MADE STRONGER BY TRAGEDY

Sep 1, 2001 12:00 PM, By JEANNE BONNER

JOHN MARTINICKY is in top form as security director at INTERNATIONAL TRUCK and ENGINE, even in the wake of a workplace shooting spree.

When John Martinicky learned there had been a shooting at one of his company's Chicago-area facilities, he immediately dropped everything and went to assess the situation.

He was not at home at the time, nor anywhere near the plant. Rather, as director of corporate security for International Truck and Engine Corp., Warrensville, Ill., the Chicago resident was in Las Vegas, finalizing security details of a new truck launch. Martinicky heard that a former employee had gained access to the plant in Melrose Park, Ill., and shot several employees before shooting himself. The next flight back to Chicago left 45 minutes later, and Martinicky was on it. He did not take time to pack his clothes or collect his belongings.

Arriving at the plant, Martinicky immediately coordinated with local police and crisis counselors who were already on-site.

“The primary concern was to assure employees that the environment was safe. We increased security at that facility and others, and we provided escorts,” says Martinicky.

Recalls Joe Trosclair, manager of corporate loss prevention: “We were in Las Vegas to protect our new project launch when we received the call informing us of the incident. John couldn't sacrifice the launch project despite the tragedy. So we worked together as a team. He directed me to take charge of the launch while he flew back to Chicago to handle the shooting incident. We kept in contact every day, discussing the Melrose incident and the Vegas launch. John handled the Melrose situation in a professional manner as it unfolded.”

For his dedication and attention to duty, demonstrated in time of crisis and in the workaday world, John Martinicky has been named Access Control & Security Systems' 2001 Security Director of the Year.

A COMMUNITY PICKS UP THE PIECES

It has taken time, but Martinicky and the entire workforce at International has moved forward since the February shooting. The security staff has endeavored to learn from the experience, identifying procedures that worked and ones that failed.

“The assailant was captured on camera trying to get through the doors of the facility and not being able to. The turnstiles worked and the cameras worked,” says Carole Jawor, corporate security analyst and the person who nominated Martinicky for Security Director of the Year. “People talked to the shooter the day before the shooting and he seemed fine. The shooting could not have been prevented.

“You cannot have surveillance on everyone and you cannot necessarily predict when someone will explode like that,” continues Jawor.

“There was an attitude of ‘it can't happen here,’” admits Martinicky. “But when a gun is held to someone's head, there is little you can do at that point.

“Since the shooting, some weird people have been coming out of the woodwork, warning, for example, of a repeat shooting,” Martinicky continues. “There are now more reports of suspicious activity. The level of awareness is higher.”

In May, International organized a family recreation day at the Melrose Park facility. Jam-packed with food, activities and people in good spirits, the event served both to console and uplift a community still grieving. The company has also established a fund to provide assistance to the families affected by the tragedy.

TWEAKING THE CRISIS INTERVENTION PLAN

Since the incident at the Melrose Park facility, Martinicky has worked on improvements to the crisis intervention plan in place at International. He recently presented the new initiatives to company management, and lengthy employee workshops are planned for all levels of the company.

The crisis intervention plan contains four iterations:

• a one-hour executive overview;

• a four-hour management and union leadership meeting;

• a two-day development and training course for on-site crisis intervention teams; and

• a one-hour safety session for all employees.

“We want our employees to be able to recognize the behavioral red flags so we can help an employee before things reach the breaking point where the person is desperate enough to resort to violence as a means of dealing with his or her problems,” says Martinicky. “In addition, there are other types of violence that require a more reactive solution. For example, a disgruntled spouse or significant other or a dissatisfied customer may show up at a facility. In this case, we must react quickly and decisively since we don't have the luxury of being able to evaluate and measure the emotional change in behavior of a co-worker. In these cases, we must rely on our systems and local law enforcement.”

A 25-YEAR TENURE BEGINS RIGHT OUT OF COLLEGE

Martinicky began his career at International, one of the largest commercial truck manufacturers in the United States, in 1975 with an administrative position. He had earned an associate degree in business, and at 20 years old, had dreams of owning his own business.

