Physical security for public bodies

Assessments, specifications and bid packages that hold up to procurement and public records rules

Schools, municipalities, utilities and nonprofits need physical security that is vendor-neutral, documented and bid on a level field. SMC writes the assessment and the specification; licensed installers bid and build.

What SMC does, and who does the rest

SMC assesses, designs, writes the specification and acts as owner's representative. SMC does not sell or install equipment and does not program panels. A licensed installer contracts directly with the client, and the client owns the equipment, the accounts and the footage. SMC takes no commissions from any vendor. How SMC works with installers.

What SMC provides

Vulnerability assessment, site by site

A site walk, a risk picture, current state by area, and prioritized findings written for a board, a grant application or an emergency plan.

Design and specification

Vendor-neutral design, drawings or marked-up plans, and a specification that can be bid. Where construction drawings need a seal, a licensed engineer or architect provides it.

Bid criteria and evaluation support

Installer qualifications written into the bid: New York Article 6-D license number and qualifier, field staff identification, patching duties, data ownership and Section 889 certification.

Owner’s representative

Review of submittals, checks of the installed work against the design, and an acceptance review before sign-off.

Policy and privacy work

Video surveillance and footage-release policies, retention, access logs, and redaction for public records (FOIL) requests.

Sub-consultant role

Where a licensed integrator is the prime on a bid, SMC can supply the cybersecurity, privacy and procurement-compliance sections. On any one project SMC holds one role, never both.

Built for the rules public bodies work under

Federal procurement. Designs default to equipment that meets the federal Section 889 restrictions, and federally funded projects require vendor certifications.
Schools. New York law prohibits facial recognition in schools, so it is excluded from the design. Vendors that can see student data need a contract that meets Education Law §2-d.
Public records and retention. Designs include footage export with redaction, and retention that follows the applicable records schedule.
Purchasing. Specifications are vendor-neutral, so the body can bid the work or buy through an existing state or cooperative contract it is entitled to use.
Emergency plans. Security designs are documented to fit the building-level emergency response plan, and kept confidential with it.

Basis of design, acceptance testing and governance

Three documents turn a purchase into a system the body can show it runs.

Basis of design

What the system must protect, the threats it answers and accepts, the decisions made and the alternatives rejected, the interfaces between systems, and the privacy baseline. Bids are written against it.

Acceptance testing

Handover tests written into the specification and run against it, with the installer operating the system and SMC witnessing and recording results. The body accepts or rejects.

Governance

A review cadence for access, footage-access logs, firmware and policies, with reports to the board or administration, and redesign triggers after incidents or rule changes.

Privacy and control defaults on every design

Audio recording is off by default. Recording conversations without consent is unlawful in New York, and a sign does not fix it.
Face recognition is off by default, and never used in New York schools.
Notices and signs are included where the law requires them, such as employee monitoring notices.
SMC never holds the system passwords, codes or admin logins, and never services the equipment. The owner holds them.

How it works

1. Free 30-minute call
The sites, the funding, the timeline and the rules that apply.
2. Free security assessment, gap report and free results review
The free online assessment, a written gap report and a free review of the results.
3. Assessment, basis of design and specification
Site-by-site assessment, then the design and a bid-ready specification.
4. Bid, build and acceptance
Licensed installers bid and the body contracts directly. SMC supports evaluation, reviews submittals and runs acceptance.

Project management included on request. SMC can run the project as the owner's representative: schedule, partner coordination, bids, change control, progress reporting, acceptance and handover.

Built to New York State and local rules

Every design and project follows New York State law and the rules of the city, town or village: building and fire codes and exit (egress) requirements, local alarm permit and false-alarm ordinances, licensing of the installers SMC works with (NY General Business Law Article 6-D), and recording and notice laws, plus procurement and public records rules, FOIL, and Education Law §2-d for schools.

SMC designs to these requirements and checks the work against them. Licensed partners pull permits where required. This is design practice, not legal advice, and SMC cannot guarantee that an authority will approve a permit or inspection.

Grant-funded work

Programs such as the federal Nonprofit Security Grant Program ask applicants for a vulnerability assessment of the site. SMC prepares the assessment and a specification of eligible, compliant equipment, so the application and the later purchase line up. Program rules and deadlines change each year, so SMC confirms both with the applicant at the start.

Planning an assessment or a bid?

Tell SMC about the sites, the funding and the timeline. The first call is free and takes 30 minutes.

Book a free 30-minute call

Or write to support@securitymedic.com