Previous Years

2015 Awards

The 2015 ISIA Annual Awards were held on Saturday, November 21st, in the InterContinental Dublin.

The Irish Security Industry Association recognised the best in the private security industry at its annual awards in the Intercontinental Dublin on Saturday, November 21st.  The event, hosted by racing pundit Tracy Piggott, and attended by over 220 guests from inside and outside the industry, maintained its high profile with senior management from the biggest names in the industry represented, along with a variety of clients, suppliers and sponsors.

Also in attendance were representatives of the Private Security Authority, the Irish Naval Service and the Irish Greyhound Board. ISIA President Alan Durnan said: “The ISIA awards is a special night when we acknowledge the achievements of our members and celebrate the shared successes of our industry.” There were nine awards presented on the night.

Award Categories

  • Premier Award
  • Courage Award
  • Innovation in Security
  • Security Officer of the Year
  • Security Supervisor of the Year
  • Event Security Person of the Year
  • ISIA Locksmith of the Year
  • Electronic Security Technician of the Year
  • Electronic Security Supervisor of the Year

The Premier Award

The Premier Award, sponsored by NOONAN, is presented to an individual or group in recognition of a major contribution to the safety or security of the island of Ireland.  This year, the award was presented to Geraldine Larkin, former Chief Executive of the Private Security Authority, in recognition of her important work in introducing regulation and licensing to the industry.  Geraldine oversaw the transition of the industry to a professional, trusted one in which over 800 businesses and 28,000 individuals are now licensed.

Geraldine said she was accepting the award on behalf of the men and women in the PSA who worked tirelessly to “drag regulation over the line”.   Her colleagues from the PSA, current Chief Executive, Paul Scallan, and Chairman of the Board, Noel Lappin were in attendance to see her honoured.

The Courage Award

The Courage Award, sponsored by G4S, is presented to a person or group who have demonstrated extraordinary acts of courage, social services or humanitarian deeds.  This year’s recipient was the Irish Naval Service, who were chosen for their ongoing work in the Mediterranean where they are assisting the countless victims of the humanitarian crisis in North Africa and the Middle East.

Accepting the award on the Naval Service’s behalf was Commander Steve Walsh, who had a very special message from the LÉ Samuel Beckett, currently on operations in the Mediterranean, whose captain said “It is very humbling for the navy, her ships and crews to be considered in this light” and that the crews “come across human beings at their most vulnerable”.

Innovation in Security

The prestigious Innovation in Security Award, sponsored by Bosch, recognises companies which lead the pack with innovative products, processes and service delivery and which foster a culture of initiative and innovation.  From the submissions received, two finalists were chosen “for being outstanding examples of private security companies with a true culture of innovation”; TDS Life Safety and G4S SmartTower.

The winner was G4S SmartTower, a 4G mobile CCTV monitoring system which eliminates the need for traditional CCTV infrastructure such as cabling and ducting.  The judges called the solution a ‘game changer’ and one which other companies will “scramble to copy”, even comparing it to the difference between mobile phones and landlines.

Security Officer of the Year

The longest-running category in the awards, the ISIA Security Officer of the Year award was presented to Anthony Leahy of Synergy Security Solutions.  Anthony was chosen for his work at Apple Cork, where he has shown “remarkable initiative”.  There were also four merit award recipients in this category: Alan Daly, Synergy Security Solutions; Ewa Fornal, ISS Facility Services; Cheryl Kelly, NOONAN and Robert Ryan, MITIE.

Security Supervisor of the Year

Sponsored by Synergy Security Solutions, this year’s ISIA Security Supervisor of the Year award was won by Mark Nathan of G4S.  Mark was commended by the judges for his challenging role supervising overall security for Dublin Port with his team of 34 people.  Four merits were also awarded, to Sean Conway, ISS; Robert Culbert, Synergy Security Systems; Grzegorz Kurweg, MITIE and Tomas Mazrimas, NOONAN.

Event Security Person of the Year

The ISIA Event Security Person of the Year Award, sponsored by RSP, was this year presented to Francis Crowley of Synergy Security Solutions.  Francis impressed the judges with his hands-on approach to each and every event and his target of learning something on every job, despite his long tenure in the industry.  There were two merit awards presented in this category, to Jim Hanlon of Pulse Security Management and Karl Hedderman of G4S.

ISIA Locksmith of the Year

The only award of the night voted for by public, the ISIA Locksmith of the Year is determined by a survey which is open to all customers of ISIA member locksmiths, who are rated across a range of areas such as professionalism, customer service, quality of work and technical knowledge.  There were two finalists this year, Crothers Security and J. Williams Ltd, with Crothers Security taking home the award.

Electronic Security Technician of the Year

The ISIA Electronic Security Technician of the Year was Johnny Williams of MTS, who was recognised for his flexibility and commitment to customer satisfaction, regardless of the size of the contract.  There were also three merit award recipients: Greg Colton, TDS; Gary Finneran, Electro Automation and Darren McCormack of G4S.

Electronic Security Supervisor of the Year

The ISIA Electronic Security Supervisor of the Year Award went to Greg Leonard of MTS.  Greg was commended for his customer focus and drive to add value to every customer experience.  There were two merit awards presented in this category and they went to Stephen Hart, TDS and Alan Hayden, G4S.