Tag Archive for: The Monitoring Association

2018 Annual Meeting Report: A Dynamic Gathering of Industry Leaders in Palm Beach

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As it does every year, the 2018 TMA Annual Meeting brought together a most impressive group of industry leaders and influencers, who gained new connections and information to help them advance their businesses. Attendees praised the event, held in Palm Beach October 13-17, for its unmatched networking and high-level conversations supported by a leadership-focused program developed by the TMA Education Committee.

“The 2018 Annual Meeting lived up yet again to its billing as a gathering of the best of the best in our industry,” said TMA President Ivan Spector. “As we had expected, our event attracted the most engaged and committed people, enabling them to have conversations at a level above any other industry event and to take away information that will help them advance their businesses. I was gratified to see so many new members, first timers, and younger folk in Palm Beach, as well as our long-time stalwarts. You could really feel the dynamism of our association!”

IMG_0918.jpgTMA members at the Annual Meeting shared their enthusiasm for their organization by participating in the ongoing “TMA. That’s My Association” campaign. See more photos from the campaign here.

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Keynote speaker David Horsager, author and CEO of “The Trust Edge,” set the tone for the meeting by sharing with attendees how trust, or the lack of it, can affect the success of their businesses.

Attendees engaged with each other in committee meetings, the general membership meeting, shared meal functions, theme events, special tours, and education sessions. “With the landscape and technology in our industry changing faster than ever it is important for us as members to gather together to identify and work towards solutions for our industries future,” said Wayne E. “Trey” Alter III, president and CEO, Dynamark Security Centers. “TMA has always been at the forefront of this and I can think of no better venue than our annual meeting.”

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One of the buzziest sessions was “Valuations Evolve in the 2018 Market—Understanding How Today’s New Technology Players Impacts Your Place in the Alarm Industry” featuring a powerhouse panel moderated by John E. Mack III, Head of Mergers & Acquisitions, Imperial Capital. Pictured from L to R: John Robuck, Head of Security Finance and Managing Director, Capital One; Henry Edmonds, President, the Edmonds Group, LLC; Michael Barnes, Principal, Barnes Associates Inc.

 

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TMA staff and leaders welcomed “NextGen” members with a special reception.

“It’s rare to meet so many accomplished visionaries and entrepreneurs and innovators all in one location,” said John Romanowich, President and CEO, Sightlogix. “I felt so welcomed here and had so many high level conversations — I really didn’t expect that at the first meeting I attended, and I just had a tremendous experience.”

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The TMA Annual Meeting provided the unique opportunity to meet and engage with leaders from the AHJ organizations from the USA and Canada. Pictured from L to R: Mark Light (IAFC), Dan Eggleston (IAFC), Bill Moore (CACP), Rick Stanek (NSA), Leon Frederick (Nlets), Steve Correll (Nlets), Stan Martin (SIAC), Ivan Spector (TMA), Rob Baxter (TMA – sponsor); Paul Cell (IACP), Harlin McEwen (IACP), Jay Hauhn (TMA), Larry Folsom (sponsor), Joey Rao-Russell (TMA PSLC).

Related: Bud Wulforst Honored with Stanley Lott Award; Shane Clary and Rick Simpson Receive President’s Awards for NFPA-72 Efforts

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The TMA Board of Directors, October 2018 (L to R): Bob Bitton, Lou Fiore, Don Young, Joey Rao-Russell, Shannon Woodman, Nigel Spinks, Dan Jackman, Bob Bonifas, David Carter, Ralph Sevinor, Alan Gillmore IV, Ivan Spector, Brandon Niles, Jay Hauhn, Morgan Hertel, Rick Sheets, Kevin Stone, Chet Donati, Stanley Oppenheim, Ed Bonifas, Graham Westphal, Ben Dickens, Steve Butkovich

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TMA Executive Director Jay Hauhn retired following the Annual Meeting, after leading the association for 3-1/2 years. TMA created a special tribute video featuring members and colleagues to thank Hauhn for his service and contributions. It was shown at the General Membership Meeting.

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Mark your calendar now for the 2019 TMA Annual Meeting. Join your colleagues October 12-18 in Napa Valley, CA to “Take Maximum Advantage” of your TMA membership connections!

For more photos and details from the 2018 Annual Meeting, read “TMA Sees Opportunities, Sun on Horizon at Palm Beach Meeting” from SSI.