His work ethic was inspired early in life. “My dad worked with my grandfather at his grocery store. They worked long hours and I watched them. I knew it was hard work, but I liked the idea of working for something that was yours, feeling a sense of ownership,” says Martinicky.

In 1982, there was an opening in the corporate security department at International and he was intrigued — although he was not sure what corporate security entailed.

Martinicky entered the job when the company was downsizing and access control revolved largely around the guard force — each guard was expected to recognize all employees who entered and exited the main entrance. “I laid out a strategy with card key systems. There was user reluctance, so we brought in security consultants to observe employees using the system and make notes about problems encountered,” says Martinicky.

When Martinicky was promoted to director of corporate security, he set out to accomplish three things:

• amplify the use of prevention and screening to provide for a more secure working environment;

• improve systems and use technology to free up security personnel for more value-added services; and

• institute a violence-prevention program in the workplace.

International, formerly known as Navistar, manufactures industrial trucks and diesel engines and has cornered 70 percent of the school bus market. Headquartered outside of Chicago, International has a proud history dating back to Cyrus McCormick's invention of the mechanical reaper in 1831. International began as a manufacturer of equipment designed to help farmers bring produce to markets. It began manufacturing gasoline-powered passenger vehicles in 1907, introducing its first truck in 1909.

International also maintains a vast dealer network. The company boasts a mix of long-term employees and newcomers. In 2000, International had $8.4 billion in sales.

A FAR-REACHING SECURITY OPERATION

Today, International employs about 17,000 people at facilities across North America, including its world headquarters outside of Chicago, engine plants, parts distribution centers and warehouses. Nearly 300 of those employees report to Martinicky, including loss-prevention officers, security analysts, and proprietary and contract guards. His employees work across North America in the United States, Mexico and Canada, a reality that forces Martinicky to be a resourceful communicator. He holds regular conference calls and uses e-mail to stay in touch. An annual meeting consists of speakers addressing various security topics. According to Jawor, her boss's attention to detail is so acute, he often forwards articles of interest to employees.

Martinicky and staff are responsible for conducting background checks and drug testing for all potential employees. Since November 2000, Jawor says, the department has completed 1,500 background checks.

The security staff has an equally rigid and effective approach to domestic violence. According to Jawor, there have been incidents of violence at some of the manufacturing sites. In addition, sometimes problems that occur in the private lives of employees can threaten to bring violence into the workplace.

“We have zero tolerance for violence. One employee, for example, was found to have threatened his wife with a shotgun at home. We terminated him,” says Martinicky.

The security department at International, under Martinicky's tutelage, is responsible for many things that do not fall under the strict definition of a security officer. “The people that work for me are loss-prevention officers. We don't call them security officers because they do more than that, including first response and first aid,” says Martinicky.

Their duties include providing security for events such as the NGV truck launch, which took place under a veil of secrecy in Las Vegas in February — it was the same launch Martinicky was attending when he heard about the shooting. At the launch, International released its first entirely redesigned truck in 25 years. The significance of such a product was not lost on Martinicky, and his staff sprang into action to ensure that the unveiling remained a secret.

“The truck is revolutionary, what I call a Navigator on steroids,” Martinicky says. “We needed secrecy before the launch, because we needed to keep it a surprise for our dealers and employees. In addition, we wanted to keep it under wraps in case our competitors tried to investigate. It was a real positive aspect of security. In the end, the competitors did not learn about it, we were able to keep it a secret up until the end, and our employees were thrilled with the new truck.”

Martinicky interacts at every level of the company, especially the executive level. He reports to Pam Hamilton, senior vice president of human resources and administration, who, in turn, reports directly to the CEO. It falls to Martinicky to ensure shareholder meetings are secure.

Says Jawor: “There is a lot of respect for John in the company.” Trosclair cites Martinicky as raising the profile of security at International. “The vision he has for the department is one of his greatest strengths. He has brought the security department to a level of high visibility, and he is always putting new policies and programs in place,” says Trosclair.

Martinicky has not confined his security practices to the facilities. He developed a chassis-theft deterrent system in the late 1980s to stem a tide of chassis theft from dealer lots. Often, the stolen chassis are resold with their identifying numbers grinded off. The system he developed distributes discrete, unique identifiers on various places on the truck to aid in recovery.

