“It’s
not what we say about OURSELVES that MATTERS most, it’s what our
CLIENT’S say”
Homewood suites by Hilton
As you know, we have
recently completed the installation of a digital surveillance system at
our Hotel - The Homewood Suites By Hilton La Quinta. I am responding to
your request for some feedback on my dealings with you and US Security
Systems.
This brand new Hotel is
being built by three very 'hand-on' investors who have hired Windsor
Capital Group to operate the property as a Homewood Suites By Hilton.
The Building Owner's original assumptions were to provide an elaborate
security network as a deterrence, and so that there would be evidence in
the event of criminal behavior - both on the part of the guests and the
employees. The Owner's original plan was to survey the entire exterior
of the hotel, the parking lot and all exterior doors. However, the
price tag for such a system exceeded the Owner's budget.
As a compromise, we took
the stance that we could never depend solely upon a camera system to
provide total security - within the constraints of the Owner's budget.
As the Management Company, we can augment security by ensuring the
doors are locked, the lighting is adequate, the signage is informative
and legible, and the staff is trained and responsive.
For our security camera system, we are primarily concerned with safety
of the guests in addition to monitoring alcoholic beverages, overseeing
food operations, monitoring luggage and, finally, serving as deterrence
for would-be criminals. Our digital surveillance system is capable of
providing a live, remote view from as many as sixteen camera shots
simultaneously.
At this writing, we are utilizing ten cameras but have pre-wired for
future expansion. Our system is comprised of two outdoor cameras, eight
indoor cameras, a sixteen port DVR with a 17" Flat Screen Monitor.
Also included are six additional pre-wired camera locations along with
all of the associated camera housings, wiring and power supplies.
We placed two cameras at
opposing angles behind the Registration Desk to aid the Front Desk
Management by monitoring the money flow, providing evidence in the case
of a transaction dispute and capturing close-up facial features of
would-be criminals.
We placed two cameras in
the Hotel Laundry area at the back of the house. The purpose of these
cameras is to monitor employee safety practices around laundry
equipment, watch for unsupervised employee activity before and after
hours, slip / fall incidents, employee traffic across the housekeeping
floor to go out the back door as well as general employee activity
around the time clock.
One exterior camera covers
the Porte Cochere. This camera is primarily intended to monitor guest
luggage and pedestrian / auto traffic flow at the entry of the Hotel.
The other exterior camera covers the pool patio courtyard. This camera
is for the safety of our guests, monitoring pool activity after hours,
monitoring alcoholic beverage use, documenting slip / fall incidents
and general oversight of the food and beverage operations. We have
pre-wired the Porte Cochere for the placement of three other cameras
should the need arise.
Other interior cameras
keep an eye on the convenience store, the lobby and the breakfast
buffet. It is important to note that all of these cameras monitor
real-time events and provide a margin of safety for the employees by
means of passive continuous contact with the front of the Hotel.
Is the system easy to use?
That depends on what you what to do. The first time I picked up the
remote and started to 'play' with it, I quickly discovered how to
select a camera, make it pan zoom and tilt and then get back to the
main screen. The basic functions are obvious to anyone who has ever
used a VCR or a DVD player.
But, accessing only the
basic functions is like driving a Cessna to the grocery store. With
some study, you can make the machine do so much more! Mastering
functions such as timed recording and 'automatic save' takes a little
concentration. Yes, the manual is more than 100 pages long - but it is
not wordy. There are lots of illustrations of the menu screens that
helped me along. I have not yet had to call Tech Support and I find the
menus to be intuitive.
My first impression was
surprise at how tiny the cameras are. The smoked globes that house the
interior cameras are about the size of half a grapefruit. They don't
detract from the decor at all. Yet, inside these little grapefruits are
fully functional cameras with pan, tilt and zoom. The picture quality
is quite good. (However, when I zoom, I lose a little detail - the
picture is sharpest when it is biggest.) The exterior cameras are in
the bigger waterproof housing that I am used to seeing.
Why US Security Systems? Why Bill Richardson? US Security Systems is
the preferred security camera vendor for Windsor Capital Group. Bill
Richardson has worked with our company installing systems at several
other WCG properties and was recommended to the Owner of this property
based on past successes. Make no mistake; it was no 'cakewalk' for US
Security Systems. The owners did not accept Bill Richardson's proposal
without rigorous scrutiny. But, at the end of negotiations, we have (in
my opinion) an exceptional camera system expertly installed at a fair
price.
