Now that you are familiar with Physical Security Information Management (PSIM) and what the technology does, here are five reasons why you should think about PSIM technology for your business.
1. Tight budgets, ROI of security investments
With the economy still recovering, IT and security budgets remain tight and most, if not all organizations, are expected to do more with less.
By integrating all of the disparate security systems and devices, the PSIM technology enables organizations to continue to take advantage of their existing security investments from multiple vendors while also being able to integrate newer technologies without expensive custom integrations or high costs from systems integrators trying to make them work.
The ability to share information across organizations enables companies to optimize their existing security and safety systems, and become more intelligent and efficient without having to spend more financial and human resources.
Additionally, PSIMallows organizations to enable their security investments to work together, rather than siloed, for optimized situational analysis and response which maximizes ROI.
2. Increased complexity of safety and security systems
An organization’s security ecosystem is composed of numerous physical security devices and systems, both analogue and digital, from multiple vendors.
With annual upgrades and updates required along with the continued influx of new technologies, organizations need to manage this complexity.
This, coupledwith theincreased risk of terrorism, IP theft, insider threats, workplace violence and natural disasters that threaten organizations daily, forces organizations to develop a more comprehensive and collaborative approach to protecting and managing their equipment, inventory, buildings, data and people.
PSIM software tackles this complexity by integratingand analyzing information from the disparate systems and devices (video cameras, fire systems, building management, access control, power management, etc) and providing a common operating picture with analysis and intelligence, allowing organizations to more quickly and efficiently identify and verify situations, and coordinate a faster response – saving time, money, and in some cases, lives.
3.Ensure standard operating procedures are followed for situation resolution
In emergencies, time is critical and the effectiveness of the response can be the difference between safety and disaster, life or death.
PSIM technology helps establish standard operating procedures and step-by-step instructions based on best practices and organizational policies and tools to resolve situations faster, smarter and more cost-effectively.
By eliminating the guesswork, organizations can quickly – and appropriately – identify potential threatening situations and ensure safe, effective responses, reducing costly errors.
PSIM systems also help enforce adherence to these standard operating procedures given that it ensures consistency of responses.
By presenting operators with step-by-step response instructions that follow security and safety policies, organizations and responders will be able to respond calmly and efficiently in the heat of the moment, rather than letting the stress of an emergency situation dictate their response.
4.Real-time visibility
PSIM technology provides security personnel and first responders with real-time information that enables more efficient, effective and safe resolution to situations.
More specifically, it can provide responders with a view into relevant assets such as maps, floor plans, and video prior to arriving on scene as well as provide updates as the situation evolves.
Arming first responders with real-time information as they approach a situation enables them to have a clearer understanding of what they are about to face – helping them protect themselves and more effectively respond.
5.Intelligent Tracking for Improvement
It is important to regularly analyze how situations have been handled to identify areas of improvement.
Have responses been inconsistent? Is a particular standard operating procedure out of date or ineffective? What could have been done better?
Truly effective PSIM systems learn from situations over time by documenting steps taken and best practices employed, enabling organizations and responders to learn from past experiences to speed appropriate responses to future events.