The security department cannot enforce policies at the dealerships, but the vast majority of dealers have implemented procedures and equipment standard to the other International facilities. Martinicky's team helps dealers with risk assessment, and team members make recommendations about access control, CCTV and security personnel.

THE HUMAN FACE OF SECURITY

Martinicky leads the pack in saluting his employees for a job well done. “We have regular conference calls, and in the course of these calls, I try to point out who has performed good deeds work-wise and generally the rest of staff responds by saying ‘way to go’,” he says

There is an online reporting function where Martinicky's staff can input incident information. These incidents are then discussed in the regular conference calls.

Martinicky sends his security team for training and is innovative in his use of video and teleconferences to connect his people in different offices. Most of all, he is accessible and proactive.

Martinicky received his CPP designation two years ago and he actively encourages his staff to pursue the prestigious designation. “The CPP shows a commitment to the field and demonstrates knowledge of a body of work. Education is the best investment we can make in our people,” he says.

ALWAYS STRIVING TO BE BETTER

Martinicky, ever goal-oriented, has set his sights on finishing installation of enterprise-wide security systems. He would also like to increase professionalism in the practice of security. Most of all, he hopes to see his staff continue to be a resource and a partner to the rest of the company.

“He continually praises the people that work for him for their accomplishments,” Trosclair says. “Overall, he is the best supervisor I have ever worked for because he is available to discuss any idea that you bring to the table. If you go to him with a problem, he always manages to find time to work with you to resolve it.”

Martinicky is a native of Chicago, a Southsider who has now migrated to the northern suburbs, where he lives with his wife while he fields phone calls from his three children in college for “more money, please Dad”.

He runs several times a week and has completed five Chicago marathons. He is a certified scuba diver and a skier, although he rarely can devote time to these activities.

It would appear, however, that his job as director of corporate security for International is one of his truly beloved pursuits.

“I have the second-best job in the company. I am involved in so many aspects. One day I'm an engineer, working on the tech side with our security systems. The next day I am screening candidates as part of the human resources department. It's a fantastic job.”

FOR THE RECORD

ABOUT THE COMPANIES

For information, please circle the appropriate Reader Service number (listed below) on one of the Reader Service cards in the issue or visit infoLINK at www.securitysolutions.com.

Barringer Technolgoies	15
Best Access Systems	16
Motorola	17
Northern Computers	18
NTC Electronics	19
Pelco	20
Sensormatic (Robot)	21
Visiontech	22

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jeanne Bonner is a Greenville, N.C.-based writer and former associate editor of Access Control & Security Systems.

NEWS REPORTS ON THE SHOOTING

On February 5, 2001, a former employee about to start serving time for his involvement in an internal theft scheme broke into one of International's engine plants and shot and killed four people and wounded four others before turning the gun on himself.

The assailant, a 40-year veteran of the Melrose Park, Ill., facility, had been fired from the company in 1995 after he was found guilty of conspiracy to commit theft of company property. He was scheduled to begin a five-month sentence the day after the shooting, according to news reports published at the time.

After attempting to enter various doors to the facility, he approached a security guard at the plant's main entrance, carrying a duffel bag later found to contain an AK-47 rifle and other assorted weapons. The former fork-lift operator told the guard he needed to give something to one of the employees and when the guard refused entrance, the assailant pulled out a weapon and held it to his head.

After he gained entrance to the plant, he released the guard and went on a rampage, shooting at random for 8-10 minutes. Finally, he entered an office, shot the worker he found there and then shot himself. In addition to the AK-47, his cache of weapons included a hunting rifle, a 38-caliber revolver and a pump shotgun.

The shooter had been convicted in May 1998 of an unrelated charge of criminal sexual assault on a member of his family.
— Jeanne Bonner

MARTINICKY PUTS SECURITY TECHNOLOGY TO WORK

In the 1980s, International Truck Engine Corp., Warrensville, Ill., began using proximity cards and readers to monitor access control. John Martinicky, director of corporate security for International, however, did not want to lock the company into using proprietary systems. So instead, he recognized open architecture as important at that stage and opted to install Northern Computers Win-Pak system, which the company used until six years ago.

