ADT Commercial Gets High Marks for Youth Academy Solution
ADT Commercial earned a 2021 SSI Installation of the Year runner-up nod for its integrated, comprehensive security solution for the campus’s seven buildings.
Samueli Academy is set on a 7.1-acre campus in Santa Ana, Calif.
Located in Santa Ana, Calif., the Samueli Academy is a public charter affiliated with the Orangewood Foundation, whose programs help foster youth set a course on the road to self-sufficiency.
The academy, set on a 7.1-acre campus, serves the low-income neighborhood that surrounds it as well as children from across Orange County, who all can get a top-notch, free education with an emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math.
With a primary concern to provide a safe and secure environment for the student population to live and learn in, administrators brought in ADT Commercial initially on a consultation and design-build basis. The site had broken ground and was being deployed through a series of contractors that did not have the client’s input or direction in place.
“We approached them with an RFP, which they were able to submit to several companies to evaluate a best-in-class provider who would be able to meet the specifications,” explains ADT Commercial’s Leo Cid, senior national account manager. “The process of discovery gave us the ability to design and build based on what the customer requirements were and ultimately what was needed onsite.”
The contract was finalized in October 2020 and coordination with the general contractor and other trades began the same month. Weekly construction meetings aligned with the project progress and field changes were able to keep the project moving to final completion.
ADT Commercial provided an integrated, comprehensive security solution for the seven buildings that are housed on campus, encompassing intrusion, access control, IP intercom and video surveillance. The installation commenced in November 2020 and the last phase of the project — the gymnasium — is currently being deployed. At press time it was set for completion in June.
The solution allows the Samueli Academy teams visibility to activities across the campus, giving them ability to ensure proper procedures are adhered to, the ability to address potential problem areas before issues arise, and proactively receive alerts in a timely fashion.
ADT Commercial’s eSuite account management services are used for monitoring of the intrusion systems, including to oversee opening/closing schedules and remote managed services through Avigilon, deployed for the access control, intercom and VMS.
“We worked with the campus IT team to integrate the video and access control within the confines of the network at the campus. This meant utilizing campus switches and centralized power sources for the field devices, including electrified door locking hardware,” Cid explains. “Network/IDF rooms were designated in each building to centralize power and provide standby power for the system in the event of a power loss.”
The project was completed at the onset and in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. That meant the integrator and all involved had to respond to evolving state mandates to ensure strict measures and safety protocols were followed to maintain the highest standard of health and safety.
“Dealing with the pandemic and coordinating the trades was challenging, but through our thorough planning process and comprehensive protocols that we enacted, the installation went relatively smoothly,” says John Luker, the academy’s COO and CFO. “Even with these obstacles, we were able to complete the projects on time and on budget.”
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About the Author
Rodney Bosch, Senior Editor
Although Bosch’s name is quite familiar to those in the security industry, his previous experience has been in daily newspaper journalism. Prior to joining SECURITY SALES & INTEGRATION in 2006, he spent 15 years with the Los Angeles Times, where he performed a wide assortment of editorial responsibilities, including feature and metro department assignments as well as content producing for latimes.com. Bosch is a graduate of California State University, Fresno with a degree in Mass Communication & Journalism. In 2007, he successfully completed the National Burglar and Fire Alarm Association’s National Training School coursework to become a Certified Level I Alarm Technician.
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