75 years of Securiton AG
In 2023 Securiton is celebrating a special milestone in the company’s history: the 75th anniversary.
Fire Safety Search looks back at 75 years of company history and highlight the milestones that have led to where Securiton are today.
Who would have thought 75 years ago that Securiton would be one of the leading international providers of alarm and security systems today? What began on the kitchen table at the director’s home has now grown into a company with 28 locations around the world and more than 760 employees. We dive into the Securiton archive and get to the bottom of our history. Join us on this journey through time or take a look into the future.
1948 The birth of the company
Securiton AG was officially founded with its entry in the commercial register on 22 July 1948.
Securiton AG was officially founded and notarised by Mr Jakob Spreng with its entry in the commercial register on 22 July 1948. The early days at Securiton are closely connected with its first director, Hans Kuhn, who contributed to the successful start and further success of the company with his passion, ambition, innovation and, in particular, a great deal of patience and self-sacrifice. His kitchen table back home played a key role in the beginnings of Securiton.
1950 Early exports to Africa
Securiton has exported alarm systems under the management of Manuel Spreng from the very beginning. However, this was not done by setting up branch offices or establishing representative offices in other countries, but instead by direct contact with Swiss companies operating abroad. For example, a Securiton intrusion alarm system was installed and later serviced at a Swiss department store in Accra, the capital of Ghana, back in 1950.
1950 – 1960 Development of an up-and-coming company
After Securiton was officially founded in 1948, the Swiss security technology pioneers did everything they could to improve their products, expand their range and supply customers with first-class products. The first few years were characterised by convincing people and looking for suitable premises. Incidentally, Securiton did not acquire its first customers in its original home region of Bern, but in Western Switzerland. The director of Securiton, Hans Kuhn, looked back on the early years in the Wächterzeitung in 1962.
1962 Signaphon and Telealarm – our alarm transmission devices
Nowadays, using the telephone is the most obvious way to transmit alarm signals and messages, as virtually all houses have a telephone line installed or can have one routed to them easily. When developing the first security systems and with on-site alarm transmission not always loud enough to be heard, there was already a desire to be able to call the respective emergency services automatically in the event of an incident – such as police for burglaries or the fire brigade for fires. Securiton has now developed two options here: The Signaphon transmits Morse-like alarm signals, while the Telealarm transmits voice messages. The Signaphon and Telealarm are thus extremely versatile in use and are also of great economic importance – the costs of an alarm system are disproportionately low compared to the ever-increasing value of the assets protected by it.
1963 Protecting rooms with ultrasound
For some time now, Securiton has been using ultrasound to protect rooms – the latest innovation in the field of intrusion protection. As soon as a body moves in a room protected in this way, the field covered by the sound waves is disturbed as the sound waves reflected by the intruding body reach the receiver at a different frequency. The controller then detects a discrepancy when comparing the transmitted and received frequencies and triggers the alarm.
1965 Back to the Muba
The Schweizerische Mustermesse (or Muba, for short) will open its doors in Basel again on 24 April. Known across Switzerland and beyond, the aim of this trade fair is to present products of Swiss origin to the public and experts in particular. Securiton is taking part in this trade fair for the 14th time in succession since 1952, and will showcase its latest products in the field of alarm systems for fires, intrusion, hold-ups and operational monitoring. In just a short time, our stand has undergone an astonishing transformation. In the first few years, it used to be possible to put it together quickly and with relatively little effort shortly before the fair opened. Now, however, the preparations for a new stand set-up take around six months.
1967 Pyrotector
Initially, Securiton was primarily known for its intrusion and hold-up alarm systems. At the same time, however, it also sold all kinds of fire detectors. One of the driving forces here was the Pyrotector smoke detector. While this initially had a difficult time due to its new type of measurement, it eventually became a successful product. Securiton also sold the more popular heat detectors and manual call points. The range was rounded off by pressure wave detectors and fusible link detectors.
1969 Fire test room
The investigation of how fires develop and spread, which materials are particularly at risk of fire, within which time successful firefighting can be expected and similar questions in this context are increasingly the subject of scientific investigations. In order to test and demonstrate the suitability of different fire detectors for different types of fires, a fire test room was set up in our new building. Thanks to its practical layout and the installation of suitable extinguishing agents, we can now safely experiment with fires up to a certain size in this room.
1975 Securitas/Securiton acquires Contrafeu AG
“Der Bund” (2 May 1975): “The Securitas/Securiton Group from Bern-Zollikofen has acquired Contrafeu AG from Münsingen, which belongs to the Fibora Group, in order to expand its product range in line with the market and maintain a modern product policy. Securiton AG, which has also specialised in intrusion and hold-up alarm systems for several years, is thus able to supplement its fire detection range with mobile and stationary extinguishing systems, in particular automatic sprinkler systems. For its part, Contrafeu AG will be able to further increase its competitiveness in the field of firefighting as a result of this cooperation.”
1985 BMZ 340 – the first control panel with computer support
The new generation of our fire alarm control panels hardly differs from the current BZ300 range in terms of basic function. The signal reception and signal processing function blocks as well as the alarm outputs and the power supply are fully available in both the new and current versions. However, thanks to the use of state-of-the-art electronic components – the microprocessor – numerous additional functions have been integrated into the control panel and user-friendliness has been significantly improved.