“The proximity card system garnered high user acceptance. We installed it in the world headquarters and figured if it doesn't work there, it wouldn't work anywhere. It was trial-by-fire, but the system was well received,” says Martinicky.

International currently uses the AccessIt access control system, manufactured by NTC Electronics. For small locations consisting of two doors or with fewer than 50 employees, the company uses standalone readers manufactured by Best Access Systems.

International uses Motorola proximity cards with photo ID which internally are called Universal One cards. The card works in all of International's facilities, and various access levels can be set for the employees.

Comments Martinicky: “If the CEO John Horne needs to travel to another facility, he has access to everything in that facility. We have varying levels of access, but an International employee can travel to other plants and facilities without worrying about access privileges.”

International's approach to installing new security equipment is progressive. “At the new facilities, we install the wiring before the concrete is poured. It's so much easier that way,” Martinicky says.

Martinicky has supervised the installation of Pelco speed domes, Pelco fixed internal cameras, and multiplexers manufactured by both Robot and Pelco. Visiontech small dome cameras are used extensively because they blend into the office environment. The cameras, 98 percent of which are color cameras, record continuously.

International is also expanding the Universal Photo ID and access control system to all of its locations. Currently in development is a security awareness program to ensure that only authorized employees and visitors are allowed onto the property. It will provide all employees an easy and non-confrontational method of determining if someone is authorized to enter.

— Jeanne Bonner

AGGRESSIVE TESTING KEEPS DRUGS AT BAY

An enormous challenge facing John Martinicky and his staff at International Truck and Engine Corp. is addressing drug use from a prevention standpoint. They believe strongly that substance abuse figures into fraud, theft and other crimes committed at the company's facilities.

Martinicky's department uses hair samples rather than urine to test for the presence of drugs. “An applicant cannot beat the test,” says Martinicky.

When International offers someone a job, the applicant goes to a collection facility where trained collection personnel extract 30 strands of hair, cut closest to the scalp. If an applicant is bald, body hair can be used. If an applicant has no hair whatsoever, fingernails can be obtained.

The test, in Martinicky's words, is “much more effective.” It measures the metabolites in hair and allows for a longer detection window because hair retains drugs longer. The test is especially useful to Martinicky's staff because it can show a history of drug use, a condition the security department wants to keep outside the company at all costs. The test can show the amount of a drug present in the system, and it can reveal whether the drug use occurred in the last 30 days or the last 90 days. Traditional drug tests reveal if a person has used drugs within a two-week period prior to testing. Martinicky's staff is looking for signs of abuse and is not satisfied to know that an applicant has been drug-free merely for the two weeks prior to the test.

The investment in using a novel form of drug testing has paid off. “With the hair test, our positive results have tripled,” says Martinicky. “In the past to determine drug use, we would have had to mount a big investigation.”

The security team's arsenal of prevention methods also include a highly-advanced system of testing for drug use in a facility, called a “swipes” system, or ion scan. Using a sterilized cloth, an authorized person wipes the cloth on phones, computer keyboards, desks, or any other surface in the office and the cloth will reveal, on a molecular level, if someone somewhere in the facility is using drugs. The ion scan, produced by Barringer Technologies, is also used by the U.S. Coast Guard and has been in use at International for two years.

“We did a swipes test at an office and it tested positive for cocaine use,” says Carole Jawor, corporate security analyst for International. “It turns out it was the cleaning staff who used drugs. We don't assume it is the person whose phone we may have wiped. But it is absolutely necessary to test in order to create and maintain the environment we want at International.”

Employee reaction has been positive and supportive. The extensive drug testing is one of Martinicky's most ardent causes and one of what he calls his greatest victories during his tenure.

Martinicky explains, “I see substance abuse involved in many of the security issues and productivity challenges we face. Where we see violence, theft, or fraud, there is almost always a drug or alcohol problem behind it. If we look at absenteeism and accident rates, we often find illegal drugs or alcohol problems. We are expanding the methods we use to detect drug use in the workplace. My goal is to rid our company of the drug dealers and get help to the employees who need it. To do that, we must identify where the drugs are,” says Martinicky.

— Jeanne Bonner

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