Centralized Vision Builds Relationships with Security Camera Providers at ISC West Conference

By Tami Vigilante

Tom and I just returned from a three-day trip to Las Vegas to attend the International Security Conference West show at the Sands Convention Center, where we established great relationships with various security camera software and equipment providers throughout the country to become advocates of Centralized Vision.

ISC West is the largest annual gathering of the security industry in the United States. Each year, security industry brands launch new products, solutions and technologies to the more than 23,000 security professionals visiting Las Vegas. There was more than $50 billion in buying power walking the aisles during the conference’s three days, showing how healthy the Security Industry Association is that represents all of the more than 350 security product manufacturers and service providers.

We met with numerous security camera companies, including Sony, OnSSI and Axis Communications, and video security software companies, Proximex, CNL and VidSys, to discuss if they could offer our video monitoring service in contracts to their customers, as a value add to enhance their solution. We also learned about new video security system camera technology that will be available soon, along with new software platforms that can be used to enhance our real-time video managed services.

Although we are one of the top-ranked security companies in Phoenix AZ, we were able to discuss business deals with conference attendees from anywhere in the country because we can connect our tech center monitoring service to any video camera systems around the world. Centralized Vision’s video surveillance system monitoring is very affordable and our security technology interfaces with all brands of video equipment and proprietary reporting software.

We are excited about further developing the relationships we made with numerous security industry companies at ISC West. We are also counting down the days to return to Las Vegas for ISC West in 2014.

Increase in Auto Inventory Could Lead to Potential Criminal Activity at Car Dealerships

By Tom Vigilante, Jr.

The current economic rebound has been great news for auto dealerships throughout the United States.

According to a recent J.D. Powers and Associates study, new cars and trucks sales are expected to reach nearly 1.5 million vehicles in March and experts are forecasting that 15.3 million automobiles will be sold in 2013.

Because growth in auto sales is outperforming earlier expectations, dealerships in Arizona are adding more vehicles on their lots to satisfy customer’s demands. However, an increase in an auto dealer’s inventory may also bring the potential of theft, vandalism and trespassing at dealerships.

Providing real-time video managed services for auto dealerships has developed into a core part of our business at Centralized Vision. With the addition of Earnhardt Cadillac in North Scottsdale and Desert Cadillac in Scottsdale as clients recently, Centralized Vision now monitors 16 auto dealerships in the Phoenix metropolitan area.

By providing remote-camera monitoring with real-time response actions, our technicians have been successful in capturing and arresting trespassers, graffiti taggers and thieves on the property of various clients, including car dealerships. Centralized Vision posts signs throughout our client’s properties to act as deterrents and if available, has the ability to utilize one or two-way audio speakers, to speak throughout the property with, to warn would-be criminals that they are being watched. Our service has proven to be a more affordable and efficient option when compared to other similar security options, with savings up to 85 percent less than the typical physical security officer.

As long as the economy continues to grow, people will continue to purchase big-ticket items like new vehicles. Centralized Vision’s service is designed to eliminate petty theft and vandalism and to ensure vehicles remain on the lot so auto dealers can meet consumer’s demands.

Tom Vigilante, Jr. is President & Founder of Centralized Vision, which has offices in Phoenix, Las Vegas and Denver. For more information on real-time video managed services or GPS monitoring, go to centralizedvision.com or call 855-888-8094.

Centralized Vision to Provide Video Camera Monitoring at Liberty Automotive Group’s 5 Arizona Auto Dealerships

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 13, 2012

CENTRALIZED VISION TO PROVIDE VIDEO CAMERA MONITORING

AT LIBERTY AUTOMOTIVE GROUP’S 5 ARIZONA AUTO DEALERSHIPS

Phoenix Video Surveillance Company Adds to List of Auto Dealership It Monitors

(PHOENIX) — Centralized Vision announced today they have signed a contract with Liberty Automotive Group to provide pro-active protection of property and assets by using remote-camera monitoring with real-time response options at the automotive group’s five dealerships throughout Arizona.

Centralized Vision is now actively engaged in video camera monitoring at Liberty Buick, Liberty GMC, Peoria Kia and Goodwrench Autobody in Peoria, Ariz. and Liberty Kia in Prescott Valley, Ariz. Overall, Centralized Vision currently provides camera monitoring at 14 Phoenix-area car dealerships, including properties associated with Earnhardt Auto Centers and Van Tuyl Group and independently-owned Arrowhead Honda in Peoria and San Tan Volkswagen in Gilbert, Ariz.

