I am sitting writing this having just returned from Mike Tennent’s funeral; actually, it was called a thanksgiving service. It was a celebration of his life and was attended by many members of the industry all whom came to pay their respects, not only to Mike but to his family. His granddaughter spoke a few words about her memories of her grandad which were very moving. Mike sadly lost his fight against cancer just a few weeks ago.
I first met Mike many years ago when he was trying to sell me his slow scan products, in the day I was working for Rediffusion; we jelled and became good mates almost immediately, which to be fair was how Mike was; everyone held him in high esteem and felt that they were part of the family, saying what a true gent and what a lovely, lovely man. He was very much a family man and worked long and hard setting up Tavcom which has helped so many progress their careers over the years. He was very actively involved with the industry being a member of the Association of Security Consultants (ASC) and many other organisations. He won a number of awards over the years. For example the ASC gave him their acclaimed Imbert Award; and Mike was among recipients of the Peter Greenwood award for an outstanding contribution to the industry, both justly deserved.
You may not have known this but Mike was also a very keen photographer and started producing some cards for charity which was using some of the photos he had taken. He once used to produce a coffee crossword for the magazine, which I could never complete. He has left a great legacy for his sons to pick up and follow, having helped to shape the industry over the last 30 years or so. This is a great loss to both the industry, his family, and to me; and our wishes and thoughts go out to them at this very sad time.
On another sad note we have also lost Jack Almond. Jack worked for Norbain for over 18 years before recently retiring, another lovely man that we will all miss. Again our best wishes go to his friends and family.
So let’s get back to a happier note. This month’s gossip. So Ali Enser has become the Commercial Director at Stanley Black and Decker for Products and Technology. Ali told me that will mean a fair bit of travelling, but was looking forward to it.
Alan Riegler from Tyco Security Products (TSP) has just received a promotion; he is now the Senior Sales Director for Access and Video for EMEA. Congratulations Alan, sounds like you are going to be getting your air miles up. And while talking about them, Linda Wood has joined Tyco Security Products as Regional Sales Manager in the North. Linda has worked in the electronic security industry for 12 years, nine of those as an internal sales engineer for Norbain; and until recently she was Area Account Manager for ADI Global Distribution.
Hanwah Techwin has been recruiting some new faces. Ian Stewart has been appointed Business Development Manager, to develop relationships with consultants, specifiers and system designers within the construction industry. Prior to joining Hanwha Techwin, Ian was a Business Sales Consultant for Honeywell Building Solutions and previously worked for ADT Fire & Security as a Key Account Manager. Luke Duncanson has joined Hanwha Techwin as a Field Sales Executive – North and will provide pre-sales support to installers who are choosing to recommend Wisenet video to their clients. Before joining Hanwha Techwin he was a sales executive for Elite Digital Systems.
IDIS, the South Korean surveillance product manufacturer, has opened new offices and training facilities in London. The firm’s remaining in its recently refurbished building, The Mille in Brentford. It has extra desk and recreational space and meeting rooms, and has doubled the capacity of the company’s training and demonstration rooms, pictured.
HIKVision report a number of appointments. Sean He joins as Channel Sales Manager for Hikvision’s distributors; Sam Crossley and Annouska Gopeechund join in Pre-Sales, covering the North East and South West respectively. The company says that post-sales support remains a focus, with the appointment of Michael Hainsworth as Field Based Post Sales Engineer for the north of England. For the Midlands region Dave Small joins Hikvision as Senior Business Development Manager. And last but by no means least Mike Ward joins as Business Development Manager for End-Users and Infrastructure, while Phil Wilsmer as Business Development Manager for retail.
Charity
James Twigg of the installer TIS told me: “On Friday, June 30, a team of seven (which includes me), will be taking on the challenge of cycling 110 miles from our head office in Mansfield to Bridlington on the East Coast. On Saturday, July 1, we will be returning on the same route. Both days we will be climbing nearly 4,000 feet too. It’s a daunting task and one the cyclists are going to fund themselves to maximise the return for our chosen charity partner, the British Heart Foundation. Obviously it’s an awful lot of training to get fit enough for a challenge as enduring as this so all of us are committing serious hours to this, to raise much needed funds to help save lives with the BHF. It would be very much appreciated if you would be so kind as to support our efforts and make a donation.”
