How we conduct business, how we commute, what we eat and consume, and how we travel and live impacts millions of life today and tomorrow. There is a growing consciousness around the issue of sustainability. Can we continue how we live, travel, eat, and consume? The question is now existential and not precautionary in nature. While every industry is trying to cope with this new alarming reality, what can the security industry do?

The ecosystem in the security industry comprises the following stakeholders:

1. OEM/Manufacturers
2. Distributors
3. System Integrators
4. End Users
5. Consultants

Each stakeholder has a role to play and a contribution to make. So let us analyse how we can pitch in.

Before we dive deep into the matter, let us first understand what kind of systems and solutions are implemented to improve safety and security by the industry players:

1. Surveillance and license plate cameras
2. Access controllers and readers
3. Automatic barriers for pedestrians and vehicles
4.  Perimeter intrusion devices like IR sensors, microwave sensors, fiber optic sensors, and electric fencing
5. Checkpoint devices like X-Ray baggage scanners, metal detectors, and under-vehicle surveillance scanners
6. Fire and smoke sensors and panels
7. Audio announcements and communication systems
8. Intrusion sensors and systems
9. Tracking devices like GPS, BLE, LPWAN, RFID trackers
10. Active and passive network devices
11. Computing and storage devices like servers and workstations
12. Display devices like video walls and monitors

What is the footprint of the security industry? How should we observe its impact?

• Millions of devices and sensors are in use, and the growth rate of new devices is increasing phenomenally.
• Millions of other devices will be added as sensors or system devices in the years to come.
• The devices are constantly connected to a Local Area Network and the internet.
• The data generated by these devices is analyzed by application software housed on server machines, stored on storage devices, and visualized on display devices using workstations and mobile computers like smartphones and tablets.
• These devices consume power 24*7 to run or cool down.
• These electronic devices use rare earth elements in the form of semiconductors for processors, electronic boards, wires and cables, and plastic and metal for housing or cabling.

So what can all the stakeholders do to contribute to better sustainability practices?

Common goals for all stakeholders:

1. Join the initiatives like UN sustainable goals and create and run programs geared towards sustainable practices. The UN global compact is one such program that touches upon human rights, labour rights, environmental protection, and anti-corruption. Every stakeholder in the security industry should strive to understand and achieve higher standards and better practices on the aforementioned.
2.  Create and run 360-degree sustainability plans – the sustainability program is not just about fixing one or a few cogs in the wheel but the entire wheel. Thus, the program must touch upon detailed practices on employment and safe workspaces, environmental goals, new technology innovation geared towards sustainability, and more.

Possible specific goals for OEMs/Manufacturers

• Avoid raw materials and inputs that originate from areas linked to human rights violations, labour rights violations, and other conflicts. This is important as the security industry uses rare earth minerals and materials. Mining, smelting, and related processes must be closely monitored and traced.
• Increasing the use of more sustainable materials/components and reducing/doing away with hazardous materials. For, e.g., PVC, BFR, CFR, and other similar material
• Green Products and Innovations – the end products that consume less power will significantly impact the carbon footprint. Security products are typically used for 5-10 years before being replaced. The power consumption gap between Product A (green) Vs Product B (inefficient), which are essentially doing the same task (like identical surveillance cameras or network switches), has a significant environmental impact. Innovating solutions that produce optimized data and indirectly reduce power consumption in transporting, processing, and storing data (e.g., better image compression technologies that reduce bandwidth and storage of surveillance video footage).

 

1. POE (Power over Ethernet)
2. Lightfinder and Zipstream
3. Green Network Switches
4. Green Computing
5. Green Storage
6. AI/ML (Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning)

 

• Fossil-free or reduced use of fossil fuels in manufacturing and supply chain
• Packaging Material – Reduce and Re-Use
• Distributed Manufacturing – Setup manufacturing and fulfillment centers spread out strategically across the geography within which the company does business to reduce the logistics footprint
• Monitoring Co2 (carbon emission footprint) in running own operations (direct and indirect emissions), from suppliers and supply chain partners

One such excellent sustainability program to refer to is from Axis Communications

Possible specific goals for Distributors

• Distributed geographical presence to optimize delivery distance and time and reduce carbon footprint
• Use of smart warehousing systems and smart application software to forecast and manage inventories
• Only work with OEMs/Manufacturers with a sustainability program/practice.
• Use of better packaging material and clearly defined quantifiable goals to reduce one-time use of plastics and other hazardous material