“Centralized Vision treated us like we were old friends, never tried to sell us more than we needed and made us feel like their No. 1 goal was simply to provide the best protection available,” said Autumn Henderson, General Manager of Liberty Buick-GMC. “We are now paying less, have more protection and are satisfied customers.”

Centralized Vision takes pride in its customer service and being able to tailor pricing to fit within a client’s budget.

“We were able to tailor our monthly pricing to fit within Liberty Automotive Group’s budget while also providing them an opportunity to constantly monitor their dealerships in Arizona,” said Centralized Vision Founder and President Tom Vigilante, Jr. “After sitting down with their leadership team and understanding their needs, we enhanced their video surveillance at each dealership by offering them cutting-edge camera technology that works well with capturing motion and in low-light environments.”

With local news organizations reporting last month an overall surge in violent crime in Maricopa County in 2011, Centralized Vision has seen a spike in growth because of the opportunities it provides to monitor closed-circuit cameras in real time, act as a crime deterrent because of posted signs surrounding its clients’ properties and the ability with one-way audio speakers to warn would-be criminals they are being watched. Video technicians monitoring properties from a centralized Phoenix-based location 24 hours a day have been successful in capturing and arresting trespassers, graffiti taggers and thieves as well as reporting other crimes or threats. Centralized Vision currently monitors nearly 90 clients within the Phoenix metro area and also has operations in Denver and Las Vegas.

Centralized Vision, backed by decades of experience in security services, provides real-time visual monitoring of various businesses, such as auto dealerships, retail centers, recycling facilities, office buildings and warehouse distribution centers. By using the latest in security technology that interfaces with all brands of video equipment and proprietary reporting software, Centralized Vision provides affordable pricing options that fit into any company’s budget.

— CENTRALIZEDVISION.COM —

Real-Time Video Monitoring Could Deter Car Thefts at Phoenix Shopping Malls

By Tom Vigilante, Jr.

With Black Friday and the holiday shopping season fast approaching, Phoenix’s ABC television affiliate recently aired a segment on their evening news about the number of car thefts at Valley shopping malls.

According to research done among car thefts at Phoenix-area malls from September 2011 to August 2012, ABC 15 (KNXV-TV, Ch. 15) reported that Metrocenter in Phoenix had the most occurrences with 84 cars stolen on its property during the 12-month time frame. Arrowhead Towne Center in Glendale ranked second with 56 thefts, Arizona Mills in Tempe was third with 33 and Desert Sky Mall in Phoenix was fourth with 31. Car thefts for other malls included Tempe Marketplace (12), Scottsdale Fashion Square (5), Mesa’s Fiesta Mall (5), Mesa’s Superstition Springs Center (3) and Chandler Fashion Center (2).

The National Insurance Crime Bureau reports that New Year’s Day is the leading holiday for reported vehicle thefts, while Christmas Day repeats annually as the holiday with the fewest reported cars stolen. The NICB reminds drivers to be alert during the busy holiday season by parking in well-lit areas at shopping centers, keeping packages in the trunk or out of sight and making sure vehicles are locked while parked.

Although Phoenix led the nation in auto thefts in 2002, NCIB data now ranks the Valley 60th among 366 metro areas in car thefts. According to the Arizona Republic, the decrease in car thefts can be attributed to the creation by the Arizona State Legislature of the Arizona Automobile Theft Authority, which trains police officers, provides funding for prosecutors dealing in auto-theft cases and issues bait cars to lure thieves.

While the decrease in auto thefts in the Phoenix metropolitan area has decreased significantly, there is still work to be done to prevent additional displeasure for car owners in the future.

Centralized Vision provides pro-active protection of properties and assets by using remote-camera monitoring with real-time response actions for companies, including strip malls and shopping centers. We have a technician at our corporate headquarters monitor closed-circuit video cameras throughout parking lots and closed-off areas of various shopping centers 24 hours a day to prevent car thefts, trespassing and personal attacks.

When our technician views a crime being committed on camera, he or she can immediately alert local law enforcement to dispatch police officers to the property, and even provide them with a photo or video in real time to track down the suspect. Some of our client’s CCTV cameras are equipped with voice response features, allowing Centralized Vision technicians to warn a suspect they are being watched on video and deter a crime from being committed.

Although Christmas shoppers can take precautions to prevent their automobile from being stolen at Phoenix shopping centers, it is always a good idea for malls to invest in additional resources to make their customers feel safe during the holiday season.

Tom Vigilante, Jr. is President & Founder of Centralized Vision, which has offices in Phoenix, Las Vegas and Denver. For more information on real-time video verification services or GPS monitoring, go to centralizedvision.com or call 855-888-8094.