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TMA Staff at the 2018 Annual Meeting (L to R): Vice President of Meetings John McDonald, Member Services Coordinator Malory Todd, Vice President of Membership and Programs Celia Besore, Executive Director and CEO Jay Hauhn, Vice President of Education and Training Julie Webber, Vice President of Marketing and Communications Elizabeth Lasko.

Photos by Brandon Freedman,  Joey Rao-Russell, Elizabeth Lasko.

“TMA. That’s My Association” Connects Members at the Annual Meeting

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TMA members at the 2018 Annual Meeting shared their enthusiasm for their organization by participating in the ongoing “TMA. That’s My Association” campaign, which was launched earlier this year at ESX. What’s your favorite T-M-A slogan? Got an idea for one to add? Contact communications@tma.us.

(Click on the photos to enlarge.)

 

Photos by Elizabeth Lasko.

 

Simpson, Clary Recognized for NFPA-72 Efforts

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At the 2018 TMA Annual Meeting in Palm Beach, Vector Security’s Rick Simpson, left, and Bay Alarm’s Shane Clary, right, pictured with TMA President Ivan Spector, were honored with TMA President’s Awards for their efforts on the NFPA-72 initiative earlier this year. “Shane and Rick did an incredible job on the Industry’s behalf,” said Spector. “There is no one who knows the codes like Rick, and no one who can give the kind of presentation [to the NFPA Standards Council] that Shane did. I was truly honored and humbled to have shared the moments with them both.”

Read the latest on the NFPA-72 initiative. 

TMA Honors Bud Wulforst with Stanley Lott Award

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Bud and Laurie Wulforst with the Lott Award, October 2018. Photo by Ralph Sevinor.

TMA Past President Bud Wulforst was announced as a new recipient of the association’s highest honor, the Stanley C. Lott Memorial Award for Exemplary Service, at the 2018 Annual Meeting. This award was created to honor the memory of Lott, renowned for his efforts to lead and financially support the Association through difficult times.

Wulforst, with more than half-a-century in the electronic security industry, built and sold five companies, most recently selling Nevada-based A-1 Security to Stanley Convergent Security Solutions. He has been devoted to the industry and its causes, helping many colleagues improve their operations and profitability, and assisted some in selling their businesses. Over the years he has been associated with more than a dozen industry-focused organizations, remaining an active member of the TMA board of directors since his presidency.

Sons Howard Wulforst and Leif Wulforst accepted the award on Wulforst’s behalf. “I finally finished the race,” said Wulforst with a smile. “When my sons told me I had received the award, I was dumbfounded – almost speechless. It’s a wonderful honor.

“I knew Stan Lott well,” he continued. “He was really a mentor to me; he encouraged me to join the association back in the late 80s, and explained how things worked – it was very helpful! It’s truly an honor to join the others who have received this award named for Stan.”

“It was indeed an honor to present Bud with the Lott Award in Palm Beach this year,” said TMA President Ivan Spector. “Bud leads with a quiet and determined leadership style – always very low key and spot on with his advice and comments. He is very insightful, always helpful and never says no to assisting on various projects. He is one of the reasons why TMA is so successful — both in the past and in mentoring new Industry leaders of the future.”

AvantGuard’s Justin Bailey Joins TMA Board of Directors

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JBaileyTMA is pleased to announce that Justin Bailey, President and COO of AvantGuard Monitoring Centers, is newly-appointed to the TMA Board of Directors as a representative of the Contract Monitoring classification.

Bailey began his career building technology solutions for some of the world’s largest companies. Technology consulting introduced him to the monitoring industry, and he has been a full time member of the constantly growing team at AvantGuard for the last eight years. He is passionate about success and innovation as well as leadership and growth.

“I’m excited to join the TMA board, after having served on committees for a number of years,” said Bailey. “I see the pace of change increasing from within the industry as well as from disruptors, and know we need to evolve more quickly as an industry to remain relevant.  I look forward to working with the other TMA board members to that end.”

AvantGuard is one of the nation’s largest wholesale monitoring providers and offers security, fire, PERS, mPERS, and IoT monitoring services. AvantGuard also offers cloud monitoring services including hybrid monitoring solutions. With offices in Utah and Idaho, AvantGuard is committed to providing great service through people and technology. Under his leadership, the company naturally has strength in technology and innovation, and those things are critical underpinnings to AvantGuard’s desire to ensure everyone they serve knows they “[are] In Good Company.”

