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New full and affiliate members Pierre Burger, Philip Prestage, Colin Przystupa, Roger Noakes, John Fleming and James Wheeler were presented with their membership certificates by Roy Sutherland, Chairman, at the recent Association of Security Consultants (ASC) quarterly Business Club Seminar held recently in St. James's, London.

ASC Awards presented by ASC Patron Lord Imbert

30/06/10

The sun was shining again and it was a glorious hot day for the recent Association of Security Consultants (ASC) Annual Luncheon which was held at the prestigious Royal Air Force Club, Piccadilly, London, on Thursday, 24 June 2010.

ASC members and guests gathered for an informal chat and get together in the bar prior to being called in for luncheon and a short introduction to the proceedings by ASC Chairman, Roy Sutherland, with grace being said by ASC Vice Chairman Jon Laws. Roy was delighted to welcome three of the ASC Patrons who were present, namely, Lord Imbert, Lord MacKenzie and Lord Bethell. --> images/ASClunch2010_VIPs(s).jpg --> images/ASClunch2010_BarScene(s).jpg

The delicious menu comprised asparagus soup, a main course of chicken cordon bleu filled with ham and gruyere cheese, lyonnaise potatoes together with a selection of seasonal vegetables, with fresh fruit salad and cream for pudding, followed by coffee, liqueurs and petits fours. There were excellent wines accompanying the meal, with RAF Club Sauvignon Sec and RAF Club Claret being served.

The guest speaker for the day was Mr. Frank Armstrong, Assistant Commissioner of the City of London Police, who shared with the audience that he had his wedding reception at the RAF Club and was pleased to be back again. Mr. Armstrong talked about economic fraud, the current terrorism threats, domestic extremism, the public/private partnerships in the City and the challenges of the future Olympics. He also shared some amusing anecdotes about a few of his experiences as a police officer. --> images/ASClunch2010_FrankArmstrong(s).jpg

For those who are not aware, the ASC encourages the development of ideas for the advancement of risk and security management in the UK through the award of this annual award. The 'Imbert Prize' is named after Lord Imbert of New Romney CVO QPM JP, former Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and one of the ASC Patrons.

Imbert Award

Lord Imbert was in fine form and said that all the dissertations presented were of an extremely high standard and that it was a hard decision to make by the award panel, made up of members appointed by the Chairman of the ASC, the ASC Board, and such other members required for the purpose of adjudication.

He said that the panel used a marking guide and the winning submission was separated from the second place by only half a mark.

Every candidate is worthy but there had to be a winner and the award of £1,000 for a selected dissertation submitted by an academic institution was won by Danie Adendorff, Loughborough University. His dissertation comprised "In a culture where perceptions count more than reality, it is unsurprising that security practitioners call themselves professionals before the actual professionalization of their occupation. Is this misleading, or is Security Management in reality a profession growing its domain?"

The award panel agreed that this was a well written paper on security management involving extensive research and coming up with sound conclusions. Mr. Adendorff had made valid comments in his dissertation and identified that there is still a long way to go. Danie was delighted to accept the award. --> images/ASClunch2010_ImbertPrizeWinner(s).jpg

Other nominees for this award included:

Spyridon Mazarakis, Cranfield University,"Piracy in the 21st Century: Challenges for International Law and International Security".

Brian Mair, Leicester University, "Maritime piracy off Somalia: Is the risk exaggerated?"

Efstathios Mainas, University of Portsmouth, "The Analysis of Criminal and Terrorist Organisations as Social Network Structures". --> images/ASClunch2010_ImbertPrizeRunUps(s).jpg

Association Award

The award for the person making the most notable contribution in the security industry in the preceding year was presented to David Evan, BSIA Project Director. Other nominees included Chris Brogan (the IPSA nominee), Jude Awdry (ASIS) and Bobby Logue (TSI).

ASC Member

There were joint winners this year to two ASC members who had been nominated by the members of the ASC, as adjudged by the ASC Award Panel. These were Gordon Herrald for his work over many years for the ASC website, and Jack Case for his work on the link with the International Association of Professional Security Consultants.

--> images/ASClunch2010_ASCawardGordonHerrald(s).jpg

To close the awards, ASC certificates were presented to recently appointed ASC members James Henderson and Roderick MacKinnon. Other certificates were given to Roger Noakes who had transferred to full membership, Mike Bluestone as an associate, and Mike Topping as an affiliate member.

The whole occasion was relaxed and enjoyable, being an opportunity to meet with old friends and acquaintances and make new ones. Roy Sutherland concluded the formalities by thanking all those who attended with a reminder of the forthcoming Business Club on Thursday 15 July and that CONSEC, the annual international showcase of the ASC, will be held on Thursday 4 November 2009, at the Royal Air Force Museum, Hendon.

For further details contact info@securityconsultants.co.uk

Left to right: Laurie Doust (ASC Secretary), Keith Carey (Salto Systems), Ramesh Gurdev (Salto Systems), Roy Sutherland (ASC Chairman)

Left to right: Simon Lambert (ASC Member), Roy Sutherland (ASC Chairman), Kevin Quinn (Acting ASC Secretary).

Roy also welcomed back Laurie Doust, ASC Secretary, from his most recent journey and said that "if Laurie goes on any more cruises, we'll have to club together and buy him a boat!".

Salto Systems sponsored the event, with Keith Carey giving an introduction to the company. Keith then handed over the meeting to Ramesh Gurdev, whose presentation included available access control technologies and how to increase access security. Ramesh concluded by giving a fascinating insight into the future of access of control, including trends and solutions.

Robert Powell of Integrated Payment Solutions provided information about Smart Cards and how the applications can be integrated. He also gave details about campus and company wide solutions. Robert concluded with his thoughts about facts and fictions of the Mifare world which were of great interest to the capacity audience.

An insight into the role and charitable aims of the Worshipful Company of Security Professionals (WCoSP) was given by Andrew Knights, Treasurer of the WCoSP.

Simon Lambert (ASC Member) gave an excellent and light hearted insight into the problems that can be faced when deciding what digital video recording systems to buy and install. His candid thoughts were well received by the audience.

Roy Sutherland brought the formal proceedings to a close by thanking all those who had provided the interesting presentations and to Salto Systems for sponsoring the event.

Roy reminded everyone that the next Business Club Seminar will be held on 9^th September 2010. He also mentioned that CONSEC, the ASC's annual international conference and exhibition, will be held on Thursday, 4 November 2010, at the RAF Museum at Hendon. He indicated that another exciting programme is being finalised for this year and that there are only a few spaces left for exhibitors.

Everyone then adjourned to the bar and to partake of a vast and delicious buffet luncheon, and to take the opportunity to chat with old friends and make new ones.

The ASC organises a number of prominent events during the year, which are of importance to both ASC members and others who are interested in security issues and technical innovations.

ASC

Association of Security Consultants

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