Business Basics

Company Name: Optex Inc.

Parent Company: Optex Company Ltd. (Otsu, Japan)

Year Founded: 1979

Headquarters: Chino, Calif.

Customer Contact Information:

13661 Benson Ave., Chino, Calif. 91710

Phone: (800) 966-7839 • Fax: (909) 628-5560

E-mail: [email protected]

optexamerica.com

Number of Employees:

Optex Inc. (North American headquarters), 25

Optex Company Ltd. (worldwide), 1,095

President/CEO: Mac Kokobo

Since its founding in 1979, Optex has established a worldwide reputation for quality, innovation and technical excellence. According to Optex Marketing Manager Adam McGuern, maintaining high standards extends to the firm’s mission to contribute to society by creating a secure, safe and comfortable living environment.

“We look at the various uncertainties and difficulties companies and people face in industry and everyday life and propose ways to solve these problems through original approaches and proven technological capabilities,” he says.

Increasing consumer acceptance and expectation to be more connected with their homes and businesses is viewed as a significant agent of change across the electronic security industry. It is a market trend that is being closely watched and acted upon at Optex.

“On the residential side, the emergence of home automation/control as part of the overall security offering has given us the opportunity to look at how our current products might fit into this new market, as well as developing future products to meet the rising demands created by these opportunities,” McGuern says. “Commercially, we are seeing more and more demand for integration of all security elements — intrusion, video, access, etc. — and we have dedicated a tremendous amount of resources and effort into filling particular needs in this sector, particularly with IP integration and more stable options to video motion and/or analytics.”

Among recent updates to its product portfolio, the company has expanded its outdoor battery-powered intrusion line by adding the SL-350QFR, a 350-foot photoelectric detector requiring no trenching or wiring. Large perimeters can now be secured at a fraction of the cost with little or no downtime to the end user’s business. Optex has also expanded its strategic partnership with Milestone Systems, allowing the Redwall brand of perimeter security products to be fully integrated with XProtect Corporate and XProtect Enterprise IP video management platforms. The Redscan Class-1 laser detector’s area and object data will also be integrated into the Milestone open platform to provide increased value to customers in mission-critical government and commercial applications.

To help its security dealers and systems integrators keep abreast of product and solution advances, Optex sales and engineering staffs are available to host classroom and Web-based training, job walks and on-site installation consulting, in most cases at no charge. Teaming with its channel partners to offer end users systems that not only protects but also deliver newfound efficiencies is cause to be bullish on the industry as a whole, McGuern says.

“Security is finally becoming less of a negative sell, and viewed as more of an asset. It is being sold not only as a way to protect your home or business, but also as a secure and convenient way to run them,” he says. “We are seeing the beginning of new era in the security industry, and at Optex we are excited to be a part of it.”

Technologies and Markets

Sectors Served: Intrusion detection, perimeter protection, video surveillance

Product Lines: Indoor/outdoor PIR and photoelectric detectors, battery-powered PIR and photoelectric detectors, iSeries battery-powered PIR and photoelectric detectors powered by Inovonics wireless, pre-built photoelectric beam towers, Redwall long-range outdoor PIR for CCTV activation and VMS integration, Redwall IP or analog Class-1 laser detectors for high security applications and VMS integration.

Marquee Offerings: iSeries battery-powered Line of photoelectric detectors (with Inovonics wireless pre-installed), Class-1 LaserScan Detector, iVision wireless video intercom system.

Vertical Market Emphasis: Utilities, data centers, high-end residential, education.

Product Availability: Distribution

Reseller Value-Adds: ‘MyOptex’ project layout app for iPad, online product training, certified systems integrator programs, project registration discounts, pre-built photoelectric beam towers to customer specification at no charge, battery-powered PIR and photoelectric detectors with Inovonics wireless pre-installed.

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