Feral Jundi

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Industry Talk: Whitestone Group To Provide Security At FAA Facilities Along East Coast

Filed under: Industry Talk,Ohio — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 7:56 PM

The $104 million contract is the largest Whitestone has with the FAA, he said. The company helped the FAA develop a national training standard for the private armed security companies with which it contracts, ultimately landing the new contract for the entire East Coast.
The contract goes into effect Oct. 1, Clark said.
Whitestone will provide security at individual FAA facilities like air traffic control towers, not whole airports, Clark said.

Very cool and for those on the East coast looking for work, this opportunity might be a good hit for you. I suspect these contracts will pay a little bit better than your standard security gig, just because this is protecting FAA facilities only.  If bad guys make it into a traffic control tower, they could cause a lot of damage.  With the spat of folks infiltrating supposedly secure facilities these days, guards like this are pretty important as the last line of defense.

A great example of what I am talking about for breaches was the stranded jet skier that wandered onto the JFK airport property–bypassing millions of dollars worth of security systems. This embarrassing incident is right up there with the nuclear facility breaching incident. So Whitestone Group should learn from these deals and work hard to maintain topnotch security for the FAA. The FAA should also stay on top of this contract to make sure they get the service they need. Trust, but verify.

For actually working this contract, I would go to the employment section of the website and submit that way. On Linkedin, you can find a few folks with the company, or have worked for them in the past. I have not seen anything specific in their career section for this particular contract and folks will have to pursue it on their own by contacting the recruiter or doing a little online research. –Matt

Whitestone Group webpage here.

Linkedin for company here.

 

Whitestone Group to provide security at FAA facilities along East Coast
By Rick Rouan
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
A fast-growing private security firm in Columbus has landed a $104 million contract to provide armed guards for the Federal Aviation Administration along the East Coast.
Whitestone Group Inc. will provide about 368 guards at 34 FAA sites, including towers, air traffic control facilities and other venues, CEO John Clark said. Those guards are all professional security officers, which Clark said requires about 60 hours of training.

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Monday, August 13, 2012

Cool Stuff: Memorial Motorcycle Run In Honor Of Security Contractor Jonathon Coté

Filed under: Cool Stuff,Industry Talk,New York — Tags: , , , , , , — Matt @ 9:57 AM

What an awesome legacy and memorial for Jonathon. This is the fourth year that they have done this memorial ride and hopefully this will continue for a long, long time. They also have a website in dedication to Jonathon where folks can go to read about what happened to him and his team and even donate to a fund for future scholarships. If you live in New York or nearby, this would be a cool one to check out if you are a rider. –Matt

 

 

Motorcyclists hit the road in memory of local man
Jonathon Coté was kidnapped, killed in Iraq
By Kathleen Ronayne
August 13, 2012
More than 300 motorcycle riders turned out Sunday afternoon for the fourth annual Memorial Motorcycle Run in honor of Jonathon Coté, who was kidnapped and killed in Iraq while working as a private security contractor.
In the on-and-off rain, the group rode from Williamsville North High School, from which Coté graduated, to Lewiston. The motorcycle ride represents Coté’s fun and active personality, his family said.
“[Jonathon] saw the motorcycle as a way for freedom,” said his father, Francis Coté.
Proceeds from Sunday’s ride will go to a scholarship for a local high school student and to Western New York Heroes.
For family and friends, it didn’t matter how soaked their clothes were when they completed the ride. Instead, they focused on remembering Coté and celebrating his life.
Coté served in Iraq and Afghanistan in the Army, and later went back to Iraq as a security contractor. In 2006, he and four others were kidnapped, and their bodies were found a year and a half later.

(more…)

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Industry Talk: PMSC’s Singled Out In The UN’s SEMG Report, Head Of SEMG Is Biased Towards Somaliland

Filed under: Industry Talk,Somalia — Tags: , , , , , , , — Matt @ 6:12 PM

“In 2011, Saracen’s training camp near Bosaaso became the best-equipped military facility in Somalia after AMISOM’s bases in Mogadishu. The SCS base today includes a modern operational command centre, control tower, airstrip, helicopter deck and about 70 tents, which can host up to 1,500 trainees.”
“Thanks to this massive initiative, the Puntland Maritime Police Force is now a well-equipped elite force, over 1,000 strong, with air assets used to carry out ground attacks, that operates beyond the rule of law and reports directly to the President of Puntland. This private army disingenuously labeled a ‘counter-piracy’ force, has been financed by zakat [Muslim charity] contributions mainly from high-ranking officials from the United Arab Emirates, including Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The UAE government, however, has officially denied any involvement in the project,” the UN reports.

And the UN has a problem with the PMPF actually being a ‘well-equipped elite force’? I guess Puntland only deserves poorly equipped and less than adequate forces…pffft. Bravo to SCS and these other companies for actually doing a good job. Hell, if anything this report has only helped to elevate the status of SCS, and show that they are able to deliver the goods.

I also thought it was interesting that the head of the SEMG, Matthew Bryden, is married to a woman from Somaliland. Isn’t this a conflict of interest?

Either way, the report talks about the three companies I have talked about in the past. Pathfinder, Sterling Corporate Services, and Bancroft Global. To me, all of them are vital to the goal of protecting resource extraction activities, eradicating piracy on land, and training forces tasked with removing Al Shabab. If anything we should be cheering on these companies, because they are actually contributing to the stability Somalia.

