It’s almost three years since I wrote an article for this magazine predicting an exciting future for IP alarm installations. I said there would be rapid take-up among domestic customers and forecast that commercial users would be easily convinced by the cost benefits and the extra functions of IP systems.
My crystal ball gazing has proved spot on – in the rest of Europe. In the UK the market has moved more slowly.
True, there have been some notable conversions to digital – retailers, banks, commercial organisations, schools – and true, insurers are now perfectly satisfied, but among installers, old habits seem to die hard.
Even recent concerns about the effects of 21CN and the prospect of big financial gains for going digital, have not convinced most installers that it’s worth switching to IP – yet.
But, because I know the technology so well, I’m standing by my prediction. More UK customers are using our IP systems every month, and more will follow.
Since I wrote my article in 2005 the cost of using IP in Britain has fallen substantially and is now much more in line with the rest of Europe. So the cost-benefit argument is now even more compelling.
UK, leading or following?
As a British technology company which has lead the way in Europe (capturing the biggest share of the IP alarms transmission market) working with ARCs and leading R&D in the field, we’re in no doubt about the benefits of being a technology leader, not a follower.
We’re in a slightly odd position though, and we sometimes feel as if we’re waiting for the rest of the UK market to catch up. Our sales are growing by more than 50 per cent PA but here in our home market our biggest obstacle to growth is not our competitors, it is good old-fashioned inertia.
Contrast this with Scandinavia, Germany, Holland, Spain and other parts of Europe, where installers have been busy exploiting IP’s benefits for much of this decade. They have seen the technology for what it is: a robust solution that offers cost-effective services that customers gain from and that delivers respectable profit margins.
IT specialists looking for work
But if most UK installers are not yet taking up the opportunity to go digital and increase their margins, do they need to worry? Yes, they do. Accepting higher business costs may be viable if everyone’s competing on the same terms but not if leaner competitors arrive on the scene.
This is exactly what will happen if IT/IP specialists start competing seriously in the security market. These high-tech service providers have been busy building up experience at top end of the market, serving the needs of blue chip commercial clients.
But with economic conditions getting tougher for their traditional customers, is it unreasonable to suppose that some of them might start moving more aggressively into the traditional security market?
IP has got easier
If this does happen then installers will need to look for ways of cutting costs themselves – and one of the easiest ways will be to switch to IP.
Fortunately you don’t need a degree in IT to handle today’s IP technology and it is no harder to learn, install or maintain than the old systems that security installers are well used to.
As you’d expect with a fast developing technology, products have become more user-friendly even in the three years since I wrote my original article.
Choosing the best connections and path combinations has become very simple, with features such as touch-panel control giving clear information at every stage. In fact with the new touch-panels both installation and fault-finding are simple.
Cost effective PCB-based diallers, such as those in the new Iris Touch range, make both IP and GPRS signalling straightforward and can be used with both fire and security panels. They allow fast, remote access and provide automatic fault diagnostics
Some quick pointers
In practical terms, here’s a quick run down of points you should consider. You’ll need to install an IP alarm dialler to communicate with the ARC’s receiver system. That alarm dialler interface will clearly need to allow existing and legacy – which are likely to have been using a standard PSTN dialler until now – to communicate across any IP network, whether it be ADSL, a corporate LAN or GPRS.
No special cabling should be required and, in standard installations no special tools are required either. For more complex installations, such as where fixed IP addressing is required or where SMS messaging is in use, you can use configuration console software to run on a lap-top PC and connect to the dialler via a standard modem cable.
Security system installers must also, of course, consider IP technology in the context of the European Systems Standard (PD6662:2004), the UK scheme for introduction of European systems standard (EN 50131-1: 2004) that replaced BS 4737 for intruder security installations.
The accompanying Applications Guidelines (TS 50131-7) lay down a structured risk assessment procedure for designers of intruder alarm systems.
Additionally, the European standards introduced grading of systems, based on intruder skills. These ranged from grade 1 (considered low risk, and a category insurers do not cover), through to grade 4 for the highest risks. Most insurers will generally require grade 3 systems for the majority of commercial installations, but IP equipment such as Chiron’s Iris system is independently certified to the highest grade 4 (ATS6) risk category, for both DSL, corporate IP as well as GPRS.
Additional monitoring services
ARCs are increasingly interested in the potential to offer end users a wider range of additional services across IP and there is considerable scope for increased integration between both video and alarm monitoring, as well as interfacing this equipment with access control systems to achieve a more holistic form of protection.
The chance for these security systems to stop operating in stand-alone mode and start interacting with each other, as well in conjunction with other building management systems, will allow a variety of operating efficiencies to be extracted from them. On top of that, added value services can be introduced and improved overall effectiveness achieved from all of the systems – ie. realising their full potential at last.
Taking the lead
These were attractive propositions when I wrote about them in 2005 and they’re even more compelling now. The time is right for installers to start building their businesses with the new technology. In our experience there’s no reason why British companies shouldn’t catch up with the Europeans when it comes to IP – in fact there’s no reason why they shouldn’t overtake them too.