1993 Quality is king
After two years of intensive preparations, the SQS certificate was handed over to Securiton on 16 November1992. This award, which is highly sought afterin industry in particular, will improve Securiton’s resilience and recognition in the face of increasingcompetition, bothin Switzerland and on the export markets.
1996 All you need to know about the Internet
The Internet opens the door to an inexhaustible world of communication. It is not for nothing that it is often called an information superhighway. The Internet – or web – is proving to be the ultimate medium in the age of telecommunications and computer science. Securiton AG has had a website on the Internet since May 1996.
1997 New showroom opens its doors
After a lengthy planning phase, things suddenly proceeded very quickly – and the big day finally arrived on 12 February 1997 when we welcomed the first customers to the newly created presentation and training wing at our head office in Zollikofen.
2002 New quality certificate ISO 9001:2000 for Securiton
Securiton passed the audit in October 2001 and was awarded the new SQS certificate in line with ISO 9001:2000. While we are pleased with this, there is no time to rest on our laurels. Weak points will be addressed in a targeted manner and our processes dynamically adapted. The management processes are important here: Leadership, collaboration and deputising as well as conflict resolution and self-direction will become even more important.
2003 UB A&S – new structure for product provision
Management at the Securitas Group has reviewed the strategy of the Alarm and Security Systems division (UB A&S) and confirmed its previous direction. However, there will be significant changes in product provision. These also apply to Securiton AG, which now becomes the competence centre for security and special fire detectors.
2005 New communication identity
The “Sicherheit 05” trade fair will see the launch of the new face of Securiton. The curtain will be raised on a trend-setting market presence for Securiton as a modern, competent and future-oriented company. Securiton should be seen as an attractive partner for security technology, where customers receive reliable security solutions in addition to optimum support and are rewarded with a good feeling.
2007 Securitas Group acquires MetaPhysics
On 1 May 2007, the Securitas Group acquired MetaPhysics SA – based in Ste-Croix in the canton of Vaud – from the German group Bartec GmbH. MetaPhysics has focused on the development and production of the TSC 515 line-type temperature sensor cable, which Securiton has been selling around the world for years.
2008 The start of a global success story: SecuriRAS® ASD 535 aspirating smoke detector
The new SecuriRAS® ASD 535 marks another milestone in the development of high-class aspirating smoke detectors. The successful early fire detection system from Securiton is even more powerful, universal and responsive than its predecessors. Fires are already discovered in their incipient phase and therefore cannot cause major damage.
2008 New buildings now in use
Since October 2008, new premises have been in use at the head office of the Securitas Group in Zollikofen. This modern building will allow old temporary buildings to be replaced and dismantled next spring. The new building meets the impending need for modernisation while also impressing thanks to its contemporary architectural design and excellent usability.
2009 SecuriFire – twice as much fire protection
With the upcoming launch of the new SecuriFire, Securiton is setting new standards in reliability and presenting a fully redundant fire detection system for double the protection against fire. In addition to the active system, an autonomous secondary system operates in parallel, which seamlessly assumes full operation in the event of a failure.
2012 Fire protection for smaller objects and new fire detectors
Securiton AG attaches great importance to innovative spirit and constantly launches new products on the market. The latest example is the SecuriFire 500 premium fire detection system. It offers the same functions as the previous SecuriFire fire alarm systems. In terms of its design, it is particularly suitable for smaller objects such as holiday homes or care homes. There are also new additions to the successful SecuriStar fire detector range. The latest generation of combined smoke and heat detectors detects and reports incipient fires with unprecedented reliability and precision. The new CCD 573X CO detector even detects carbon monoxide, while the MCD 573X-S combined detector also draws attention to the danger with an integrated audible alarm transmission.
2013 Speaking fire detectors
The combined smoke and heat detectors from Securiton have been a bestseller for a number of years. During these successful years, the popular fire detectors have been continuously improved, customer requirements implemented and the detectors constantly equipped with the latest technology. In the latest development, the detectors on site now tell the people in the affected area what they should do.
2014 Listec GmbH is now part of the Securitas Group
The Securitas Group has acquired a majority stake in Listec GmbH, based in Isen near Munich. The company is a leading developer and manufacturer of sensor cables for temperature monitoring. One year after Listec joined the Securitas Group, an unbelievable mark has been passed in the production of sensor cables.
2023 Change of management
Securiton starts its anniversary year with a major change at the top: Martin Altorfer takes over as CEO of Securiton AG on 1 January 2023. He succeeds Guido Portmann, who will be taking early retirement in spring 2023.
2023 Future
What will the security solutions of the future look like? The rapidly changing technological environment demands progress and foresight when it comes to product design – a challenge that calls for Securiton’s know-how and innovative strength.
Securiton offers customers all over the world competitive, technologically leading and reliable product, system solutions and services. “Security ” is of central importance to Securiton, part of its identity, its DNA. Dynamic developments and upheavals in many fields of technology and applications are essential for product development, such as increasing digitalisation, the Internet of Things and Industry 4.0. These developments are changing the way we use and handle new technological solutions, which also affects the appearance of new products. Securiton therefore defines a contemporary industrial design for new products, which ensures a clear identity and recognisability for the products as well as an excellent user experience in the technology-driven market. The first products that are already on the market in the new product design or are about to be launched include SecuriSafe MobileControl, SecuriSafe BG 710, SecuriSafe main operating unit STC 701 and SecuriGate wall reader ARP 70x with MobileAccess.
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