For smaller facilities wanting a low-cost, high-benefit access solution, it’s no longer an issue of wanting champagne on a beer budget.

Healthcare security and life safety is “a constant balancing act between securing the facility and offering an open and caring welcome.” That’s consultant Tom Clancy’s sage advice. And an echo of Ohio Health’s Harry Trombitas’ experienced guidance: His security operation “values an open and welcoming atmosphere that focuses on outstanding patient care.

Not surprisingly, radio frequency identification (RFID) and that technology’s “little sister” real-time location systems (RTLS) seem to be everywhere doing just about everything. Many times, solutions blend together security and operations at myriad enterprises, organizations and agencies. And, ironically, some of the most cutting edge applications are geographically far flung in areas where it makes business sense to leap-frog at times nonexistent legacy technologies.

Where there is darkness, light. Or, at least, actionable security video boasting higher quality images at night. George Carlin, as the hippy dippy weatherman, had his spot-on prediction: “Weather forecast for tonight: dark. Continued dark overnight.” Add an additional nighttime forecast of likely chance of greater crime risk, too.

Ports – sea, air and land – handle people and cargo. And they need to be secured. Dr. Daniel J. Benny knows the need. At Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Dr. Benny now offers a Bachelor of Science degree in aviation security. This program is designed to produce graduates qualified to enter aviation security, intelligence, military, homeland defense and corporate aviation security communities, either as entry-level career professionals or as mid-level managers.

Businesses and government agencies see value in using temporary workers, contractors and subcontractors. Nothing could go wrong. Right?

Wrong. Things could go very, very wrong.

It turns out that the hype about higher and even higher resolution security video is both real and unreal. The drums are now beating about 4K video but, according to end users and the experts, today’s megapixel sweet spot is 2 megapixels. It provides the image clarity, fits into many budgets and can work with most network infrastructures.

So you want to rob a bank; not saying you should, but... the “best” day is Friday, and the best time is between 9 and 11 a.m. So set your cellphone to an early wake-up call. Concentrate on a branch in a commercial section of the city. Go up to the teller counter and say your threat or hand over a note. Avoid an act of violence; only three percent of incidents of robbery, burglaries and larcenies resulted in violence in 2014. By the way, vastly more perpetrators are killed in a bank robbery compared to customers or employees.

If you figure that a better economy these days means less metal theft, think again. Theft of copper, aluminum and other metals continues as people see a way to easily make money to buy drugs or other uses.

For Chanda Litten, light rail in Sacramento is the way to get around although she was sometimes faced with characters who made her uneasy. “It’s really dark, and you see some undesirables,” she reported to a local TV station. “It doesn’t happen often, but when it does it can be very scary.” Norm Leong, the head of Regional Transit Police in Sacramento, California, plans to improve the system through use of more video and patrol coordination with local police.