Centralized Vision Camera Monitoring Leads to Copper Theft Arrest at Phoenix Recycling Facility

After a Centralized Vision technician noticed suspicious activity while monitoring surveillance cameras at a Phoenix recycling facility around 6 p.m. on October 27, 2012, he alerted the Phoenix Police Department about the incident. As the tech zoomed in with the security camera, he noticed the trespasser in the bottom-right corner of the screen was wearing a light-colored bandana over his face and a dark hat while he was removing copper metal from the facility.

At 6:13 p.m., Phoenix Police arrived at the facility and five officers along with a K-9 unit were allowed on the facility’s grounds to look for the suspect. As the officers and K-9 looked for the suspect on foot, camera surveillance showed a Phoenix Police helicopter shining its lights from above trying to find the suspect. At 7:14 p.m., Phoenix Police notified the Centralized Vision technician that the suspect was found and arrested.

Metal theft has become an epidemic in Arizona since the economic downturn started in 2008. Law enforcement agencies blame the trend on a combination of the unemployed seeking items to sell for cash and drug addicts looking to finance their next score. Insurance claims arising from metal thefts rose nationwide by 81 percent during the last three years compared with the number of claims filed from 2007-08, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau.

Phoenix Fox TV Station Profiles Centralized Vision About Video Monitoring at Medical Marijuana Dispensaries

Following a shooting at a medical marijuana dispensary in Tempe, Ariz. on Oct. 25 that left an employee hospitalized with life-threatening injuries while three male suspects were still on the loose, Phoenix Fox affiliate KSAZ-TV (Ch. 10) talked to Centralized Vision President Tom Vigilante, Jr. about how real-time video monitoring could help prevent similar crimes at other dispensaries throughout Arizona.

Fox 10 news anchor John Hook reported it is violence like what happened in Tempe that opponents of medical marijuana have been warning people about from the beginning. Hook stated that Arizona law requires dispensaries to have security, but some are wondering if it is enough?

In the segment that ran during the station’s 9 p.m. newscast on Oct. 26, Vigilante said medical marijuana dispensaries “are a cash-rich environment, not to mention an environment with a lot of marijuana.”

Although nobody can totally prevent someone from attempting to rob a dispensary, Hook stated that advance security systems like the services offered by Centralized Vision can help track down criminals or serve as a deterrent to prevent crimes.

“The goal is to get (the suspects) in the moment so we don’t even get that far,” Vigilante said. “A panic button might also come into play to where if a person feels threatened they can simply press a button, which can be monitored or received on our end by one of our operators. Combine that with live-feed video and the ability to look in in real time, you have a very powerful solution that increases the likelihood of capturing would-be offenders, thieves or criminals in those types of environments.”

FOX 10 News – Phoenix, AZ | KSAZ-TV

Police Say Dumpster Diving Can Lead to Theft & Property Damage

By Tami Vigilante

I routinely receive various crime prevention tips from local police departments because of the great relationships Centralized Vision has established with local law enforcement agencies. A recent email I received from the Peoria Police Department is worth passing along because it warns businesses about the circumstances if people are going through trash dumpsters on their property.

Peoria Police warn businesses that they could be held liable if information in their trash is left unprotected. While people may be “dumpster diving” for treasures, they can also collect customers’ personal identity information, business information or precious metals that can be resold on the black market. The Peoria Police Department highlighted Sec. 22-9 of their criminal code that addresses “disturbing contents of containers”:

(a) Any person not authorized by the City to utilize for other than its intended purpose the lid from any solid waste or recycling container.
(b) Any person not authorized by the responsible party to remove, collect or disturb the solid waste and recyclables stored in such containers or to remove from a solid waste or recycling container any solid waste or recyclables
(i) set out for recycling or collection and disposable by the City, licenses solid waste contractors, their agents or assigns or
(ii) deposited at a City recycling drop-off center. This prohibition does not apply to law enforcement officers acting within the scope of their official duties.
(c) Any person to scatter solid waste or recyclables upon any private or public property.

Centralized Vision offers an innovative security platform that provides pro-active protection of property and assets for companies by using remote-camera monitoring with real-time response options that act as a crime deterrent. Our technicians visually monitor our clients’ property in real time and can dispatch security or law enforcement officers to prevent dumpster divers from collecting a company’s private information.

Tami Vigilante is Executive Vice President & Co-Founder at Centralized Vision. For more information on real-time video verification services or GPS monitoring, go to centralizedvision.com or call 855-888-8094.

