Technologies for protecting against intruders.
For Nedap, this meant it was time to “go back to the drawing board” and start all over again. In 2000, Nedap launched the new, fully networked AEOS security platform, which has since been tested in over one hundred and fifty major installations. Berend Jan Palamba, Manager of the Security Systems Division, gave us some insight into the future of security management systems.
Market and Technology Drivers
“Extensive market research has shown the true nature of the gap between supply and demand in the security space,” says Palumba. “The main complaints we have received have been limited scalability, the inability to perform certain tasks centrally, the requirement to integrate different card reader technologies, and the fact that users are locked into specific client software.”
The development of a new generation of security systems has been driven by consumer demand. It has also been supported by two important technical developments: the commercial use of modern networking technologies based on the TCP/IP (Internet) protocol, and the increasing use of distributed intelligence systems. This has opened up a number of extremely interesting opportunities for security management.
Palumba: «All this explains why we, like many suppliers in the security market, were faced with the need to make a qualitative shift in technology and mentality, since the main requirements of the security market are clearly focused on a completely different system structure. In our case, a dedicated team of security and software experts proposed an innovative and modular security management platform: AEOS»
Theory of evolution
In the past, a company might purchase different systems for all its branches and then use them for 15 years. Today's network-based solutions allow you to constantly change your security policy in line with the ever-changing reality around you, by integrating all your sites into one central system. According to Berend Jan Palamba, today there is a clear gap between «rigid» systems with built-in restrictions and the demands of security managers for the system to meet the various needs of the organization operating it.
The dilemma
«Companies are constantly changing, take reorganizations or corporate mergers for example. In addition, social and cultural aspects on the ground greatly influence the overall security situation. At the same time, the market is flooded with new technologies every day. Look around, there is a new IP camera almost every day.»
The rapid pace of technological change is a major driver of what Palumba calls the security management dilemma. He says, “Things are moving so fast that it can be difficult for companies to keep up. Furthermore, there are limitations inherent in existing systems, such as integrating different types of card readers or external systems. Most systems have built-in limitations that can at best be upgraded to expand. As a result, system manufacturers create a variety of semi-effective methods to try to interface with new technologies. On a base structure that is in most cases 10 to 15 years old!”
The Changing Job of a Security Manager
Thanks to the capabilities inherent in network technologies that are widely used today, in particular peer-to-peer communications, it is possible to organize a truly distributed integration of devices. This allows you to save the investments made earlier in readers and cards, since it becomes possible to integrate almost all available reading technologies on the market into one common system.
It is no surprise that, due to all these factors, the focus of security management is shifting from hardware to software. The software functionality of the main hardware devices allows modern system providers to deliver solutions tailored to the customer’s needs. This shift to highly flexible and scalable systems reflects the growing trend away from “bone” solutions and leads to virtually unlimited system architecture. In other words: it provides a more efficient, including cost-effective, working infrastructure for security managers.
Systems that think for you
One of the key features of modern and future-oriented security systems that are currently entering the market is distributed intelligence – in other words, intelligence that is not on the server, but in the system components. Berend Jan Palumba explains: “In the past, if you wanted to put a camera on a door where there were problems with people entering at the same time, you had to make significant changes to the system. The communication channel looked something like this: the controller sent a message to the server, where it was processed and sent to the video matrix. The message was then sent to the camera, which could only then start recording. By this point, of course, too much time had passed. The communication could be delayed by a number of other factors. For example, the server might not have enough spare capacity at the time, or the server and matrix could not “find a common language.”
By allowing the system controller to instruct the camera to start recording directly over the TCP/IP network, all tasks can be completed immediately. By moving the download from the server to the controller, you not only ensure fast, direct communication, but also maximum reliability, since the components are no longer dependent on the central server. »
Key Technologies Becoming Standard in Access Control Systems
Today, security management decisions depend on a number of factors, including cost versus performance, functionality versus design, and short-term versus long-term investment. New demands dictate a different type of thinking: security managers are now paying more attention to flexible, modular solutions. And rather than paying for individual products and systems, companies are increasingly choosing to invest in innovative, integrated structures. «As our customers can attest,» says Palumba, «a change in thinking and a preference for investing in future-proof, highly flexible systems rather than in rigid ones is the way forward.»
Authors: Sylvia Stijemman and Berend Jan Palumba