Seneca Examines ISC West 2012
ISC West is one of the largest security and surveillance show in the United States featuring the latest technology and solutions the marketplace has to offer. Seneca had the opportunity to exhibit for the first time to showcase their xVault product line and better understand where the market is headed.
As with every major industry tradeshow, discussion regarding technological innovations and industry trends tend to be paramount with the various vendors, integrators and end-users. This year many common themes surfaced trending in the security and surveillance vertical, and as no surprise all of which were very IP-centric in nature.
Here is a recap of Seneca’s biggest takeaways from ISC West 2012:
Mobile Network Video Recorder
For the past year, the largest growing niche in the security and surveillance market is the evolution of mobile surveillance. This trend was very apparent at Seneca’s booth, where the majority of traffic was generated through interest towards Seneca’s mobile network video recorder (NVR) solution. Many of the integrators we spoke with said they are passing on large mobile installations because they lack a mobile solution with attributes to meet customers’ requirements. If this is such a growing trend and need for a mobile surveillance then why is there not a readily available solution?
There are many needs for a mobile surveillance solution to fit the evolving needs of city surveillance, transportation, and entertainment venues to name a few. Hardened mobile solutions need to have multiple capabilities such as the ability to withstanding performance in extreme temperatures, embedded PoE, and wireless, which currently are not readily available.
Vendors, integrators, and end-users were impressed with the features and capabilities of Seneca’s mobile solutions we displayed at the show. Seneca is well positioned to help fill this long-needed gap in the market. Seneca is working diligently to commercially launch our xVault Mobile NVR series, stay tuned for the launch of Seneca Mobile NVR.
Hardware Creditability with Video Management Software
You wouldn’t purchase a car if you weren’t sure all the parts were compatible, so why would you purchase a security and surveillance solutions that wasn’t certified. Not all video management software is created equal, and not all have a set certification process for their software. Therefore, not all video management software can be guaranteed to work with any security and surveillance hardware.
So what does this all mean? Similar to purchasing off the shelf solutions, purchasing NVR hardware without certification or validation can cause hardware and software incompatibility, negatively impacting meeting project deadline and budgets. Seneca has partnered with the leading video management software companies and certified their platform on xVault servers, guaranteeing their performance.
Edge Recording
Exacq showcased video management software that runs on the camera and recorded directly to flash memory, this is known as edge recording. The implication is that the VMS no longer requires a separate recording or management server for the processing and recording of video.
Although this trend is in the initial stages, the question arises of edge recording being a disruptive technology for NVR manufacturers. As a NVR manufacturer, Seneca does not see this emerging trend as a threat. We look at this as a great opportunity! There are many limitations of capacity of flash memory coupled with the requirement for long term and central storage for digital security and surveillance solutions. Seneca is well positioned to provide unique solutions to meet the industries’ needs for storage and video surveillance.
Management Software
Differentiating your product is essential in standing out in the digital security and surveillance market. This can be accomplished with the use on Management Software. Management Software drives utility to the integrator as well as the end user by offering software as a tool to manage surveillance appliances.
The major benefit of this software component is the ability to proactively manage all hardware components, thermal temperatures, RAID, CPU, throughput, and other key system metrics along with providing a reporting tool. Seneca is in the initial phases of developing a product line with a software management tool to better manage your system, run simplified reports, backup your system(s), setting SNMP traps, and many other value-added features.
Sarah Colson is an OEM Marketing Associate for Seneca where she is responsible for marketing and communications for digital security, signage, broadcast, and healthcare.