Interview with Joseph Grillo CEO/Managing Director of Vanderbilt International

In October 2014 Vanderbilt Industries entered into an agreement to acquire Security Products from Siemens, which was part of the ­Siemens Building Technologies Division. The acquisition was completed on June 1st and the newly acquired business was ­renamed Vanderbilt International. Its sole focus is on maintaining and growing its leadership position offering integrated security systems incorporating Access Control, Intrusion Alarm and Video ­Monitoring systems. Joseph J. Grillo, CEO of parent company ACRE and CEO/Managing Director of Vanderbilt International, was leading the acquisition and is now managing the businesses. In the November issue of GIT SECURITY we presented Joe Grillo’s view on the industry and gave you an insight about the background of the acquisition. The November interview can be found if you follow the link at the end of this article. Now that the acquisition has been completed, Heiko Baumgartner had the opportunity to talk with Joe Grillo for GIT SECURITY about the progress of Vanderbilt and his future plans.

GIT SECURITY: Can you give us an overview of the actual situation and where you are in the integration process?

Joseph Grillo: Nearly 100% of the former employees transferred to Vanderbilt, right from the start we are actively selling in 95 countries worldwide. Vanderbilt currently supplies and supports in excess of 9,000 customers and has a portfolio that comprises over 2,000 products. We didn’t have the usual scenario of a merger or an acquisition that is followed by integration. The challenge for us was to separate a part of a company with 220 employees, and establish its independent operations, whilst adhering to all the legal issues of the individual countries. All corporate functions, such as IT, HR and finance are established and being managed from our new headquarters in Wiesbaden, Germany. It was hard work as you can imagine and this was only possible through collegial efforts from Siemens and Vanderbilt, but we are ready to start business now.

At an industry event last week, somebody commented that in this industry 50% of the success is price and quality and 50% is trust. Do you share this view?

Joseph Grillo: There is some truth in it. In our last interview, I stated that the market trend is for integrated security management systems and more open solutions from trusted suppliers. Trust is very important and with Vanderbilt our customers can rely on the same established product quality, customer service and sales support that they were used to when they worked with Siemens because we transferred nearly 100% of the staff. They only need to get acquainted with a new CEO and CFO at Vanderbilt and they can be assured of the depth of industry experience throughout the business. As the new owners, we are well founded and have strong financial backing which also will help retain and build trust.

Could you give our readers an overview of your plans for the business and strategy in the upcoming months?

Joseph Grillo: Our overall strategy will not change dramatically compared to that under Siemens ownership of the Security Products business. Our main goal stays the same, to supply state-of-the-art access control, intrusion alarm and video surveillance products to our channel partners. Therefore an important part of our strategy will be massive investments in our product pipeline. Focusing on the security market is not easy when you are a part of a huge company that is involved in several market segments.  A big advantage for Vanderbilt is that that we can be 100% focused on the security business and we will not be distracted by any other business strategies. We are a big company with a strong background but not a conglomerate of different businesses like Siemens or many of our competitors. This means that we will be agile, we can make fast decisions and we will take reasonable risks based on our vast experience. We live and breathe security, we have the security business in our DNA. We also have a deep understanding of our channel’s and the end-user’s needs and we understand how our technology is integrated with business concerns like HR, time & attendance, building technology and locking systems. If you look at the international markets, we want to grow beyond our customer base in Europe and the US, especially in the Asia Pacific market, in South America and Eastern Europe.

Joe, you have mentioned how important it is to understand the market. Apart from your experience, how do you analyse what products the market needs?

Joseph Grillo: We are just about to finalise the analysis of some research that we have carried out in some key markets. We conducted research amongst more than 7,500 consumers and businesses in the UK, France, Germany, Spain & Sweden to gain insight into the fears of consumers and businesses, and to reveal the efforts and investments that both are making to keep their homes and businesses safe from harm. We also hope to gain an indication of where electronic security technology itself could be heading by questioning consumers and businesses on the solutions that they are interested in for the future. We will be sharing the results with our partners in discussions at the IFSEC show and will inform your readers as soon as we have finalised the research.

IP systems for access control are a very hot topic in the industry at the moment. What is your view on this and what is Vanderbilt offering here?

Joseph Grillo: IP technology has already influenced security in a lot of ways. The change in video technology was massive and we see a big impact on access control systems, too. With our product portfolio we are ready for the changes that will come. Our IP-based controllers from our new Aliro system are a good example.

IFSEC will probably be a good showcase for the product developments you have made in the last months. What is new on the product side?

Joseph Grillo: We will present an overview of our products at IFSEC. Suitable for small to medium sized commercial applications, the flexible yet robust Aliro access control solution incorporates a flat system architecture with easy to use Internet based software and intuitive mobile features. Shipped already pre-configured, in addition to distributed applications, Aliro supports up to 512 doors, 10,000 users and 100,000 access cards. Visitors will also be able to see first hand how it works with MiFare card readers featuring an integral LED based screen that facilitates cardholder interaction by displaying bespoke messages. When it comes to high definition (HD) video, the Vectis iX range of IP video recording solutions offers unrivalled performance for those looking to capture all the finest details. Setting new benchmarks in functionality, compatibility, speed, value for money and future proofing, Vectis iX is fully scalable and suitable for a diverse range of applications. It comprises self-contained network video recorders (NVRs) and network video software (NVS), both of which are capable of recording full-HD images from up to 48 3MP cameras simultaneously at 25fps, and can support resolutions up to 20MP. Also on display will be a range of ONVIF compatible CCTV cameras including a day/night 3 megapixel PTZ dome camera with 18x optical zoom that is considered to be a global first. Products from the ever-popular SPC intruder detection range will also feature on the stand, including the recently launched SPC Compact Keypad, a slim, elegant, feature packed user interface which brings the power and sophistication of the SPC system right to a user’s fingertips. With a depth of just 17.5mm, the two variants are small but perfectly formed, and while the SPCK520 offers display and speech output, the SPCK521 adds an ID card reader. Joining Aliro, SPC and Vectis iX will be the new Magic PDM-IXx12/T and PDM-IXx18/T dual motion detectors, which offer reliable detection of intruders and high false alarm immunity. These will appear alongside the new day/night 3MP PTZ dome camera, with 18x optical zoom that is considered a global first and a truly viable alternative to the ‘shoebox’ housing PTZ cameras that are often used for perimeter surveillance.

IFSEC in London will be the first show where Vanderbilt appears as a uniquely independent organisation. What can visitors of the Vanderbilt stand expect apart from the latest product news?

Joe Grillo: Our appearance at IFSEC will be our coming-out party! As the key event in the UK security calendar, IFSEC provides the perfect opportunity to meet directly with integration partners and end users and highlight how we plan to build on the success of the range and take it in a new and exciting direction. It is our opportunity to show our company “personality” to the world and I am confident people will find it refreshingly different. As this is our first time at the event, we look forward to welcoming visitors to our stand, where our team of experts will be available to talk through the features and benefits of our cutting edge innovations and discuss the benefits of working with our organisation.