ISC West witnesses packed aisles and busy booth traffic this year

ISC West 2011 featured over 10,000 products from 900-plus manufacturers

The sold-out ISC West exhibition hall opened with a bang! Ingersoll-Rand figuratively opened the show with a fully integrated access control system with a flurry of confetti shot from cannons. The packed show floor featured over 10,000 products from 900-plus manufacturers creating business buzz and robust foot traffic. The show floor included more than 150 first-time exhibitors bringing never-before-seen products and solutions to ISC West.

This year's 32nd SIA New Product Showcase (NPS) featured 85 entries from 70 companies. FST21 earned Best New Product for its SafeRise® product in a ceremony held in the SIA booth. SafeRise incorporates facial and voice recognition and can detect when a person is in trouble by behaviour.

SafeRise provides easy and convenient access to authorised tenants and approved visitors while maintaining the highest level of security. FST21 is a security technology company in Tel Aviv, Israel, founded by Major General (Res.) Aharon Zeevi Farkash.

The day opened with the annual State of the Industry presentation, moderated by Sandy Jones, Sandra Jones & Co., featuring Mike Howard, Microsoft; Carey Boethel, Siemens; Jamie Rosand Haenggi, Protection One; Bill Taylor, Panasonic System Networks Company. The overall theme of the presentation being technology. "While the rapid development of technology is important, don't let it get in the way of strategic business decisions that are right for your customers,"  the panel cautioned. "The ubiquity of broadband, smart phones and apps, home automation and VoIP, the industry is under increased pressure to diversify beyond security."

ISC Premier Education SeriesSM presented tracks and sessions by job title incorporating hot topics for each. Cloud Computing Security, several case studies featuring security for houses of worship and the Hidden ROI with IP Systems at the San Jose Airport and designing, pricing and selling service agreements were highlights.

"We have to be at ISC West," said Erin Rangi-Watt, PR and communications manager-security for Gallagher Group, Ltd. "If you're not here, your absence is noticed. We meet the right people and have the opportunity to network. Plus, attending the ISC Premier Education sessions enables us to learn about developing trends, get ideas and validate our business strategy going forward."

ISC West also was the site of the second annual Security 5K road race to benefit Mission 500, a non-profit organisation dedicated to serving the needs of children and communities in crisis. Over 400 runners from the industry participated in the 7:30 AM start.

Other highlights included Korea Day, a networking opportunity with Korean exporters; The Women's Handbook to Professional Success in the Security Industry panel discussion; presented by Women's Security Council; the SIA/NICET Forum: Safety and Security through a Qualified Workforce and a session on FICAM and Industry's partnership to comply with OMB-11.

With so much ground to cover, ISC West made the show floor layout easier to navigate with a series of tools that included "My Show Planner" kiosks in various locations on the show floor and ISC West Mobile for smart phones. ISC West Mobile featured educational sessions, special events and show floor locations.