 

 

TMA Committee Co-Chair Ron Rothman Joins SightLogix Board of Directors

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ron-rothman-headshotTMA Marketing/Communications Committee Co-Chair Ron Rothman, formerly Honeywell Security Global President and a TMA board member, has joined SightLogix’s board of directors. Sightlogix, a new TMA associate member, makes smart thermal camera systems that protect some of the world’s most important sites, including assets in the energy, transportation, chemical, utility, communications, government and defense industries – as well as private, independent businesses around the world

Rothman will help guide SightLogix growth initiatives, drawing on his longstanding record of building and transforming security businesses. “Ron is a visionary leader with unparalleled success in the security industry,” said John Romanowich, SightLogix president and CEO. “His deep knowledge and long history of accomplishments make him an ideal advisor, and I am thrilled to welcome Ron to our team.”

Rothman brings over thirty years of security leadership to SightLogix, rising from inside sales to president of the Honeywell Security Group & ADI Distribution (2010 to 2015), a global $3 Billion strategic business unit within Honeywell Automation and Control Solutions.

“SightLogix has a reputation for offering one of the most reliable and innovative solutions for outdoor security,” said Rothman. “I look forward to working with the Board and SightLogix management to help them align strategy, technology, and operations to accelerate our growth.”

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Sightlogix CEO John Romanowich addresses the TMA members at the Annual Meeting as part of the  associate members’ Lightning Round presentation.

 

UL Update: Close Before You Doze

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by Steve Schmit, Program Manager, UL LLC

UL is honored to count TMA as a partner in our mission to create safe living and working environments for people. We work together most directly through our Certificate Service Program, which delivers the benefits of standards compliant alarm service to communities and businesses. At the same time in communities where UL Fire Alarm Certificates are required, your UL Certification gives you access to a unique and valuable market.

Educating the community and those responsible for ensuring public safety is key to creating these kinds of markets. We see many opportunities to work together on community education in order to advance both of our mutual public safety and business objectives.

In that spirit, this month we highlight UL Firefighter Safety Research Institute’s “Close Before You Doze” campaign, our most recent public safety outreach program. The campaign package includes:

  • A critical safety message about contemporary home fires
  • A video that dramatically illustrates the effects of closed vs open bedroom doors in home fires
  • A toolbox of community & first responder resources

While UL’s outreach has touched a wide audience (8.5 million video views to date), there is still much work to do. We invite you, as partners in our mission, to consider bringing it to public safety officials in your markets. Alternatively, we would be delighted to talk about how you might use these materials in your own organization’s public service messaging. Either way, there is an opportunity to leverage the UL public safety message and brand to create a positive environment for discussion of UL Certificated alarm service.

Why “Close Before You Doze”?

  • 25 years ago, occupants typically had 17 minutes to evacuate a home after a smoke detector annunciation.
  • Today, typical safe egress time is about 3 minutes, due to the much higher use of synthetics in furnishings, floors, and fixtures.
  • Research tests show that simply closing a bedroom door can significantly extend the survivability time for people in the room.

Test results are clear and the message is simple. However, communicating with the public, in ways that inspire behavior changes, can be a challenge. To help, UL established a dedicated website to serve as a resource clearinghouse. Visit closeyourdoor.org to explore. Be sure to check the First Responders section as well. You could be the one that brings a turnkey public safety campaign to your market’s public safety partners.

About UL FSRI – UL Firefighter Safety Research Institute (FSRI) advances fire research knowledge and develops cutting edge, practical fire service education aimed at helping firefighters stay safe while more effectively protecting people and property. Working in partnership with the fire service, research departments, and agencies, UL FSRI executes firefighter research and makes the results widely available to the global fire community.

Leading Law Enforcement Associations Back Model Alarm Ordinance

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Best Practices Developed by Industry and Law Enforcement

Two of the nation’s leading public safety associations have passed resolutions in support of members utilizing the Model Ordinance for Alarm Management and False Alarm Reduction developed in partnership between law enforcement and the electronic security industry through the Security Industry Alarm Coalition (SIAC).

The International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) approved a resolution at its 2018 Annual Conference “encouraging the use of this 2018 Model Ordinance…and all of the best practices.”

The National Sheriffs’ Association (NSA) also passed a resolution “recognizes the need for and value of strong enforcement recommended in this Model Ordinance to achieve the desired reduction in alarm dispatches experienced by police agencies…”

The recently updated model ordinance has been the result of close collaboration between SIAC and law enforcement for the past 20 years. While the ordinance has been endorsed at the committee level, this is the first time that both IACP and NSA have endorsed the ordinance on a national level.