Possible specific goals for System Integrators/Consultants

• Actively engage with ecosystem partners like OEM/Manufacturers and distributors to understand and learn their sustainability programs and practices.
• Constantly communicate about these programs and practices to end users of these products so that they can embed this into their own sustainability program(s), thereby actively contributing to the sustainability goals of their respective organizations.
• Mindful design: Communicate to your sales engineering and solution designing team members to keep sustainability as one of the essential elements to consider while creating. “Doing more with less” is a great design philosophy to adopt. Some exciting ways in which this can be achieved are as follows:

 

1. Optimizing the number of devices needed to solve the problem. Detailed planning of the footprint of surveillance cameras, access controllers, fire/smoke detectors, and perimeter security devices reduces the number of devices needed to address the requirement. Avoiding redundant equipment and overlap can be achieved by designing a map using various tools that give detailed simulations of the possible outcome, thereby providing better visualization and increased optimization.
2. Take the unification approach to security solutions. Instead of deploying servers and application software separately for video surveillance management, access control management, visitor management, PIDS (Perimeter Intrusion detection systems), PA (Public announcement) and other similar security solutions, one can think of deploying single suitable software platforms to break the silos and unify all solutions in one platform. This not just helps in a single pane of glass situational awareness and management but also helps a lot in saving wasteful expenditure and losses of deploying multiple hardware and software. One such interesting solution is Genetec Security Centre.
3. Using equipment that consumes less power. System integrators and consultants must use and promote energy-efficient products to end users. This results in better ROI and reduced environmental footprint. Green network switches, computers, and displays are an excellent strategy to reduce the power consumption footprint.
4. Employing innovations like POE (Power over Ethernet), Lightfinder, Zipstream, Multicasting, and LPWAN (low power wide area network) for sensing. Using efficient management software that can use CPU, RAM, and GPU in a highly optimized fashion.
5. In security, video surveillance solution is all pervasive and the biggest consumer of power and resources. System Integrators can leverage innovative solutions like Streamvault from Genetec. This solution tightly couples the security management software with hardware powered by Dell and helps system integrators manage hundreds of video surveillance cameras and access controllers on fewer servers. Compared to COTS (Commercial off-the-shelf) servers, such bundled and optimized solutions can reduce the overall footprint and ‘do more with less’, saving power, resources, and maintenance by 30-40%.
6. Using multi-sensor equipment– For e.g., a single surveillance camera with multiple lenses that uses only a single network cable to power up and communicate, leveraging on equipment with audio and video capabilities built in, using Wi-Fi 6 routers for RTLS (real-time location services)
7. Providing a clear path to implement security solutions on a combination of on-premises, hybrid cloud, or pure cloud platforms.
8. AI/ML (Artificial Intelligence/Machine learning) is making big inroads in every industry, and it is proving to be an exciting new technology for the security industry as well. Using video analytics, system integrators can now use surveillance cameras to do so many other previously impossible things. From analyzing vacant parking spots to securing the perimeter to counting people, objects, and vehicles, cameras can do it all now. While some video analytics applications consume enormous processing power (e.g., facial recognition), running video analytics on edge (one the camera) is now possible. System integrators must thus harness the computing capabilities of open platform cameras and use ‘edge-based analytics’ wherever possible. Video analytics reduces the need for other sensors/equipment, and “edge-based video analytics” further reduces the footprint of computing power consumption.

 

• Focusing on the TCO: Educating end customers on TCO (total cost of ownership) over a period of 5-10 years should be the focus area. Often cheap security products tend to prove costly over a period of time.

Possible specific goals for End customers/System users

• Avoid working with OEMs/Manufacturers who do not show any thought leadership and action on sustainability.
• Avoid working with System Integrators who do not understand how to add value to your sustainability goals.
• Constantly engage with system integrators, distributors and OEMs to find out what they do to align with your sustainability goals.
• Use standard products and brands sensitive to human rights, labour rights, and environmental protection, who innovate constantly and command trust.
• Understand the TCO (Total cost of ownership) approach to evaluate the efficacy and ROI (return on investment) of proposals received. Upfront product supply and installation costs are just the tip of the iceberg.

 

Conclusion

Sustainability management is not a one-time activity. It is not a destination but a constant journey. It requires a mindset or long-term value creation instead of instant profitability. While we keep saying that ‘we are in this together’ and ‘this planet is our only home’, are we all really doing our bit? The real question here is, if not now, when?