SIS adds training facility

ORLANDO, Fla.--Later this month, Security Information Systems, a software automation provider to wholesale, proprietary and government central stations will move into a larger location here that will house a new training facility for customers. With the move, SIS will have 5,000 square feet, room enough to add employees as the company grows; its former facility was only 3,000 square feet. The added space enables the service-based company to house an updated training facility. "Clients love to come to Orlando," said Mike Wiseman, vice president of sales for SIS. "We have two-day training courses where they can come in and get certified on our software." Central station managers, shift supervisors and dispatchers who use the Alarm Center automation can receive the training at the facility, at their own facility or SIS can also supplement the training through an online portal they host. The goal of revamping the training facility is "to show clients the end-to-end process of when an alarm signal goes off, beginning at the panel all the way to the operator's work station," said Wiseman. By creating a central station set up, which includes panels, receivers, and DVRs, SIS will have an opportunity to showcase the newest technology, such as video monitoring. SIS's open architecture, Windows-based automation software also assists with the video monitoring movement, said Greg Gilbert, marketing director at the company. Gilbert has seen this trend where more manufacturers want to integrate the software into their systems. It can be overwhelming, Wiseman added, when customers attend trade shows, as the video technology players are endless. At this point, "I'm at the stage where I tell my clients the following: Find out what you like. If you find something really good, then we will do the integration," Wiseman said. Prior to this, he added, "we had an open-door policy when it came to integration and we were getting swamped." Gilbert concurred, "the problem with [video monitoring] is that there is no standard. So we have to make minor changes for each individual video manufacturer." The company has "dedicated a lot of resources to it." As the collision between the IT and the security world continues, it is more of a client-driven scenario. "Clients come to us and say, 'We want something new,'" Gilbert said.