Photos & Mementos
Below are some memories and keepsakes from my 50-year career with ADT and Tyco. Check back often as more will be added as time permits.
Memorable Project: Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank
Through the efforts of the International Sales team ADT was chosen to provide fire and security protection for the bank’s new high-rise headquarters building under construction in central Hong Kong. The project consisted of a CentraScan head end monitoring fire, security, nightwatch and access control systems throughout the building, all of which were provided and installed under ADT supervision.
In late 1985 I spend several weeks on site in Hong Kong commissioning the CentraScan system and providing assistance to the installation team as they brought the first fire and security systems on line. Other onsite efforts included training operators, data clerks and service personnel.
Day tour into China, December 15, 1985 – Taking advantage of a day off while working in Hong Kong, I booked a one day tour into China through American Express Travel Services.
Travel was by hydrofoil from Hong Kong Island to Macao, and from there by motor coach into China. Six hours were spent touring Kwangtung Province, China and included stops for lunch at a local restaurant and at a gift shop for souvenir shopping.
Shown here are my hydrofoil tickets for travel between Hong Kong and Macao.
Fallout from the Hong Kong Project
Chaos from visiting China – In 1985, the cold war was still hot. Hong Kong was still a British territory, and China was considered a Soviet-bloc country.
Because I had active DOD and DOE security clearances, my unplanned day tour into China set off a security alert. As a result, when I returned to the states I was interviewed about my activities in China. I was also required to submit documentation detailing my China trip.
The letter shown here is the documentation I submitted to the security staff.
ADT Philadelphia Special Police Badge
This badge is from my days working in the Philadelphia central station. While I most often worked as an operator and / or shift supervisor, I would frequently respond to burglar and holdup alarms. We were qualified to carry firearms by the Philadelphia police. I was certified yearly from 1969 to 1979.
Cover Photo – 1987 First Quarter Report
ADT “Ambassadors of Excellence” – (from left to right): Denver Hull, Clifton; Bob Brown, Parsippany; Freddie Zayas, Parsippany; and Jack Gallant, Pennsauken, NJ.
2003 LPGA Championship VIP Admission Badge
Model 1046 Fire Box Converted into a Lamp
CentraScan 6000 Class, March 1997 – Rutherford, NJ
Retirement Day, November 2014
Robert Brown, Sr (my father) – early 1960’s
10-year safe driver card
insurance company. Actual size is 2.5″ x 4.0″
(slightly larger than a standard business card.
Memorable Project – Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), United Arab Emirates
ADIA was a large project consisting of CentraScan, Unimode and Voice Evacuation in a high-rise headquarters building under construction in the 1980’s. The majority of the installation work was performed by ADT’s dealer in the Emirates, with support from ADT’s Brussels European Headquarters.
My involvement was to provide engineering level support for the multi-year project and to coordinate the commissioning and testing of CentraScan and the other major systems.
Overall, I made five trips to the UAE in support of the ADIA project. The first four occurred in the mid-to-late 1980’s and were associated with installation and commissioning of CentraScan and various system components as portions of the complex were completed and made ready for occupancy. My final visit in 1995 was to assist in upgrading the CentraScan computers with newer models.
The UAE of the 1980’s was nothing like the UAE of today. Back in the 80’s the UAE was in the early stages of opening up to western tourism. A minor annoyance in those days was that immigration laws only allowed a foreign visitor to remain in the country for 7 days. That required our team to leave the country for 24 hours every week. To abide by the law, we would relocate the the Holiday Inn in Bahrain for the weekend as necessary and then re-entry the UAE for another week of work.
Anticipating the 1995 computer upgrade project could take several weeks, the UAE authorities arranged for me to obtain a tourist visa that would allow for a stay in country of up to six months. All I had to do was visit the UAE Embassy in Arlington, VA with my passport and the visa would be applied. A photo of my UAE visa is shown below.
The CentraScan upgrade trip in November – December, 1995 was my last visit to the UAE. A few years later, I had the good fortune to cross paths with two ADIA representatives, Shahid Yousef and Abdul Aziz. Reports at that time indicated the systems continued to perform well.