Centralized Vision Expands Into Denver & Las Vegas Markets

By Tom Vigilante, Jr.

We have seen our company grow rapidly since founding Centralized Vision in 2007. In just five years, we have developed a great book of business in providing real-time visual monitoring of auto dealerships, retail centers, recycling facilities, office buildings and warehouse distribution centers throughout the Phoenix metropolitan area.

Two years ago, we diversified our company after launching an operator division to track GPS devices and monitor convicted felons and individuals with special-needs suffering from cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer’s, dementia or autism.

Now, we are ready to take another step forward by expanding Centralized Vision’s resources into the Denver and Las Vegas markets.

We are excited about the potential Denver and Las Vegas bring to our company because both metro areas are similar to Phoenix. According to 2009 crime data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Phoenix averaged 410 reported property crimes per 10,000 residents. Denver was not far behind with an average of 348 property crimes reported per 10,000 residents, followed by Las Vegas with an average of 345 crimes. All three markets have also seen an increase in the growing epidemic of copper and HVAC thefts from residential and commercial properties.

We have already secured one client in Las Vegas and plan on reaching out to more businesses through sales efforts from our Phoenix headquarters. Our newest employee, Casey Kowal, will lead all of our sales and customer service efforts in the Denver market.

As Centralized Vision’s Business Development Representative, Kowal will be successful in extending our brand throughout the Mile High City because of her great communications skills, an attention-to-detail personality and a follow-through customer service approach. She has been successful in sales efforts throughout her career and we know she will help our company grow in Denver.

We are really excited to start talking to companies in Denver and Las Vegas about how Centralized Vision can be a service to them. However, it is more important that our company can be a solution to prevent increases in property crimes reported in both markets as well.

Tom Vigilante, Jr. is President & Founder at Centralized Vision. For more information on real-time video verification services or GPS monitoring, go to centralizedvision.com or call 855-888-8094. For businesses in the Denver area looking to connect with Casey Kowal, please email her at caseyk@centralizedvision.com.

Music Awakening Seniors Suffering From Cognitive Disorders

By Tami Vigilante

A growing part of our business at Centralized Vision is real-time GPS monitoring and tracking. We can easily keep track of low-level criminals or locate a fleet of transportation vehicles by having our team of 24-hour support technicians monitor GPS tracking devices anywhere around the world.

But a significant portion of our GPS monitoring business has nothing to do with criminal activity.

Many of our GPS monitoring clients are assisted-living facilities that house seniors afflicted with cognitive disorders, such as dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. Because people may suffer memory loss or be disoriented, having those that suffer from either of the disorders wear a GPS bracelet allows our company to locate them if they wander away from the facility.

Currently, there are more than a million people with dementia or Alzheimer’s living in assisted-living facilities throughout the country. Centralized Vision adds another level of security and safety to protect loved ones living in such facilities. But there are other organizations that offer various therapeutic options to improve the quality of life for people spending the remainder of their lives in these facilities.

One of those organizations improving the quality of life of seniors afflicted with dementia and Alzheimer’s is Music & Memory. Started by social worker Daniel Cohen six years ago, Music & Memory’s mission is to improve the quality of life for the elderly suffering from cognitive disorders through the use of personalized music and digital technology.

I learned about Music & Memory when the organization was featured on an episode of “The Doctors” recently. On the show, they told the story of an older gentleman named Henry living in an assisted-living facility and being unresponsive to most things because of dementia. He didn’t recognize family members and sat in a daze most of the time. However, when he was given an iPod with his favorite songs to listen to, Henry came alive. It broke my heart to hear him talk about his favorite singer Cab Calloway and to hear him sing a few lines from Bing Crosby’s 1943 classic “I’ll Be Home for Christmas.”

The therapy Music & Memory provides helps seniors suffering from cognitive disorders remember who they are and helps reacquire their identity after listening to their favorite music on an iPod. You can help the non-profit organization allow seniors to relive their younger years by donating a used iPod or giving as little as $49 to assist them in purchasing new iPod Shuffles. Log on to www.musicandmemory.org to learn more about how to donate used iPods or purchase new ones and to watch the video segment from the recent episode of “The Doctors.”

Keeping seniors living in assisted-living facilities safe and secure is important. But making sure those suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s have an improved quality of life is something we all can contribute to.

Tami Vigilante is Executive Vice President & Co-Founder at Centralized Vision. For more information on real-time video verification services or GPS monitoring, go to centralizedvision.com or call 855-888-8094.