CSI Featured in Morning Call Outlook 2009

Communication Systems, Inc.
• Owner: Jim Landis
• Founded: 1975-01-28
• Company description: CSI is a leader in technology integration, servicing four primary vertical markets: business, education, healthcare and government. Our three divisions of Sound and Video, Communication and Information Technologies and Life Safety and Security provide clients with solutions to enhance their organization.
• Number of employees: 45
• Reinventing themselves: Wireless technologies are an integral part of many areas of technology solutions. Wired solutions are often replaced by newer technologies that include wireless capabilities. To position ourselves for this technological trend, CSI created and formalized the Wireless Group within its Communications and Information Technologies Division. Staffed with two full-time engineers with more than 12 years of experience and four technicians, CSI offers the most advanced wireless solutions possible. The addition of a wireless group enabled CSI to implement advanced solutions, particularly in the security and communications markets. By delving into wireless solutions, CSI has positioned itself for the future by being able to provide a plethora of solutions to their clients.
• What they changed: CSI has seen the proliferation of network-based systems in all its divisions. Systems that were once provided by contractors specific to a technology are being challenged to meet the demands of integrated IP technology as the emerging platform on which these technologies run. Since building an IT and wireless team, CSI is positioned to provide solutions for extensive projects such as the City of Allentown surveillance network. CSI has worked with Allentown to design and implement a sophisticated wireless surveillance network. The technologies required for this project perpetuated the marriage of various systems in an interoperable environment.
• Obstacles: Being a provider of a broad spectrum of services and systems, it became evident to the management of CSI that a reorganization of the company structure was required. Since CSI is a one-stop-shop offering all types of integrated technology from phone systems, to sound and AV systems, security and surveillance systems, CSI decided to create three formalized divisions: Life Safety and Security, Communication and Information Technologies, and Sound and Video. This approach allowed CSI to specialize while keeping a horizontal connection by providing seamless integration across divisions. Security also came to the forefront as an increased concern for many businesses and organizations. It was evident that forming a wireless group to support the growing technologies was needed. While CSI had an IT team on staff, having a wireless group removes any obstacle that they would encounter when expanding networks beyond their traditional realms. In order to continue to progress and be able to offer ever increasing advanced solutions, it was obvious that a team of wireless experts had to be included on staff.
• Website:www.comsysinc.com
-- Submitted by Wayne Becker, Vice President of Business Development
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