The pandemic has led to project delays and cancellations from different verticals. However, we also found certain verticals that resisted covid-19 well and did relatively better than the others.
The
pandemic has led to project delays and cancellations from different verticals. However, we also found certain verticals that resisted covid-19 well and did relatively better than the others.
The pandemic has caused various end user entities to tighten their security-related budget. According to asmag.com’s survey in which 285 security players took part, a large majority (62 percent) said their major customers either devoted less budget to security, put projects on hold or cancelled projects. When asked which verticals was this more noticeable, 61.1 percent cited retail, followed by 41.6 percent for
transportation and 31 percent for education.
Within transportation,
airports have especially been hit hard by covid-19, which has reduced people’s willingness to travel. Security players like TranSecure that focus mostly on airport projects have, therefore, taken a beating. “Airports are already closing down unused terminals, using empty parking garages for mask screening, shutting down concessions and laying off thousands of support personnel and flight crews, most of whom can’t wait for two to three years to get their job back,” said Art Kosatka, CEO of TranSecure. “Our (airport) clients and their travelling customers are in the same boat, and some of them have already modified their businesses and lives to simply ride it out until, when? Some well-informed observers suggest as much as six to seven years before the economy might stabilize enough for a reboot.”
Verticals that performed well
Source: asmag.com survey on COVID-19 impacts, 2020
However, there are certain vertical markets that did relatively well even during covid-19. “The following segments continue to invest: e-commerce, technology, healthcare, FMCG and production (in essential service category),” said Pawan Desai, Co-Founder and CEO of MitKat Advisory Services.
Healthcare
As Desai mentioned, certain end user facilities are deemed “essential” businesses and can remain open even amid lockdown orders. One of them is healthcare, which needs security as they remain open to care for covid-19 and other patients. “Health sector business has been booming. The essential medical workers and security services personals have their wages and salaries increased, and life insurance was secured for them,” said Philip Babajide Edu, Director of Corporate Warders.
Infrastructure
Critical infrastructure such as dams, nuclear reactors and power substations is another example. “It’s one of the verticals that have continued to spend on security even during the pandemic, because threats are equal if not greater than pre-COVID,” said Sean Ahrens, Security Market Group Leader at Affiliated Engineers.
Banking
Banking has also done relatively well. According to asmag.com’s own survey, when asked which of your customers still grew the most in terms of revenue amid covid, 26.6 percent cited banking, which needs security regardless banks open or not. “Banking has spent more money during this period due to the lockdown regulations and staff working from home, improvement on security for both staff residences and the offices as customers are looking to protect their assets. Most sites became empty some for the first time and had become target for opportunistic criminals,” said Munyaradzi Maponga, GM of Safeguard Alarms.
Datacenter
Meanwhile, the datacenter vertical has gained more traction during the pandemic as solutions providers roll out more and more cloud offerings, which can better support mobile workforces and help reduce equipment setups, maintenance and in-person service calls. “Datacenters are rapidly growing as companies expand their cloud networks,” said John Torres, President of Guidepost Solutions. “Sharing data safely through employee home networks creates significant risk, requiring stronger firewalls and security.”
“We have seen significant growth in the datacenter vertical as the pandemic has brought digitalizing businesses and processes to the forefront. Pharmaceutical, high-tech and internet companies also continue to implement projects and spend on security, they have also been preforming well for us,” said Nicholas Yap, COO of ICD Security Solutions.