ISC West: DMP panels offer 'more for less'; System Sensor launches combined CO/smoke detector; FLIR aims for infrared cameras in every home

I spent my first morning at ISC West on Tuesday at a rather “unique” forum made up of DMP dealers. The talk there included discussion of the Springfield, Mo.-based manufacturer's new XR150/350/550 Series access, burglary, and fire panel that the company is showcasing here in Las Vegas.

“We've tried to pack as much stuff as we could in this panel,” Rick Britton, DMP CEO and president, told the dealers. He said it's extremely fast and it's affordable. “More for less,” he said.

The one-day DMP forum was an owners forum, the second year DMP has held such an event. David Peebles, DMP VP of training and quality, said, “We think the idea is unique”—having DMP executives sit down and discuss ideas with the owners of top DMP dealer companies.

Included in the forum was a presentation by Stanley Oppenheim of New York-based DGA Security Systems, who spoke about how his company weathered Hurricane Sandy. Alan Kruglak of Maryland-based Genesis Security, a security/life safety provider, gave a talk on service contracts and how they can be even more lucrative then monitoring contracts.

In the afternoon, I talked with System Sensor's director of communications, David George, about the company's new i4 Series Combination CO/Smoke Detector and Integration Module that it's launching here at the show.

“The i4 Series is the first low-voltage, system-connected, combination smoke and carbon monoxide detection solution on the market,” according to a company news release. The i4 can be integrated into conventional security and fire panels.

I wrote last spring about a new intelligent combined fire/co detector from Gamewell-FCI by Honeywell. That addressable detector is ideal for large facilities such as hotels, dormitories, apartment buildings, hospitals and nursing homes.

The System Sensor conventional combination CO/smoke solution is the answer for smaller spaces, such as businesses and residences, George told me.

On Tuesday evening, I headed to an event put on by FLIR Systems, an Oregon-based manufacturer of thermal imaging infrared cameras. It makes products that are used in commercial and military applications, but also ones used by consumers, such as hand-held thermal imaging cameras that can be used by recreational boaters or hunters.

Thermal cameras detect images through the heat they emit so can operate in total darkness. The FLIR event was held at the Bali Hai Golf Course, and with the aid of such an infrared device, we could clearly see FLIR employees chasing golf balls on the golf course, even though it was pitch dark out.

And now, with FLIR's acquisition last year of Lorex Technology, a Toronto-based video surveillance provider, it aims to provide thermal imaging cameras to the home market.

Lorex sells enterprise-grade video products sold through the security channel under the brand name Digimerge; Lorex itself sells video products sold through retail outlets for small businesses and homeowners. The company has hundreds of thousands of customers.

FLIR President Andy Teich said the company's aim is to offer a low-resolution thermal imaging camera that is affordable to the average homeowner. The cost eventually could perhaps be as low as about $200, said Bill Klink, FLIR VP of business development.

Teich said FLIR's goal is have infrared technology be “ultimately ubiquitous” in the way that GPS technology is. GPS, he said, answers the question, “Where am I?” and “thermal imaging will tell you what's out there.