Recurring revenue, and responsibility.
WHAT MONITORING INVOLVES
Receiving signals from client systems Verifying whether the alarm is genuine
Responding: contacting the client, dispatching, or calling authorities
Recording everything
WHY IT IS ATTRACTIVE COMMERCIALLY
Recurring monthly revenue per site.
WHAT IT REQUIRES
A monitoring centre staffed continuously Reliable communication paths Trained operators Response capability, or arrangements for it Backup power and connectivity
WHY CONTINUOUS STAFFING IS THE HARD PART
Signals arrive at any hour, and an unstaffed centre provides nothing.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH
Response procedures for each signal type.
WHAT VERIFICATION MEANS
Establishing whether an alarm is genuine before dispatching.
HOW
Contacting the site, checking cameras where available, or attending.
WHY IT MATTERS
Most alarms are false, and responding to all of them is unaffordable.
WHAT TO AGREE WITH CLIENTS
What happens on an alarm Who is contacted, in what order Whether response is included What response time is offered
WHY RESPONSE TIME SPECIFICALLY
It is the promise clients measure you against.
WHAT TO PROMISE
Only what you can deliver, considering distance and traffic.
WHAT TO RECORD
Every signal, action and time.
WHY
It is the record examined after any loss.
WHAT TO TEST
Communication paths, periodically.
WHY
A site whose signals no longer reach you is unmonitored and nobody knows.
WHAT TO MONITOR
Signal absence, as well as alarms.