Thank You!
Sincerely,
Donald W. Sahs
Chief Engineer
Homewood Suites
by Hilton La Quinta
Embassy Suites
I would like to take the time to thank your
company for doing a quality installation of our security system. The
work was performed in a clean and professional manner with no
interruptions to our guests. I have recommended U.S. Security Systems
to another property for additional work and I am pleased that they
elected to use your firm. Please give a special thanks to Bernard for
ensuring that all special needs and requests were taken care of I
really appreciated him taking the time to follow up to see if
everything was completed to our satisfaction after the job was
finished.
Sincerely,
William Mac
Gregor
Director of
Engineering
Embassy Suites
Hotel
Security Pacific Capital Bancorp
I would like thank you
for your effort in supporting the installation of the Digital Video
Recorders (DVR's) in our forty-five (45) retail banking locations. Your
dedication and level of customer support led to successful installs at
each location. US Security Systems responded to all of our concerns and
technical issues in a timely manner. Although this was my first time
working with your company, I was satisfied with the level of service
that was provided and would consider US Security Systems for future
projects.
Reggie Ellis,
Senior Vice
President Director of Enterprise
Security Pacific
Capital Bank N.A.S
Bridgeman Foods Wendy’s Franchisee
I would personally like to
thank you for you never ending communication to make sure that
Bridgeman Foods is happy with the systems that we have purchased over
the last 3 years, we are very satisfied with the support staff as they
have been there to answer any questions that the managers, district
managers and I have inquired about. We are happy with the response time
be it by phone or when a technician might have to come to the site. We
now have your systems in restaurants in Milwaukee, Tennessee, and
Florida.
I am sure in the future;
we will be doing more business.
Sincerely,
David Spychalski
Bridgeman Foods,
Inc.
Vice President
of Operations
Alhambra High
School
I’d like to express
our satisfaction with the security system your company has provided
Alhambra High School. After the October installation, we have had
numerous incidents on campus that were investigated with the assistance
of our digital video surveillance system. In the course of our daily
monitoring, we found the equipment very "user-friendly" and
have trained all members of our security staff and site administration
in its use. The cameras and web log-in capabilities have operated in an
efficient and consistent manner. 
Let me give you an example
of one the most serious crimes, including theft and illegal entry, that
have occurred on our campus and could not have been solved without the
security cameras in operation. On Thursday, November, 14th at 8:45 AM
our school received a call from the Alhambra Police Department
dispatcher indicating that a 911 call had been made from our school in
which the caller claimed. "There's a sniper on the roof at
Alhambra High." As a result, I initiated a lock-down of our school
and police officers arrived in force.
The police had a
helicopter launched to "sweep" the school's rooftops. During
this time we identified the pay telephone (one of four on our campus
for the convenience of students involved in extracurricular
activities). Next, we reviewed the video footage of the fixed camera
that was installed in that vicinity. The color video revealed the
student prank caller in distinctive clothing. I personally went to the
gym where six-hundred physical education students were held because of
the Jock-down. Within a few minutes I was able to spot the prankster.
He confessed to the call and the police arrested him. The "all
clear" bell was rung at 10:01 releasing staff and students to a
regular schedule. Believe me, without the cameras we would have no way
of identifying the prankster amongst the 3200 enrolled students.
The Alhambra Police
Department and school staff praised the efficiency of the security
system. Definitely, the cameras not only provided the identification of
the caller, but, provided a speedy culmination to an emergency
situation that could have lasted many hours to the distress of students
and staff.
We look forward to a
continued relationship with you and as soon as the budget allows
we’d like to complement the cameras we now have with seven more
to fully utilized our current system's capacity.
Respectfully,
Victor M.
Sandoval
Assistant
Principal, business & activities
Alhambra High
School
Loeb & Loeb LLP
The purpose of this letter
is to express our appreciation for the work that Dan Harold did on the
recent installation of the security cameras, in our offices at 10100
Santa Monica Boulevard. Mr. Harold was responsive to our requests and
handled the entire project in a very professional, efficient and
courteous manner. Additionally, his follow through with me and with
other involved personnel. Our project was a success due, in part, to
the diligence and attention of Mr. Harold. Please take a moment to
thank him on our behalf.
Philip W. Hacker
Administrator
Nasco Foods
We want to thank you for
the system that you installed at our distrabution center, the
warehouse, cold storge, and loading dock coverage, has made our
facility a safer, and more secure place to work.
Management
