirement in 2022. His knowledge of the security and access control markets helped to drive the company’s growth, including 11 successful acquisitions in all. Securitas acquiring Stanley Security  The acquisition of Stanley Security is transformational for both Securitas and the security industry Stanley Security has also made headlines. In December 2021, Securitas signed an agreement to acquire the Electronic Security Business from Stanley Black & Decker for $3.2 billion in cash. Securitas President and CEO Magnus Ahlqvist says, “the acquisition of Stanley Security is transformational for both Securitas and the security industry.” Allegion plc, global security products and solutions provider, later signed an agreement to acquire Stanley Access Technologies and assets related to the automatic entrance solutions business from Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. for $900 million. Acquisition by HID Global, ADT Inc. & Allied Universal HID Global has acquired Vizinex RFID, thus increasing its presence and relevance in key vertical markets, including healthcare/medical, manufacturing, oil and gas, data centres, etc. and adding a key technology to HID Global’s RFID tag portfolio. ADT Inc. recently expanded its geographic reach with the acquisition of Key-Rite Security, a locally owned and operated security provider specializing in access control, surveillance, intrusion, and intercom systems in Colorado and for customers across the United States. Allied Universal continues its strategic growth with the acquisition of Attenti Group, an electronic monitoring company Allied Universal has acquired Star Protection Agency, the largest Hawaiian-owned and veteran-owned security company in the state. Although Star is primarily a guard patrol service, with workers at 125 sites throughout the state, it provides a range of security technology and consulting services. Internationally, Allied Universal continues its strategic growth with the acquisition of Attenti Group, an electronic monitoring company. Allied Universal will integrate Attenti Group with G4S Monitoring Technologies, to create Allied Universal Electronic Monitoring Services. SALTO Systems making acquisition news Also internationally, SALTO Systems has made acquisition news by investing in Bluefield Smart Access, thus strengthening their portfolio of access control solutions. SALTO Systems is a manufacturer of electronic access control and operating system solutions, designed to provide a seamless, keyless and mobile experience for modern buildings. Also joining the SALTO Group is Cognitec Systems, a face recognition company. The goal is to strengthen their research, development and market reach while working with SALTO on new technologies for expanding biometric markets. SALTO strategically selected Cognitec Systems to meet market requests for adding face recognition and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to the company’s electronic access control and ticketing solutions. Acquisitions by MOBOTIX and Resideo Technologies  Resideo Technologies, Inc. entered into an agreement to acquire First Alert, Inc., a provider of home safety products Further, on the international scene, MOBOTIX has reached an agreement to acquire Vaxtor Group, Tres Cantos, Spain, an artificial intelligence (AI) based video analytics provider, specializing in Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and Deep Learning technologies. On the residential system's front, Resideo Technologies, Inc. entered into an agreement to acquire First Alert, Inc., a provider of home safety products, from Newell Brands Inc. for $593 million in an all-cash transaction. Established in 1969 and based in Aurora, Illinois, First Alert offers a strong omnichannel presence serving end-users directly through retail and e-commerce channels and professional contractors through relationships with distributors and home builders.