Few companies withstand the test of time like Idesco Corp. The New York Real Estate Journal sat down with its principal, Andrew Schonzeit, to discuss how.
NYREJ: Andy, after 66 years Idesco continues to flourish, can you explain how?
AS: Idesco prides itself on adaptation. We identify what we believe are going to be future industry trends, spend a considerable amount of time and money in learning about them and then if we feel that they warrant it, we invest in them. We are conservative in our approach and rather than dive right in we take our time to make sure that our decisions are sound.
NYREJ: Can you provide us with some examples?
AS: Certainly. Idesco has evolved greatly over the past six plus decades. My grandfather founded the company in 1943 by providing the War Department with ID cards (see example below). The system utilized involved taking a person's photo, cutting it out, and laminating it to a card-sized piece of paper. The paper contained the person's name, ID number, and any other personal information. This method of ID card manufacturing actually lasted as the standard in the industry until the early 1980s. It was at this time that the first card printers and digital identification systems were introduced into the marketplace. Like any new technology, there were numerous manufacturers. Idesco rigorously tested numerous manufacturers systems and aligned ourselves with those which we believed were the most solid platforms. This method of testing holds true to our other products offered to our customer base today.
NYREJ: I know Idesco remains one of the largest ID badging system providers in the country today, what other products do you offer?
AS: I alluded to our adaptability earlier and it is something that I am personally very proud of. As ID badging technology advanced, so did the badges themselves. Badges became available with technology built into the actual badge. In fact, I would bet that most of your reader base actually used an access card to gain entry into their office this morning. These systems are known as access control systems.
As these technologies became available Idesco vetted the manufacturers and selected the most solid platform. Today we provide our customers with both web based and traditional access control systems. In addition to access control we provide state-of-the-art video surveillance systems, visitor management, intercom systems and many more. Idesco is what is known as a systems integrator. We take access control systems, visitor management systems, video surveillance systems, etc. and enable them to work in conjunction with one another on a single platform.
NYREJ: Some of our past columnists have discussed the advantages of IP based video surveillance systems, does Idesco install these?
AS: Approximately 90% of our video installations are IP based. This ratio is very unusual for our industry. In fact, Idesco is the largest distributor in the Northeast of the most widely utilized video management software platform in the world today. We aligned ourselves with this manufacturer very early on as we tested their product side-by-side with numerous others and identified it as what we believed to be the best system available. Apparently our testing process was a success as is evidenced by the popularity of the product today.
NYREJ: As we know you are quite busy, this will be our last question. Most of our readers are persons involved in the commercial property market in New York. What kind of advantages does an IP based video system have for them?
AS: IP systems offer a considerable increase in image quality. We used to joke around the office that our customers watch too many crime shows, like CSI, and as a result their expectations were unrealistic. As IP video technologies continue to advance the product we deliver isn't too far off from not only meeting but exceeding their expectations.
In addition to quality, I think the most important point to relay to your reader base is the reduced cost of ownership. IP technologies in the security industry enable us to use the existing network infrastructure that owners already have in place at their buildings. This allows for a reduced installation cost. Additionally, for those owners who have more than one building in their portfolio, IP systems allow for the elimination of a local recording device. Centralized recording solutions can be installed allowing for multiple properties recordings to be at one location. In other words, an expensive recording device does not need to be purchased for each building. Furthermore, recordings from buildings all over the world can take place right here in New York. Tags: