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It’s showtime! CANASA’s spring events are well underway

Security Canada began the spring portion of the trade show season in Laval, Que., on April 24. Attendance was well up from 2018 with a sold out show floor. 2019 is shaping up to be an important year with Security Canada trade shows offering the industry a hands-on look at the products and services leading manufacturers have on offer.

In conjunction with Security Canada East, CANASA held their Annual General Meeting at which time a new slate of board members was elected. We’re pleased to announce that Gordon Hebb, vice-president at Wilson’s Security, is the new CANASA president and will serve a term of two years.

The annual general meeting was also a time to thank Ellery Demedash for his stellar service as president over the past two years. Under his guidance, with consultations from me as executive director, CANASA has enhanced industry relations with ASIS International and the Security Industry Association (SIA) as well as expanding the popular annual scholarship program. (Winners will be announced shortly.)

For more information on the Annual General Meeting and the new board, please visit www.canasa.org.

The next stop was Security Canada Ottawa, held on May 8. This important security event began the day with a special keynote address from Phil Gurski, president and CEO of Borealis Threat & Risk Consulting, focusing on the many factors revolving around terrorism.

Here’s the rest of the lineup for May and June: Security Canada Alberta will take place on May 29 at River Cree Resort and Casino in Edmonton, Alta. For all the information on this important event in Alberta’s capital, please visit www.securitycanada.com/attend/alberta.

Security Canada West will be held June 19 at River Rock Casino Resort in Richmond, B.C. Please visit www.securitycanada.com/attend/west for all the details.

The last two shows of the year are in Moncton on Sept. 11 with the show in Toronto Oct. 23 and 24 rounding out a truly exciting year for the security industry. Visit www.securitycanada.com for more information.

CANASA talks education

As executive director of CANASA, I have been in extensive discussions with a number of colleges including Seneca, Humber, Mohawk, Centennial, Conestoga and Cite to develop a security technology program. This initiative would create the opportunity to provide security organizations with a regular stream of tech graduates focused on the security industry.

Patrick Straw is the executive director of CANASA.

This story appeared in the May 2019 edition of SP&T News Magazine.