Large guard force supplements security equipment at financial world leaderBY By DON GARBERA

Apr 1, 1997 12:00 PM

New York City, like other metropolitan areas, is not without its problems. Purse snatchings, muggings, burglaries and even murders are daily occurrences in the Big Apple. The tall skyscrapers that gleam in the afternoon sun are particularly vulnerable targets for would-be intruders. Long hallways that bend in every direction and stairwells that seem to go on endlessly are ideal settings for crime - if left unsecured.

Employees in buildings such as these need to be protected, comments Ed Ludemann, vice president and director of security at Chase Manhattan Bank, a world leader in the financial arena. Chase incorporates numerous buildings and thousands of employees, and the responsibility for the safety of people and properties falls directly on Ludemann's shoulders.

Employed by the bank for more than four years, Ludemann previously spent 25 years with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, where he was a special agent in charge of administration at the New York office. Throughout his career with the FBI, Ludemann handled special investigations and was also in charge of the engineering section. He helped build the 250,000-square-foot Center of Excellence in Quantico, Va., which houses the FBI's engineering section.

He is responsible for physical security at all of Chase Manhattan's major U.S. and international facilities, including all access systems, CCTV, alarm points and guard forces. Other responsibilities include fire safety and management of the Executive Protection Program and the Crisis Management Team. Ludemann also works closely with those responsible for security at regional banks.

Four-hundred-and-fifty security officers and 15 supervisors guard the bank's 23 buildings in the greater New York metropolitan area. For Chase Manhattan, security is a compilation of different capabilities that center around a Casi-Rusco card access control system that uses barium ferrite technology.

A circuitous route to one system The bank is composed of three different financial institutions that have merged: Chase Manhattan Bank, Chemical Bank and Manufacturers Hanover Trust. Originally, Chase was on the Casi-Rusco system, but back in the late '80s the bank switched over to another technology. During that time, Chase completed construction on a banking complex, Metrotech, located in Brooklyn, N.Y. For card access, Metrotech employed proximity technology with Loronix photo imaging. In 1992, when Chemical and Manufacturers merged, they expanded the Casi-Rusco system to include Loronix Photo Imaging. In 1996, when Chemical and Chase merged, a decision was made to go with Casi-Rusco's Picture Perfect system with Portrait Perfect video imaging. Picture Perfect is a software program for inputting information into the system.

Casi-Rusco technology is used on readers at entrances, as well as areas such as trading floors, executive floors and in some stairwells. The bank has more than 50,000 employees, and there are about 1,000 card readers located throughout the many buildings, says Ludemann. We're currently in the process of converting the Chase Manhattan Plaza buildings to the Casi-Rusco system, so an employee can go from facility to facility using the same access card, rather than three or four. The Brooklyn Metrotech complex, however, will continue to stay with prox technology for the time being because it is not yet economically feasible to change over.

Another reason for converting to Casi-Rusco is the system's ability to expand. It's probably better in regard to networking on hosts and sub-hosts, says Ludemann. This is beneficial to us, because we want to implement the technology throughout the country as current systems in the different facilities reach maximum potential.

Guard force, CCTV keep watch CCTV is used in lobby areas, perimeter surveillance, receptionist locations, currency areas and highly sensitive, high-risk locations such as data rooms. Video cameras used include Panasonic black-and-white 314 and color 414 models, Sony color SSC-D354 and 374 models, and Elmo TSE-400 and TSN-400B models. Housings are from Pelco. VCRs include Panasonic RT600-6720 and 6730, Gyyr 2100 SHD and Sony 8mm. Multiplexers and switchers include Dedicated Micros Series 2 and DX Pro units, Robot MV99 and American Dynamics 1473.

Use of different models in different applications is based on the need for higher- or lower-end systems. A currency center uses high-resolution Sony 374s or Elmo TSN-400s, while general surveillance requires a Panasonic black-and-white 314 or Elmo TSE-400.

The guard force consists of both contract and proprietary security officers. Supervisors are all proprietary, while the officers are contracted, because we have found that the quality of contract guards is no different from proprietary, providing the time is taken to interview, screen and select the best available candidates, says Ludemann. However, the cost savings with using contract people are substantial. We have always maintained proprietary supervisory personnel, which enables stronger control over security officers. Ludemann is in charge of Chase's Executive Protection Program, a security program for chief executives.

The officers receive training mandated by New York state, which consists of eight hours of training before a person can be hired, followed by 16 hours of training one month later and eight hours of refresher training once a year. In addition, Ludemann requires that guards be drug tested and receive FBI background checks. Post training is also provided prior to allowing officers to work on their own.

Guard uniforms depend on location. For example, at the bank's corporate headquarters at 270 Madison Avenue, the chief executives prefer that guards have a more unobtrusive, soft look, consisting of a blue blazer sporting a Chase Manhattan Bank pin, gray slacks and a blue and red tie. We've recently switched all the officers to the same blazer look, so that proprietary guards cannot be distinguished from contract, says Ludemann. At the One Chase Manhattan Plaza location, however, the guards wear police-type uniforms.

Nabbed! The security staff works closely with the New York Police Department and has made a number of arrests in the past few months. Recently, the theft of laptop computers was discovered. Ludemann explains: They were disappearing from an office area that is constantly watched by CCTV cameras and recorded 24 hours a day. An employee working on that floor had spotted a suspicious individual, and reported it to the security division. After reviewing past incident reports, it was discovered that the description of the suspect given by the employee matched a description of a person reported to be lurking in the area on a previous occasion. A search of video tapes from the current and prior incident reports came up with images of the same suspect and were identified by the employee. Guards throughout the facility were shown a printout from the taped segments and given a detailed description. The perpetrator was subsequently apprehended.

Another recent incident handled by Ludemann and his staff was the apprehension of an individual vandalizing and pilfering from certain areas in one of the Chase facilities. An all-points alert with details on the incident was issued to the security staff. A subsequent investigation found that the perpetrator used the same MO that was used in an incident several years earlier. It seems that this individual had been imprisoned for the earlier crime, served his time and was released - only to come back and repeat the criminal event. A description of the individual was obtained from the NYPD and circulated to the security staff. He was spotted once during early morning hours but managed to evade capture. The information was reported to the police, and the individual was subsequently apprehended.

For the future, Ludemann says, The most important element for us is to keep abreast of technology as it evolves, and look at what will enhance our security operations to maintain a safe environment for staff and visitors.

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