Why PSIM is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts

Why PSIM is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts

Picture the following scenario: you’re monitoring a university campus and you receive an alarm signal for an intrusion alert in a building that houses science labs. While you are checking camera footage, another signal comes in for an access control breach – a door left ajar at an adjacent building. What you don’t know is in another area of campus, security is also getting a blue box call from a student who saw someone leave a suspicious-looking backpack next to the library windows.

Are these incidents related? Is your campus about to undergo an attack? Or, are these just random events that happen to be occurring around the same time? It’s difficult to tell because you don’t have all the information. (more…)

Why Is Self-Directed Learning So Important?

Why Is Self-Directed Learning So Important?

What does it mean to be an educator? It means we help people learn what is not yet known to them. To do that we must have a willing learner on the other side. Educators and Managers cannot do the work, or the learning, for another. What they offer are the skills, expertise, and experience. Learners themselves come to learning with their experiences and their curiosity.

I have had the pleasure of educating people since age 15 at my first job with McDonald’s and over the next 35 years, I have created training programs and trained people on process and software in many industries and around the world. I earned my Master’s degree in Adult Education and Training in 2012. Most recently, I worked as the Director of Training with Bold Group. (more…)

Four Questions to Take the Scare Out of Business Fire Safety

Four Questions to Take the Scare Out of Business Fire Safety

October may be the time for candy and costumes but for businesses, it’s also Fire Safety Month! Every organization must take the threat of fire seriously, especially since studies show over 40% of businesses never recover after a disaster. Here are a few questions many owners may have about prevention and alarm monitoring when considering protecting their employees and assets from fire. (more…)

An Introduction to BizTalk for SedonaOffice

An Introduction to BizTalk for SedonaOffice

Thirty years ago, an engineering student in Paris by the name of Eric Thomas developed a software program to automate the management of email lists. Up to this point in time, email lists had to be administrated manually, which was a tedious and time-consuming process. Thomas’ email list management program became a success and was named LISTSERV. Over time, the software continued to evolve and as other products were written, the term “listserver” became a generic term for any mail management software.

Fast forward to today, and you will find that a number of companies and groups continue to use listservers to promote community and discussion among their user base. While other tools exist such as Forums and Blogs, nothing beats the convenience of sending an email. (more…)

The Necessity of Video Surveillance in the Modern Monitoring Center

The Necessity of Video Surveillance in the Modern Monitoring Center

Cameras have been used as security resources for nearly as long as they have existed. However, they were often underutilized because continuous monitoring feeds are extremely resource-intensive. However, through integration with alarm monitoring and the continued improvement of analytics, video can now be used as a more proactive tool to improve the response to security events in real-time. Using cameras for verification provides substantial benefits for the modern monitoring center. (more…)