A lot can change in the technology world in seven-plus years.
That makes the challenge that Intelli-Tec Security Services took on — and passed with flying colors — to earn this year’s SAMMY (Sales & Marketing) Award for Integrated Installation of the Year all the more impressive. The company was actually first engaged on the project back in 2017.
The project saw Intelli-Tec integrate access control, fire protection, intercom, video surveillance, environmental monitoring and intrusion detection into a unified, polished system in a multi-story residential project in Manhattan.
The custom-designed door stations combined Openpath readers, PIN pads, biometric scanners and intercoms, all within sleek, individually tailored faceplates. The team also installed a discreet VESDA fire system, nearly invisible intrusion sensors and future-ready cabling.
Intelli-Tec installers worked with the home’s AV provider to unify security and home automation into a single platform, exemplifying Intelli-Tec’s attention to detail, technical precision and commitment to exceeding expectations.
Savoring the SAMMY
Harrison MacDonnell, the COO for Intelli-Tec Security Services, is proud of the work his team did to earn the SAMMY Award this year, although that, of course, was not their goal when they were doing the work.
“It means a lot to us,” he says. “There’s not enough recognition for the technician who’s doing the work on the jobsite. [The one] who’s in the crawl space and wiring up the panel, and it’s 90 degrees down there. And they’re down there all day, doing everything that they can to ensure that this job is going smoothly. And [they are working] with passion, because they’re protecting life and property.”
“Internally, more than anything — for me, personally — it meant everything, because I was able to share this with our entire staff and all the teams that were involved. It’s a huge pat on the back to them to say, ‘Great job!’ It’s all the effort,” says MacDonnell. “It’s not just the technician on the jobsite but [also] the engineering team on the inside, as well, going into the service department and accounting. [It’s about] everyone who has a hand in keeping operations flowing, generally speaking, but also within this particular project.”
“It means a huge deal to us because we could share with them this award and congratulate them on doing a great job and being honored with this award is very cool for them, as well,” he says.
Intelli-Tec director of marketing Vinny Peone echoes MacDonnell’s excitement over the SAMMY Award win.
“We’re beyond proud to be recognized with the SAMMY Award for Integrated Installation of the Year,” he says. “This project represents what Intelli-Tec stands for: precision, innovation and an unwavering commitment to doing things the right way, no matter how complex the challenge.”
“Seamlessly integrating multiple systems into one clean, cohesive result requires more than technical expertise; it takes dedication, a personal touch and trust between our team, partners and clients,” says Peone. “Being honored for that work reinforces why we hold ourselves to such a high standard, and it motivates us to keep pushing the boundaries of what custom security integration can deliver.”
Intelli-Tec Boasts Decades of Installation Success
Intelli-Tec, which Matt McMillan and Carmine Pizzo founded in 1998, provides customized residential and commercial security solutions in the New York Tri-State area and in south Florida. About 40% of the company’s work is in the residential sector, with the other 60% divided among healthcare and education, particularly at colleges and universities. In those spaces, the company handles everything from protection to fire to access control and CCTV.
“Carmine is really the brains behind this this install,” says MacDonnell. “Carmine sells and he’s just an absolute titan in the industry when it comes to alarm sales. The guy’s been doing it forever.” MacDonnell, on the other hand, focuses on Intelli-Tec’s overall operations.
Building a Relationship
Because Intelli-Tec is one of a select few installers known to excel in residential security systems integration, much of their work comes through recommendations from vendors who are engaged to provide the solutions for particular projects, says MacDonnell.
“The high-end world is a small world,” he says. Intelli-Tec was introduced to the owners of the building through its relationship with Rice Contracting
MacDonnell calls the award-winning installation “a unique project.” It includes 29 access control readers, all with custom faceplates that have a reader option and biometric security with a finger reader.
It took several years from the time when they were first engaged before Intelli-Tec started to do the installation on the project, says MacDonnell. As time went on, Intelli-Tec had several conversations about changes from the original scope to the final, SAMMY Award-winning version.
“Ultimately, the most important part of this is just communication,” says MacDonnell. “We start by putting in, before it gets in the contract and proposal format, as we go throughout this process, there will be advancements in technology as well as there will be differences in cost.”
“We’re providing the client with detailed information as far as what we’re spec’ing from the beginning. As we work on this project throughout, we’re going to make sure that we’re updating the client in real time as soon as we’re updated from our vendors,” he says.
Among the capabilities not in the original project scope was the proliferation of analytics, which weren’t nearly as common or prevalent when the project started in 2017. MacDonnell notes that the work was done in a brand-new building, not part of a retrofit or an renovated building.
“From the beginning, we have an opportunity to outline and design our security,” he says. As time went on, Intelli-Tec incorporated newer technology solutions in its design, says MacDonnell.
Intelli-Tec Rolls with the Installation Changes
Although the building was brand new, there are always “so many variables” to consider when doing an installation, says MacDonnell, “even if we’re as efficient as we could be.”
“There are other variables that come into place, such as the contractors holding us up, for whatever reason, or the architect or whatever it is,” he says. “The most important thing for us is that we’re maintaining our promise as far as our level of service that we provide to the client.”
“There were certainly times where we’d get the phone call on a Friday night, ‘This or that is beeping. We need you to get back and we need you to be here until it’s fixed’ or ‘We can’t get into this room or that room,’” MacDonnell acknowledges. “So, you’ve got to be ready to answer the call.”
“You’re definitely stepping over people at times and in the way, or people are in your way, and you’ve got to work around it,” he says. “You’ve got to do your thing. We’re constantly having to adjust. It can get tricky, for sure.”
“What we absolutely believe in is that there isn’t anything we can’t do. We like to believe that that we can get into a job and essentially do what the client needs us to do,” says MacDonnell.
Repeat Business Possible
MacDonnell sees the potential for new business for Intelli-Tec coming as a result of its work on the SAMMY Award-winning installation.
“Doing a good job for the client and keeping up with our commitment to the client and then, obviously, the vendor that brought us in, the contractor as well,” he says. “We just have to make sure that we’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing, but also what’s most important for us.”
“Our business is protecting life and property,” MacDonnell says. “We’re the security guys. So, we have to be very passionate about what we do and do a good job throughout this long project, making the contractor and the client happy. We’re a business that’s word of mouth, so, ultimately, if we can do a good job in a project like this and do well for the client, I certainly believe that this could open up more doors for business for us down the road.”
As far as training before, during and after the installation, Intelli-Tec does “as much as needed,” says MacDonnell.
“With a system as large as the system is, there certainly was, you a lot of time spent with the client, not just the technician,” he says. “Carmine sat down with the client and ensured that they were up to speed on remote viewing for the cameras and software management for access.”
“We spent, I would say, quite some time with the client, just getting them up to speed on everything with this,” MacDonnell says. “The biggest thing for us is being available to the client 24/7. It’s something we take pride in. The relationship certainly doesn’t end, and it’s not the last they hear from us.”
