Karyn Hodgson

Generating Interest in Newer Credential Technologies by Marrying Security With Convenience

It’s a tough sell to get clients to spend money on new access control credentials when the current ones still work. The key to generating interest in newer credential technologies is marrying security with convenience.

Karyn Hodgson

July 6, 2015

When it comes to access control cards and credentials it is difficult to have a discussion about technology without considering some of the seemingly contradictory trends in the marketplace. For example, the largest installed base of cards is proximity — a 20-year-old technology with known security issues. Yet in an industry that often seems to move at a glacial pace, the credential space is filled with some of the hottest buzzwords inside and out of the security industry, including Near Field Communications (NFC), Bluetooth, biometrics and even wearables such as the Apple Watch.

Security data definitely has a big place in the big data arena. Video analytics are already being used in many retail and banking applications in an early big data-like solution.

What’s the Big Deal About Big Data?

As industry buzzwords go, "big data" may not top the list for a majority of integrators today; but that could change very quickly.

Karyn Hodgson

July 6, 2015

What is big data and how does it benefit you? If you are like many security integrators the subject of big data may barely be on your radar yet. However, looking to the future of the industry, it seems inevitable that as more and more devices become both smarter and more connected (think Internet of Things), the desire to do more than just sit on all of that information will prompt users to demand more from their security system, their integrator — and, increasingly, their data that may go way beyond the scope of “security” today.

CSAA & ESA Annual Meetings Focus on Underscoring Value, Re-establishing Relevance

Karyn Hodgson

Laura Stepanek

June 24, 2015

Two key meetings held on Tuesday, June 23 at the ESX show in Baltimore were the Electronic Security Association’s annual membership meeting and the Central Station Alarm Association International’s general membership meeting.

Find Your RMR in the Access Cloud

Karyn Hodgson

June 3, 2015

Opportunities for earning RMR through cloud-based abound right now, making it a perfect time to think about offering hosted or managed access control.

State of the Market: Fire Alarms 2015

Karyn Hodgson

June 2, 2015

New and retrofit construction, code changes, communication shifts, easier-to-install technology and a potential increase in discretionary spending are five reasons to be hopeful that the U. S. fire market is moving beyond ‘back to flat.’

PSA-TEC Focused on Education, Opportunity and a Push for Cyber Awareness

Karyn Hodgson

May 18, 2015

This year’s PSA-TEC, held May 4-8 in Westminster, Colo., featured nearly 100 educational sessions geared to integrators of all sizes and an impressive attendance that was up by about 31 percent over last year, according to PSA.

Talking to Customers About Card Readers

Karyn Hodgson

May 7, 2015

The card reader can and often should be a bigger part of the conversation between the security integrator and his customer.

IP Power Supplies As Potential Sources of RMR

Karyn Hodgson

May 6, 2015

Who ever thought power supplies could be a revenue stream? Today’s IP-centric power supplies are smarter, more efficient, and even a potential source of RMR.

At the Eco-Partner panel, moderated by Samsung Techwin Director of Marketing Janet Fenner, the question was posed, "What is your definition of a good partner?"

2015 Is the ‘Year of the Partner’

Karyn Hodgson

April 6, 2015

At the Samsung Techwin STEP Partner conference, held March 8-11 in Cancun, Mexico, Samsung declared 2015 to be “The Year of the Partner.” On the surface that may seem like just one company’s take on things; but really, the description could aptly be applied to just about every aspect of systems integration today.