Electronic Security Future Clouded – Electronic security people face a future ripe with opportunity and fraught with challenge.
Casting an eye over intersecting business and market trends tells us security services will be an elemental part of the future technological mix but exactly how the current industry will fit into that future is harder to see.
Of note are developments that will grow the market while at the same time might limit the number of future players by making it easier for big external organisations to benefit from scale to dominate.
There’s a way to go yet but we view the endless downward spiral on price with a wary eye. Security distributors delineate themselves by offering elevated levels of service but there’s a margin number underneath which that elevation is going to become more difficult to achieve.
There’s always pressure on price from users. The current business environment is not going to alleviate that pressure, though it’s always worth bearing in mind as an end user that you get what you pay for and you’re almost always better to use a discount to secure a performance upgrade.
Electronic Security Future Clouded.
Electronic Security Future Clouded
Cloud business models are another consideration for thoughtful security providers, whether integrators or distributors. We are still in very early days when it comes to cloud, and the technology’s unfurling in the face of Australia’s miserable connectivity continues to experience some latency.
We’d argue that every security integrator and every security distribution business needs to get their hands on a quality cloud security suite. When you’re talking about the upper end of the market there are not that many solutions around so moving fast is a good idea.
The things you’ll need to focus on when it comes to cloud include thinking through a business model, building networking capability into the wider technical team, training techs to train users to operate systems using smart devices.
You’ll also need to ensure that your cloud hardware is quality. We bang on about this but many cloud providers focus entirely on the interface and the back end. For installers who are hanging hardware in rugged environments and whose clients depend on serious performance that’s not going to cut it.
As usual, the best way to establish what works and doesn’t is to talk among yourselves, install the latest gear and to pay close attention to what happens next. You’re interested in hardware longevity, network stability, the ability of systems to deliver on operational demands, cyber security, user friendliness and ease of installation.
Regardless of issues with internet performance, Australian businesses continue to power ahead with digital transformations that are inevitably going to impact on electronic security solution choices. We’ve seen cloud surveillance in a range of applications now, including education, retail, SME, residential and increasingly, external applications. This trend is not going away.
Access control and alarm solutions are a little less exposed to the impact of cloud, given their device-hub architecture generally mirrors the structure of traditional systems, in which sensors and switches revolve around a central controller. Further, these systems have been network connected through management and monitoring systems since the ‘80s and these connections are built into the DNA of most existing business models.
The more complex topology of alarm systems means it makes more sense for low power wireless devices to be aggregated at a local hub. Further, the expansion of electronic security devices to routinely include video doorbells, external sensors, flood and temperature sensors and PIR cameras additionally insulates installers.
That said, the extraordinary simplicity of enrolling devices via QR puts the process of installation into the hands of mildly technical users. Whether we see a serious shift in this direction depends on manufacturers and their ISP partners more than anything else – they will be driven by margin. So far, we’ve seen that low end cloud-based security systems have their uses, but it will take something more that cloud connecting cheap hardware with limited functionality to shake the market.
Comms is another interesting study when it comes to the shape of future technology because it expands internet – and cloud – everywhere. As 4G LTE services drop in price it makes increasing sense to employ 4G to handle alarm monitoring and management duties, remote CCTV monitoring and more. When you add developments like 4G, improved compression, solar with MPPT and superior and reliable LiFePo batteries together almost anything is possible for enterprising techs.
Electronic Security Future Clouded
We think one of the most fun things about the uptake of 4G is what it says about 5G. Presently 5G coverage has its limitations but the idea the market will not delight in a comms technology that offers enormous and increasingly affordable wireless bandwidth is mistaken. And 5G will turbo charge cloud with the extra bandwidth able to offer way faster up and down times.
Running alongside these technologies analytics continues to expand its reach into the electronic security market. Analytics can deliver face recognition in crowded places, handle line crossing, undertake people counting, and support procedures around social distancing. But these capabilities are the tip of the iceberg.
The development of increasingly affordable, increasingly reliable analytics is going to change the way devices interact with users, as well as empowering security operations with data in ways we’ve never seen before. From detecting weapons to identifying accidents and incidents, AI will filter through security technology in extraordinary ways.
You can find out more about cloud here and read more SEN news here.
“Electronic Security Future Clouded By Challenges.”
