Landscaping Your Home for Security

Winter is officially over, the Robins are pulling worms, and there have been sightings of flying bugs. Your crocuses have bloomed, daffodils are opening and you can't wait to get out in the yard to begin this season's landscaping projects.

While you are laying out new plans and cultivating your brain for full-steam ahead this landscaping season, don't forget to think about security.

How can landscaping affect your security? Just remember the bottom line: if you have a lot of hiding places and secluded areas in your outdoor paradise then it is probably not deterring the criminal element.

Bad guys like areas that are overgrown and shadowed so they can watch, or "case," the residence. Some people even would argue that the more overgrown the area is, the more likely it will appeal to intruders. Perhaps they are thinking they'll find an open or "loose" window push open; perhaps they think that no one lives there. What ever their thoughts, they are able to linger in the bushes while deciding what to do.

If you are the type of person who likes a secluded area with a lot of shrubbery, you may want to consider utilizing lighting effects to enhance the area in the dark. Motion lights are excellent because they are not glowing constantly and only come on when tripped. Not only does this help lower electricity usage but it may startle someone enough to make them leave.

There is a fine line between privacy and seclusion. Keep your home well lit and maintained. Remember, the best security measure is prevention.

Insurance Discounts on Environmental Sensors

It has been brought to Atronic's attention by some clients that insurance carriers are beginning to offer an additional discount on homeowner's policies for installing environmental devices like CO detectors, water bugs and temperatures sensors. Contact your insurance dealer for specifics and let us know what you find out!

New Members of the Atronic Team

Alysia LaRock has joined Atronic Alarms, Inc. as the front desk receptionist and accounting assistant. She graduated from the University of Central Missouri with a BSBA emphasis in Marketing and was recently voted on by the Atronic Alarms' employees as the "Employee of the Quarter" for Spring 2010.

Bryan Beets has joined Atronic Alarms, Inc. as a commercial design consultant. Bryan brings over seven years of security industry background to the company. Specialized in a wide spectrum of loss prevention technology, Bryan’s expertise has helped companies generate returns on investment and win state-wide private security awards. A former business owner, Bryan maintains the absolute value of delivering service excellence to people in the Kansa City area.

Alec Saysoff has joined Atronic Alarms, Inc. as a design consultant after spending past summers working for the company as an intern in the installation department. Alec graduates with a BGS, double majoring in Communication Studies and History, from the University of Kansas this May. His past customer service experience provides a strong base for developing the personal, one-on-one client relationship that people have learned to expect from Atronic Alarms.

Operation Pawntrace

"Operation Pawntrace" is a program conducted by the Kansas City Missouri Police Department (as well as many others in the U.S.) as a way to track valuable that have been stolen and then pawned for money. Simply mark your property with your Missouri driver's license number and then follow it with "KCMO."

For example, 123456789KCMO.

Inventory all of your property (make, model number, serial number, etc.) and then place in a safe place. Pawn shop employees enter this information into a database which is checked daily by property crimes detectives.

When you file a police report with the information you have recorded, the pawned items can be located, along with suspect information.

Source: KCMO Police Department web site, Crime Prevention Handbook, pg 18.

Low False Alarm Rates

Atronic's Low False Alarm Rates. Last year, Atronic Alarms won the national Police Dispatch Quality award for excellence in false-alarm prevention strategies. There is a three-year waiting period to submit for the honor again. However, upon review by Atronic using false alarm statistics provided by local municipalities, Atronic is proud to announce that their false alarm ratios are well below national averages and among the lowest locally.

What does a "low false alarm rate" actually mean? If you take the number of a particular alarm company's active systems, divide it into the number of false alarms that were reported for these systems, you will get the false alarm rate. For example, if an alarm company has 100 systems in a city ordinance and only one reported false alarm, the false alarm rate for that company would be .01.

In 2006, the industry average was .5.

Atronic's false alarm rate in 2009 for the Kansas City, Missouri area was .056.

Atronic can brag about this all they want, but what does that mean to you, the client? With your Atronic Alarms system and regular tune-ups, false alarms may start becoming a thing of the past!

For more information on how to prevent false alarms, go to http://www.atronicalarms.com/reducefalsealarms.html.

What NOT to Do on Facebook

Facebook and Twitter are great social networking groups. They help keep you connected to friends, reconnect with people long-lost, and let "bad guys" know every move you make.

DON'T post on your social Internet pages when you will be leaving for a vacation, how long you will be gone, or who is, or who is not, house-sitting while you are away. DON'T post about your teenage daughter baby-sitting tonight while you and your spouse head off for the weekend. DON'T post about your kids coming home after school to an empty house before you get home from work.

Remember to use common sense in your social networking. Be Safe.

Atronic is SAMMY FInalist

For two years in a row, Atronic Alarms has been finalist in the Security, Sales and Integration SAMMY awards, a national honor given to security companies around the country for their outstanding marketing techniques.

Last week, Atronic Alarms found out that it is a finalist in two categories this year: Best Newsletter and Best Display Advertisement. The winners will be announced at the ISC West on March 23, 2010.