Security Sales & Integration

October 2012

SSI serves security installing contractors providing systems and services; surveillance, access control, biometrics, fire alarm and home control/automation. Coverage in commercial and residential product applications, designs, techniques, operations.

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Albuquerque, N.M. Addressing the alarm management issues were: Debbie Hansen, false alarm reduction coordinator, Naperville (Ill.) Police Department; Amy Lowe, alarm coordinator , emergency communications center, Lynchburg, Va.; Gerry Miller, supervisor, alarm program communications center, Peel Regional Police, Brampton, Ontario, Canada; and Kerri McDonald, alarm enforcement unit, Riverside (Calif.) Police Department. McDonald took over for Miller this year as the association's president, while Hansen and Lowe are also FARA board members. Heartening as the recent research may be, reducing false alarms/ dispatches and fortifying the alarm company-user-responder circle remains a crucial and ongoing mission. Read on to discover the key trends, technologies, challenges and opportunities aff ecting this sometimes delicate balance from the intimate vantage point of these highly engaged public servants. Kerri, what initiatives are you looking at as FARA's new president? Kerri McDonald: I've been involved in FARA for numerous years, most recently as chair of the Training Certifi cation Committee. FARA is going to still be looking at false alarm reduction eff orts, how we can contribute, what the association can "I am anxious to see how video verifi cation develops and if our businesses and such start implementing this type of an alarm system. We will catch more burglars that way and the police then too know exactly what they're going into. DEBBIE HANSEN " False Alarm Reduction Coordinator Naperville (Ill.) Police Department do as a whole to look at new ways to reduce alarms, any new methods out there. T at's always our main focus and main goal. T en to increase our membership, create awareness, build the partnership and relationships. And to keep that going with the alarm industry, the alarm user, software vendors, anyone and everyone with a vested interest in false alarm reduction. We're looking toward developing our false fi re alarm reduction eff orts — putting out publications, manuals and guides pertaining not just to burglary, which we already have, but also fi re. What is your general perception of the electronic security/burglar alarm industry?* Provides useful crime deterrents, but making little headway on false alarms Provides useful crime deterrents, making gains on the false alarm issue A valued partner in deterring/preventing burglary Of little or no value to law enforcement While sheriff responses came out slightly more favorably than those of police, in excess of 90% of law enforcement believe the electronic security/alarm industry provides useful or valuable crime deterrence. However, the largest faction see little progress in false alarm reduction. *Source: SSI 2011 Law Enforcement Security Industry Study What is the value you get from belonging to FARA? Amy Lowe: It's invaluable. I get the networking with people. Mainly, though, I get to discuss a lot of the issues I'm having because I am the only person who does the alarms where I am. I fi nd out things others are doing that's working for them. I can then share that with upper command and tell them these are the things these jurisdictions are doing; can we try to implement POLICE SHERIFFS 48.3% 31.1% 13.5% 7.1% 45.1% 33.8% 17.6% 3.5% this or can we try to do this? T at one's really big for me. T en, of course, you gain friendships. You also learn about new agencies. I get to use all that to incorporate into my program. Let's talk about some of the challenges with alarm management and permitting you face in your local jurisdictions. Debbie Hansen: I am very fortunate that we've had an alarm ordinance [in Naperville, Ill.] since the 1980s. So when I took the job over six years ago, there were many things in place already that were helping to reduce false alarms. I was able to continue with those things that had been established. T en, of course, with what I've been learning through FARA we've changed our ordinance. We've updated it. We've changed our software, just diff erent things to make it even a better a program, and see better results in reducing false alarms. McDonald: Riverside [Calif.] has been pretty consistent over the years. I've been in the alarm unit for a little over 12 years now. We have seen some reduction. We had an ordinance revision in 2008. From that we saw around a 15% to 16% reduction in false alarms. Unfortunately, I haven't brought up the statistics yet this year, but we were happy with those results. Before the changes in our ordinance went into eff ect we were right around 10,000 alarm responses in one year. We OCTOBER 2012 / SECURITYSALES.COM / 49

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