Blog entries

“Down” is Good for the Economy and Security Industry

Byron Marsales — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:29:27 +0100

Last year was another ho-hum year for the economy. That was a sour reality for many businesses and industries. But we did end 2011 with some good news on fronts that affect many of us – news that suggest better days lie ahead.

Crime is Down
The first insight came fRead More...

The Holidays Bring Security Issues - Smarter Security Can Help

Byron Marsales — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 19:31:59 +0100

Jingle Bells. Chestnuts roasting on an open fire. Joy to the World. These are some of the sounds that evoke images of a delightful holiday season. But to many people this is a crazy time of year. Traffic can be a nightmare. All the shopping and shipping and cards take time. Parties are certaRead More...

ROI is More Dependable for Security Growth than Terrorists and Criminals

Byron Marsales — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 16:59:33 +0100

It appears we have made it completely through a very worthwhile remembrance of 9-11. It seems every trade pub. in the industry had a cover story on the 10-year anniversary, but we’ve rounded the corner and now we’re seeing other important topics such as the Security 500 Read More...

Access Control at Universities - Offensive Line and NFC

Byron Marsales — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 05:00:00 +0100

Saturday was a historical day for Joe Paterno and Penn State University. In reaching 408 wins, he tied the record held by Eddie Robinson for the most wins by a coach in Div. 1 college football. Just a day before Penn State took the field against Northwestern, hRead More...

Set Your Security Alarm Clock to 9-11 to be Sure You're Ready

Byron Marsales — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 05:00:00 +0100

10 years and 10 days ago, 9/11 became a landmark date in our country’s history. For very bad reasons. As we approached the recent anniversary, there was some anticipation that terrorists would strike again. Defenses and alerts were high in many places. As we all know now, nothing happened, and we’re aRead More...

Stopping Bullies and Other Security Threats by Voice

Byron Marsales — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 19:32:21 +0100

Just before our son started middle school this month, my wife and I sat down with him to talk about several things he’d encounter in his new school that were different from his elementary days and one of the topics we covered was bullying. I’ve heard and read some terrible accounts of bullyiRead More...

Building Upgrades to Rock in the Recovery

Byron Marsales — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 19:40:50 +0100

There are signs of continued economic recovery in our nation – some companies are reporting strong results. And there are signs of continued weakness or reversal – consumer spending in Q2 was up only 0.1%, the slowest growth since the end of 2009. There is plenty written about the Read More...

Fiber Optic Fence Detection System: Affordable?

Kyle Christian — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 15:53:58 +0100

To be completely candid, I sell SmarterFence for Smarter Security Systems, so if this sounds like a sales pitch, it kind of is. Many people don’t want a sales person hounding them to purchase a product they can’t afford or aren’t interested in. However, with the recent increase in Read More...

Helmet Cameras, Kid-Cams and Money to be Made in Video Surveillance

Byron Marsales — Wed, 18 May 2011 21:26:52 +0100

Osama bin Laden has been taken off the FBI's 10 Most Wanted list due to death. That’s good news but it remains to be seen what impact this may have on international terrorism. I am hopeful. One of the interesting side stories of this landmark event was the photo of PresidenRead More...

Turnstiles Don't Sleep - an Edge in Lobby Security

Byron Marsales — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 05:36:43 +0100

There have been a lot of stories lately about dozing air traffic controllers. I think it’s the case that the number of incidents has risen vs. there’s just more reporting of typical occurrences. Given the safety issues that would affect people in the planes and on the ground, iRead More...

Saving Lives Can Be Fun – Running with Your Security Colleagues at ISC West

Byron Marsales — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 15:52:41 +0100

I have been an off-and-on runner for much of my adult life. For me, it’s been an easy and good form of exercise. And at times, it can be a social event too. I’ll get together with some college buddies and we’ll go running. Or maybe I’ll run a 5k with a friend or a relay Read More...

Unrest Creates Opportunity for the Security Industry

Byron Marsales — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 06:51:35 +0100

The events of the last six weeks in northern Africa and the Middle East have been very interesting to behold. I felt when Egypt was nearing the climax of its protests that this was going to be a historic time. I didn’t predict the spread beyond Egypt and Tunisia to be so wiRead More...

A New Wave of Security Concerns

Kyle Christian — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 23:03:18 +0100

The events that took place on 9-11-2001 changed the way Americans view and handle the topic of terrorism. If only one lesson was learned from those events, it was that we are not invulnerable to terrorist attack. As views changed and action was taken, we tried to make sure that our homRead More...

Let's Hope We Just See Football - Securing the Super Bowl

Byron Marsales — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 06:00:00 +0100

(photo by: David Jones)

Before I joined the security industry, the Super Bowl was a sports spectacle, a great time to get together with friends, and a smorgasbord of high-cost advertising, some of it entertaining. In the past, I heard mouthwatering stories about the food preparations for Read More...

More Security – Less Evil

Byron Marsales — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 01:06:48 +0100

(Photo by: SearchNetMedia)

The shooting incident 10 days ago in Tucson, AZ was a tragic event, to be sure. It has garnered a lot of media attention in part because of the political celebrity of the house rep. and the judge who were caught in the line of fire. Had it been a Muslim or Hispanic shooter, the national resRead More...

Training Employees is Good, but Door Security Requires More

Byron Marsales — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 21:26:23 +0100

If you’re reading this blog, there’s a good chance you are aware of what part of security our company is engaged in. With our Fastlane entrance control products, we help prevent unauthorized access into buildings. This includes stopping tailgaters. So you wouldRead More...

A New Attitude Toward Perimeter Security in 2011

Kyle Christian — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 06:00:00 +0100

PIDS, perimeter intrusion detection systems, are becoming more popular and necessary as the economy continues its slump. Crimes like scrap metal theft (i.e. copper theft), vandalism, and equipment theft are on the rise because criminals are always looking for a way to make, or take, a quick Read More...

Security is Looking Good for 2011 - or Is It?

Byron Marsales — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 17:43:03 +0100

There’s not too much left in this year that many will be happy to say “good-bye” to. Truthfully, every year has many good things, but the economic conditions in our country and around the world are so pervasive that they tend to stay top of mind. Sure, 2009 was worse than 2010 Read More...

WikiLeaks for Business…and Other Online Threats to Organization Brands

Byron Marsales — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 06:00:00 +0100

As we begin the final month of the year, most organizations with fiscal years that align with the calendar year have clear line of sight to how this year will shape up. Just beyond that horizon is 2011, which prompts the questions of “what will the next year bring?” and “what should we do to affeRead More...

Thanks for the Great U.S. and to All Who Keep Us Safe

Byron Marsales — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 19:16:04 +0100

For most of us, this is a short work week, and we have visions of time with family, fun and filling food, home projects, exciting football, recreation, and/or recovery from the craziness of work these days. Some of us will be flying on the nuttiest flying day of the year, likely to be made worse this year by an organized protest agRead More...