This month, we had the pleasure of interviewing Mark Duato, Senior Vice President of Strategic Integration Solutions at The Cook & Boardman Group. Mr. Duato has a wealth of experience in physical security solutions and an extensive background in the industry. During our conversation, we discussed the current landscape of the security industry and how The Cook & Boardman Group is bridging the gap between Division 8 and Division 28 security integration through their Cross-SERVE initiative.
What is your experience in the security industry?
Mr. Duato: “So I’ve been in the security industry my entire professional career, which began in the mid 80s, and I am now in my 38th year of post-school industry experience. The majority of my time has been within the security industry in one form or another. And I’ve worked in all the channels.”
Mark Duato’s extensive career includes:
- Current Role: Senior Vice President, Strategic Integration Solutions at The Cook & Boardman Group
- Executive Vice President, Aftermarket – ASSA ABLOY Door Security Solutions US
- SVP Worldwide Sales, Enterprise Access Division – L1 Identity Solutions
- Director of Sales, North America, Software House – Tyco International, ACVS
- Director of Vertical Marketing Homeland Security – GE Interlogix
Mr. Duato: “I have a lot of experience in direct sales as a systems integrator, including national and international work in sales leadership. I’ve also spent many years in manufacturing and solutions distribution. It’s a comprehensive background that ultimately led me to The Cook & Boardman Group.
As the Senior VP of Strategic Integration Solutions, Mark is spearheading Cook & Boardman’s company-wide Cross-SERVE initiative, which unifies the implementation of Division 28 security technology and Division 8 opening systems, frames, and hardware. As these categories are separate construction divisions, but are commonly required to operate hand-in-hand, many end users experience the lack of integration and collaboration between the divisions, often making it difficult and expensive to manage when designing a fully functional security framework.
How does the Cross-SERVE model play a role in streamlining multi-divisional projects?
Mr. Duato: “For many years, there’s been a disconnect between the general contractor’s mission to integrate Division 8 doors, frames and hardware and Division 28 security solutions since each was designed and installed as stand-alone systems by different organizations.”
Many end-users also find themselves overwhelmed with the lack of coordination occurring between Division 8 opening solutions and Division 28 security solutions. Thus, Cook & Boardman launched its Cross-SERVE initiative with the goal of seamlessly incorporating the complexities of each practice into a single, simplified solution for its customers.
How do we implement our Cross-SERVE Model?
Having the expertise from both the Division 8 and Division 28 side from the beginning removes the complexities and ensures all openings are designed properly for the security function.
Mr. Duato: “When speaking with customers about their goals, instead of focusing on the different divisions, we speak about our comprehensive solutions across the board. This is because the complexity is in the opening itself and making sure that it’s designed properly from the get-go.
Ensuring that everyone working on a project is on the same page before it begins prevents a world of confusion in the long run. When spearheading any Cross-SERVE project, we consider every person involved to be on the same team, with the same end goal. Ideally, we want corporate security in the room along with the construction business leaders, general contractor, and/or the architect. If there’s a security consultant, we want them in the room as well. If we can get that total audience, we can discuss how we can coordinate, combine, and deliver a complete package.
I, and our Total Opening Solutions team, work closely in conjunction with our security and hardware distribution businesses on behalf of our customers. We’ll collaborate to help define a clean path forward and make sure that our customers get a high-value turnkey solution through early-stage coordination with our operational team. Our goal is to provide a clean, seamless solution to the customer, and reduce the hard and soft costs which owners and contractors experience in many projects. That’s really where we’re focusing our Cross-SERVE efforts.”
How do we deliver Cross-SERVE solutions to different verticals?
Mr. Duato: “First off, in order to be good at delivering anything to a particular vertical group, whether it’s retail, healthcare, K-12, or higher education, you need to understand the needs of the vertical completely. Because healthcare security is very different from student housing security. We approach each project on a case-by-case basis, and focus on the unique needs of the vertical and the client specifically.
As an example, we have K-12 security. Even though all the products and solutions generally are common across those platforms, what they need and what they require could be different. So understanding how to speak to the particular vertical about their specific security challenges and being able to work backwards toward a seamless solution is healthy and valuable.
Now, some verticals are more complex than others, like healthcare has a lot of technology around their automated openings. You need automatic doors, you need frictionless access control, you need communication, so the healthcare vertical is one that has a lot of complexity even in the simplest access control applications.
Delivering the entire construction and security package in a turnkey way for customers is an emerging trend that we’re frankly pioneering the market towards.”
Is there a successful Cross-SERVE story that stands out to you?
Mr. Duato: “When 3Sixty Integrated first came into the Cook and Boardman Group a little over a year ago, the team was working with a well-known sports organization on a large-scale security project, and it was early enough in the construction process to leverage our Cross-SERVE model.
Cranes were still coming out of the ground and work was being done, so 3Sixty Integrated brought our hardware distribution team into the discussion with the general contractor. As a result, we had the opportunity to deliver the doors, frames, and hardware as a total package in a synchronized way. The customer saw the value in that unique coordination, which allowed us to pick up additional business by earning the customer’s confidence.”
Additionally, we were able to coordinate aspects of the project that would traditionally have been disconnected, such as:
- Comparing the specification requirements with the functional security requirements
- Removing redundancies such as power supplies of the opening that were going to be provided by both sides
- Simplifying the deliverables on all sides of the project
Those are just some of the benefits of merging the D8 and D28 work into one. We did all of that on behalf of the customer, so it was a win-win-win across the board!
Any final thoughts?
With 3Sixty Integrated’s expertise in security integration combined with The Cook & Boardman Group’s extensive total opening solutions, we’ve built a well-rounded team that provides our customers with a one-stop shop for all their physical security needs.
Mr. Duato: “From a Cross-SERVE perspective, we’re still in the early innings of the game, but we’re bringing tangible value to customers every single day. This is a wonderful opportunity, and I’m thrilled to be a part of it.”
As a division of The Cook and Boardman Group, 3Sixty Integrated and our sister branches have over 65 years of experience offering complete security solutions, from custom doors, frames and hardware to security integration technology. Contact us today to see how 3Sixty Integrated can help secure your organization.