“By working together we have been able to significantly reduce unnecessary police dispatches while at the same time maintaining the police response to alarms,” said Stan Martin, Executive Director of the Security Industry Alarm Coalition. “Alarm systems reduce crime and protect homes, businesses, places of worship and schools. We want to make sure criminals know police are responding. It is an important component to protecting people and property and reducing crime.

“Every best practice in the model ordinance has been tried and tested for effectiveness in reducing false alarms and the resulting dispatches,” said Martin. “In addition to IACP and NSA fifteen State Chiefs of Police organizations across the U.S. use some form of this model and recommend its use to chiefs within their respective states. When all recommendations within the model are followed and strictly enforced dispatch reductions of 40-50% can be expected with 85% of the permitted systems in any given year not requiring even one law enforcement dispatch.”

Every year dozens of the nation’s 18,000 law enforcement agencies consider creating or amending an alarm ordinance. SIAC is funded by the alarm industry and has a team of experts, including retired chiefs, to assist local communities in developing and implementing the model ordinance to meet their needs. “SIAC needs support from the alarm industry to continue this important mission,” said Martin.

Support SIAC with a contribution today.

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SIAC Executive Director Stan Martin with Charles Brobeck, Retired Police Chief, Irvine (CA); SIAC Liaison

 

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Glen Mowrey, SIAC Law Enforcement Liaison (L) and Bill Berger, U.S. Marshall, Central District of Florida; Retired Police Chief, Palm Bay (FL); Past President, IACP.

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Photos from the Alarm Industry Associations’ Reception at the IACP Annual Meeting in October 2018.

 

Chesapeake, VA Goes Live with ASAP for Faster, More Accurate Emergency Response

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Technology Automates Emergency Response for More Speed and Accuracy

The City of Chesapeake, VA is the latest municipality to implement Automated Secure Alarm Protocol (ASAP), a technology designed to automate communication between alarm monitoring central stations and public safety dispatch/911 centers.

Chesapeake is the 42nd PSAP in the United States and 7th PSAP in Virginia to go live with the ASAP program as of October 12, 2018.

Electronic data transmission results in the following benefits for residents and first responders:

  • Fewer phone calls to emergency response centers. Alarm center data is passed to public safety dispatch/911 operators electronically within seconds and then provided to first responders upon dispatch.
  • Quicker processing times. Data doesn’t have to be input manually or communicated verbally, resulting in reduced hold times, less chance of human error, and faster responses.
  • Greater accuracy of information transmitted. Electronic transmission of data reduces chances for errors.

More than 900 Vector Security customers in Chesapeake will benefit from improved emergency response times via ASAP. Vector Security assisted the city by helping to perform extensive testing prior to the system going live.

“Virginia is where we debuted ASAP for the first time in 2012,” said Anita Ostrowski, Vice President of Central Station Services, Vector Security. “We’ve come a long way since being the first alarm company to introduce ASAP in Richmond, and we are glad to see the technology make its way into more municipalities across the nation, for the greater safety of our communities.”

ASAP was formed in partnership between The Monitoring Association and The Association of Public Safety Communications Officials, with Vector Security President and CEO Pamela J. Petrow co-chairing the committee.

The city of Chesapeake joins Richmond and Newport News, VA, as well as the counties of York, James City, Henrico and Loudon, VA as the latest emergency response center in the state to go live with ASAP technology.

Nationwide, nearly 50 agencies have implemented, or are in the process of implementing ASAP. For a current list:  http://tma.us/asap/

 

SentryNet’s Peggy Page is New Co-Chair of TMA MarComm Committee

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c Peggy PageTMA is pleased to announce that SentryNet marketing manager Peggy Page has been named the new co-chair of the TMA Marketing and Communications Committee.

Page’s career in security spans over 30 years, with the past 24 years spent at SentryNet as Marketing Manager. She creates opportunities for her team as they assist independent alarm installers nationwide in business development and growth. Page has received the President’s award, Win award, and Achievers Award for her service and dedication to the SentryNet and Stanley Black and Decker Team.

IMG_0852“I am honored to accept the co-chair position on the Marketing and Communications Committee for TMA,” Page said. “As a member of TMA, I believe in the work that we do in security central stations. Our operators are the voice of calm in some of the most chaotic times for our customers. How could I not support and be a part of an association that is designed to improve and advance the monitoring industry through education, advocacy, and public safety relationships?”

Page joins Ron Rothman in leading this committee, which creates, coordinates and disseminates targeted information to the industry and general public to advance TMA’s goals and strengthen its brand. The committee had oversight of TMA’s rebranding from CSAA in 2017 and helps coordinate programs such as website development, TMA awards, and membership marketing efforts.