Among the shoulders attendees bumped into during the course of the March 30-April 2 event were those of Security Sales & Integration columnists Al Colombo (see “Fire Side Chat”) and Bob Dolph (see “Tech Talk”). Each were trolling the ISC waters, looking for what they felt were the products security contractors could benefit from the most in their toolboxes, trucks and portfolios.

Al and Bob have each found 15 products that stopped them in their tracks. Combined, they are SSI’s 2004 ISC West Top 30.

Proof that two great minds do not think alike, neither Al nor Bob had any manufacturers repeat between their two lists. That shouldn’t be too surprising considering the vast array of different equipment attendees saw at this year’s ISC West.

The products on this year’s lists come from manufacturers as large as Honeywell and Bosch to smaller companies like GRI and Pacom, and range from panels to cables to racks to Web sites. While called the “Top 30,” they are listed in no particular order. As far as Al and Bob are concerned, the manufacturers that produced them can call the offerings seen through the following pages “top products.”

Read on to get a look at some of what ISC West 2004 had to offer...

A selection from Bob's Picks ...

Smart Video that Really Works The next generation of smart video detection and analysis is here. How would you like a system that detects, classifies and tracks multiple video targets automatically while eliminating false alerts by alarming only on user specified events? ActivEye of Briarcliff Manor, N.Y., has software that does all of the above and more without the need for proprietary hardware. The company is a spin-off of Philips C.S.I., has over 50 patents granted and pending and has worked together as a team for seven years creating solutions that utilize artificial intelligence and computer vision.