Maximum Security

Horgan Sales evolves along with surveillance industry

From its origins in fire extinguishers to today's high-tech video cameras, Horgan Sales & Service in downtown Stevens Point remains a leader in electronic protection.

The company was founded in 1959, when David Horgan was approached by a retiring Stevens Point fireman who wanted someone to continue providing fire extinguisher sales and service to the community.

Dave ran the company with the help of several outside contractors until Dave's son, Ed, joined the firm in 1971.

Mike assumed full responsibility of the firm when Ed retired in 1999. Dave died in 1993.

“It's a very unique situation,” said Mike Horgan, about being the third-generation Horgan to run the firm. “The process of being made in charge was so transparent and so slow I wasn't even aware of it until several months after the fact, when I read about it on our Web site.”

Mike had joined the family firm in 1994, after a stint in retail management.

Horgan Sales & Service employs technicians, engineers, sales representative and installers, but those are often titles only in a small firm, he said.

“We're a small company, so we wear a lot of hats. Some people are stronger in some areas, but we end up doing about anything,” he said.

The firm has developed into a leading provider of electronic protection systems, including fire alarms, security alarms, card access and camera surveillance.

The camera surveillance market in particular, with industrial, commercial and residential applications, is exploding, Horgan said.

“You see a lot of new companies,” he said about the market. “It's a very good thing to be able to say we've been at this a long time.”

Horgan said cameras sold for residential use provide security and peace of mind. They also have industrial uses, as cameras can save companies a lot of money. For instance, Stora Enso uses a Horgan system that keeps track of downtime.

“They want to know what causes a paper break. Downtime is huge for them,” he said.

Cheese factories and other firms that use automated production lines are also prime candidates for commercial camera surveillance systems, Horgan said.

“We're going into a digital world. Now, we have digital VCRs. That means Stora Enso can use these images as a broad-based PC network,” he said.

Tavern owners are additional customers.

“Say a bar owner has a camera system, but they want to dial up from home how big of a crowd they have, do they have enough staff, that sort of thing,” Horgan said. “It's a real reward to be able to offer them tools that can help their bottom line.”

Horgan Sales & Service, like a lot of companies today, has a Web site, but doing it right was doubly important for a technology-based firm, Horgan said.

“Being in a highly technical field, we feel it's a prerequisite to show people you're staying on the cutting edge,” he said. “In a highly technical business, this was very important for us. Otherwise, what does that say about our competence?” Web site development began in 1999.

“We started putting it together in summer. We basically decided it was necessary to have a good quality site send out a consistent message about who we are,” Horgan said. “The nice thing about the Internet is that you're not intruding on them. They're coming to you.”

Horgan also likes the fact that though his firm is small in terms of the number of employees, the online world doesn't recognize such distinctions.

“With a Web site, you can look as big as a larger company. People looking at our Web site can't see any difference,” he said.

As well as name recognition, other benefits of having a Web site include an expanded customer base and promotion for its Web cameras.

“Until now, we've been very well known for fire and security systems. Now, this is getting the word out about our cameras,” Horgan said.

In terms of hardware, there is no difference between a regular video camera and a Web camera, but Web cameras provide a continuous live feed, Horgan said.

“It's more of a service, because it's the same equipment, but with a different application. You can take an image and broadcast it to the world,” Horgan said. “You can use it in a more secure way, but we have a promotional application.”

The Web site also allows Horgan's firm to enter new markets, including offering products past a 150-mile range -- provided the item doesn't require service.

“It just wasn't financially feasible for us past that range. Now, we are looking at properties that can be done that don't need service or installation,” Horgan said.

For instance, Horgan is introducing an emergency 911 phone that comes with a siren. It runs on regular batteries, and Horgan's firm will ship them. “It opens up a whole new avenue for us,” he said.

(By Mike Jacquart, Central Wisconsin Sunday -- December 3, 2000)

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