“To us, the drive is improved functionality and reliability, as IP technology has benefits such as
increased deployment of structured cabling, remote communications and does not rely on proprietary equipment,” said Mark Harraway, Country Manager for the U.K., Controlware. “While the cost of individual IP products may be higher, IP-based systems have been shown to have a lower TCO than analog systems, and ROI is shown through higher uptimes, greater resilience/redundancy and improved functionality and flexibility in deployment.”
“The top three driving forces are solving the existing issues, improving/enhancing the current system and maximizing the value of the new system, such as flexibility and expandability,” Ng said. “Instead of justifying the cost, it makes more sense to maximize the benefits of the solution with value-added attractions. Price is just a matter of negotiation after everything is fulfilled. ROI is easier to talk about than to be proved in actuality, and we emphasize more on the savings of having greener technology, virtualization or cloud solution and having a nonproprietary open platform system that is future-proof.”
End-user requirements are another crucial consideration. “IP technology in itself is also a driving force as additional value-added functionality, such as analytics, which is easier to deploy on IP-based systems,” Harmer said. “These can be used as management tools and are often deployed to deliver information to the business on matters such as footfall, exception behavior reporting and more.”
IP technology does not always cost more, if the total investment is considered. “Having a single infrastructure, being able to capture a wider coverage area and having the durability of the current network camera solutions — it is possible to have this kind of IP solution at a lower cost than expected,” Wong said. Learning about IP solutions expands SI service portfolios and enables more options for cost considerations.