Perhaps that is the real problem the UN has with private industry? That they are actually effective, and the UN has not been able to do anything to make things better there. (not to mention that the UN uses PMSC’s…lol) Maybe the UN should check out Oliver North’s report on the PMPF below or check out the reporting on their efforts over at SomaliaReport? –Matt

 

 

Private Security Companies in Somalia are in violation of the arms embargo – UN
Wednesday, 08 August 2012
The United Nations is concerned that member states are failing to uphold the arms embargo on Somalia by allowing private security companies (PSCs) to operate in the country. South Africa, Uganda, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates were singled out in a UN report.
In its Report of the Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea, the United Nations said that the provision of security assistance, in the absence of UN authorisation, “constitutes a violation of the general and complete arms embargo on Somalia.” It added that the Monitoring Group was concerned that member states “routinely fail to fulfil their obligations” which require them to prevent “the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer of weapons and military equipment and the direct or indirect supply of technical assistance or training, financial or other assistance” to Somalia.
The report highlights several of the numerous security companies operating in Somalia, notably Sterling Corporate Services/Saracen International Lebanon. In late 2011, the assets, personnel and operations of Saracen International Lebanon were transferred to Sterling Corporate Services (SCS), reportedly a Dubai registered company, which resumed large-scale military training, technical assistance and support to the Puntland Maritime Police Force (PMPF).

(more…)

Industry Talk: G4S-Wackenhut Replaces Leadership At Y-12 Nuclear Plant After Protesters Broke In

Filed under: Industry Talk,Tennessee — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 5:20 PM

The hits keep coming on G4S…. Wackenhut is a G4S owned company and are currently guarding this nuclear plant in Tennessee. Over the years, this particular contract has had some issues. For example, guards falling asleep on the job–which is particularly troubling when talking about securing a nuclear facility.

But this incident is not cool at all. This is what guards get paid for, their bread and butter, and that is to prevent folks from compromising the security of the facility they are guarding. How embarrassing, and especially since these protesters included an 82 year old nun in their force? lol  Just imagine if these protesters were terrorists, and this embarrassing act would have instead turned into a major national security incident.

I have also heard from former guards on this contract that DoE and the government is partly responsible as well. That funding for security upgrades has been turned down because of budget issues. That and the government more than likely went with the lowest bidder for this contract.  Although I am not privy to how it was determined that WSI got the contract, or what the contracting mechanism was. My guess would be LPTA or lowest bidder which is standard for the government and how they do business.

The other point here is that the government must do more to get a better value for the money spent. To actually act like a consumer who wants the best service they can get, and acts accordingly when they do not get the service that the contract stipulates. To fire companies who do poorly and replace them with companies that actually care about doing a good job. It is the strength of private industry, and yet government does a horrible job of taking advantage of this.

Perhaps we can also learn a few things from Bruce Power security, and the contracts that they have put together there? Who knows, and I am sure WSI is doing all they can for damage control and getting this contract squared away. –Matt

 

New security leaders at Tenn nuclear weapons plant; protesters broke into high-security area
August 8, 2012
The security contractor at a Tennessee plant that stores the nation’s supply of weapons-grade uranium has replaced its general manager almost two weeks after three protesters, including an 82-year-old nun, got into a high-security area.
Security firm WSI Oak Ridge confirmed to the Knoxville News Sentinel Wednesday that Steven C. Hafner is taking over the position from Lee Brooks.
Protesters on July 28 were found hanging banners in the dark, singing and offering to break bread with the security guards at Y-12 Oak Ridge National Security Complex in Knoxville. An affidavit said that before security guards apprehended them, they spray-painted the building with protest slogans and threw blood on it. They were arrested and officials say all nuclear materials are safe.
Afterward, security contractor WSI said it was looking at its procedures and it removed Brooks and Y-12 Protective Force director Gary Brandon from their posts. WSI named John Garrity to replace Brandon. Brooks and Brandon are awaiting reassignments by G4S Government Solutions, the parent company of WSI.
The newspaper reported that the halt to nuclear operations at the plant was still in effect. The plant originally said the stand-down was expected to be lifted by this week and that security personnel would undergo training and refresher instruction.

(more…)

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Law Enforcement: As Police Budgets Are Cut, PSC Usage And Volunteer Watch Groups Increase

Filed under: Industry Talk,Law Enforcement — Tags: , , , , , — Matt @ 2:49 PM

With the economic slowdown pushing municipal budgets to the brink, police layoffs and rising crime levels have been a common story in the hardest-hit American cities. Survey results from more than 700 police departments, released in April, showed that 21 percent had layoffs in the past two years. Another 56 percent shrank as a result of employee attrition.

This was an excellent article and if you follow the link below, you will see all of the links/sources that supports this thing. The one link that I will add from it, is for that quote up top. That is a lot of unemployed police officers, and like with the Marine story, this industry will see more interest from this group. You will also see these officers starting up companies or joining companies locally to provide services, much like what the article described below. Check it out. –Matt

 

As Police Budgets are Cut, Citizens Step In
By STEVE YODER
August 7, 2012
Dabney Lawless, 38, took it personally when criminals targeted her neighborhood in east Oakland with a rash of burglaries. It was December 2010, and due to the city’s budget shortfall, Oakland — a city with the California’s highest violent-crime rate — had just laid off more than 10 percent of its cops.
So Lawless started going door to door, recruiting neighbors to revive a dormant neighborhood watch group. The group, of which she’s a block captain, decided to do more than patrol the streets. Last year more than a hundred of them chipped in about $250 each to hire a private security company to cruise through the neighborhood in a patrol car. Lawless says that investment, plus neighbors using the watch group to keep each other informed about suspicious behavior, has already made the neighborhood feel safer, and though she doesn’t have the data to support it, she’s certain the number of burglaries has dropped dramatically.

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