Securing peace of mind

When was the company founded?

Netwatch was founded in 2003 in Carlow. It was set up in response to an attack on a friend of the cofounders, who was responding as a keyholder to an intruder alarm activation. The Netwatch co-founders were confident that with the help of evolving technology, they could create a solution that allowed people to work and live in a safer environment.

Have you a background in security?

No. I graduated from UCD with a Master’s Degree in Agricultural Science, and went on to work with leading global farming solutions company Keenans. I spent seven successful years learning from some brilliant, innovative minds and worked through the ranks to become sales manager for Ireland. During this time, I worked with the co-founders of Netwatch, and had a good relationship with them. Shortly after they set up Netwatch in 2003, I joined as sales manager and have been part of its successful journey ever since.

Retailers and business owners in general are facing more antisocial behaviour. Are there figures to back this up?

In the last few months there have been many figures highlighted from research that would echo this statement. A recent survey from the retail group RGDATA found that 95% of retailers have been victims of crime over the last 12 months. 25% said that they had been subjected to violent burglaries and robberies in their shops. Another recent survey from Circle K, found that 83% of retail workers in Ireland have experienced harassment from customers.

Was your system designed due to the increase in antisocial behaviour and intimidation that sta are facing or do you think it’s just good to have a system in place for sta peace of mind?

There is a bit of both here. At Netwatch we have an in-house R&D and a product tech team, all of whom are tasked with researching and deploying new technologies to create e ciencies and safer environments. When we saw the di culties of the public facing workers, we knew we could evolve our technology to help in this environment and so developed our Sta Safety Solution.

How does your system work?

In short, the Netwatch Sta Safety Solution allows Netwatch to look and listen at an incident in real time and intervene and take action.

Once the system is activated by a sta member, a highly trained Netwatch Intervention Specialist will view the scene live. Along with visually verifying what is happening, the specialist can also hear the conversation on the premises as it takes place and intervene with live audio if needed. The Netwatch Team responding to an activation will always consist of three people, one dealing directly with the live incident, a second person linking in live with the Gardai, and a third person linking in live with the keyholder.

The technology allows for a twoway conversation between sta and a Netwatch specialist in real time, if needed. The priority is always keeping the people involved safe and secure.

Does it work for pubs as well as shops?

Our Sta Safety Solution is designed to cater for di erent customer-facing environments. These include both pubs and o -licences. With its ability to provide an additional layer of safety and confidence, it proves beneficial in various situations. While it excels in o -licence establishments, it also adds significant value to pubs, particularly during vulnerable periods when no onsite security sta are present.

I believe one of the most valuable

Once the system is activated by a staff member, a highly trained Netwatch Intervention Specialist will view the scene live. Along with visually verifying what is happening, the specialist can also hear the conversation on the premises as it takes place and intervene with live audio if needed e ects is that the sta members feel more confident in their environment, the weight of threat and risk is lifted from them somewhat, knowing the extent of response to their alarm.

What is the cost for a business to take on this system?

From approximately €200 per month, this solution can be installed and deployed to protect your team 24/7. There is also the option for a network failover, which means that even if your connectivity is down, Netwatch can still protect your sta . We believe that this is a cost-e ective solution when you look at the level of risk mitigation.

Have you any examples of reallife situations where Netwatch was put into practice in an emergency?

One that always comes to mind is from a long-standing and very successful electrical store business. The client was having serious issues with violent gangs targeting his warehouse and shop, as a result of which, he had a Netwatch system installed. Shortly after which, the system detected an armed gang at the perimeter, a live audio was issued, the Gardai notified, and the culprits were apprehended before they managed to create any problems for the client. The client maintains that the biggest benefit of having a Netwatch system is being able to get a good night’s sleep.

It is important to say that many of our people who will be dealing with these incidents are with Netwatch a long time, and they have experience managing high risk situations and know how to handle them safely.

What size businesses does this suit the most and would it eradicate the need for security sta ?

The suitability of the Netwatch Sta Safety Solution needs to be measured around the level of risk you are mitigating. If your sta are walking in worried about what risks they are facing today, then this solution can help them walk in feeling safe and confident.

As for eradicating security sta , there will always be a need for security sta in certain situations. What we have found in other industries is that Netwatch works well in conjunction with manned security, an augmented approach. We can drastically reduce the costs involved and for the times manned guards are needed we also act as a level of protection for them.

Can you name any of your current customers that use Netwatch in their businesses?

We cover many industries with our solutions, from retail to quarries, hospitality to auto dealers. With thousands of sites across many markets, our customers include the likes of Windsor Motors, Mannok and the wonderful West Cork Distillers.