Articles by Caroline Cooper

There is no one-size-fits-all solution for achieving comprehensive security for a business or home. However, combining intruder detection systems with video surveillance, access control, and perimeter protection can significantly enhance overall security.

Ensuring that your security systems are integrated seamlessly guarantees the highest level of protection and serves as a strategic approach for businesses seeking a comprehensive security framework. By connecting different systems, a single breach or trigger can prompt an immediate and coordinated response, thereby improving overall safety.

Over the last two decades, our ever-stretched UK law enforcement services have continued to see additional demands placed on them. And so, our ability to rely on a police response to a triggered intruder alarm has declined. Consequently, the need to self-monitor our businesses and homes has intensified.

So, you’ve been asked to install an intruder alarm system and recommend the best solution for your customer’s needs. The trouble is, you’re not 100% sure yourself—what are the latest innovations, and how do you determine whether to recommend a wired or wireless solution?

A test monitor is a portable device professional security installers use to view the live video feed from a camera without needing to connect it to the main CCTV system or network. Doing this allows the installer to check the performance, configure settings, and troubleshoot any issues with a security camera system. Read on to find out why every installer needs one in their tool kit. 

There’s a common belief that the latest technologies must be better than we already have. But sometimes we need more information about what these new advances mean and the practical implications for our intended usage.

This is the case with IR vs White Light LED – both revolutionary ways of illuminating a scene at night or in low light conditions. So let’s look at each one:

When University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust conducted a thorough review of working practices in 2021, it became clear an overhaul was required of certain employee safety systems. One priority was improvements to lone worker security and safety.

As a result, the IT department identified concerns about lone worker employee safety in the central core IT rooms containing servers (cold aisle containment facilities), along with an opportunity to drive regulatory compliance and operational efficiency within the unit.

And so, Layer One Installations – an existing contractor to the Hospital Trust – was asked to assess requirements and quote for installing a video surveillance solution that would improve lone worker operating practices in the IT department.

The overall objective of this exercise was aligned with the Hospital Trust’s commitment to employee safety, risk management, regulatory compliance, incidence response and operational excellence.

Read on for more details.

Norbain's Customer Satisfaction Survey results. Find out what our customers said (about us), their needs, their frustrations, and the trends they see ahead.

Increasingly in the UK, security solutions are being employed to fulfill requirements other than security. This is a trend that provides interesting opportunities for installers with plenty of potential for revenue growth and increased customer satisfaction.

Technology and applications are advancing at such a pace that it is now possible to employ a security system to carry out a raft of functions. It could help you maintain health and safety while improving operational efficiency while still delivering security.

In particular, video surveillance as well as intruder solutions are no longer being employed solely to protect people and property. To a lesser but still notable extent, access control applications are also evolving.

It’s almost 30 years since Axis Communication invented the world’s first network video surveillance camera. To many in the security solutions industry, this signaled the beginning of the end for analogue CCTV systems.

There was a seemingly better way – superior image quality and coverage, coupled with reduced cabling and wireless capability, saw the industry embracing IP digital video surveillance solutions and hanging up on their analogue devices. But analogue refused to die.

So, answering the question ‘Which security system is a better option?’ doesn’t always have a straightforward answer. Let’s discuss further...

It’s a given – smart technology is transforming the way we live and work. There are few areas of daily life that haven’t been impacted by smart mobile devices; be those phones, tablets, watches or other; and the realm of Access Control is no different.

Whilst it’s still early days for so-called ‘Smart Credentials’ technology adoption within access control solutions, its popularity is on the increase and with good reason.