22 Oct Interview with Stefan Gloor, Managing Director, ARGUS
Can you give us an overview of the company’s scope and services?
ARGUS was founded in 1968 as a security services company and has pursued steady business development since its founding. In 1990, ARGUS began expanding its offerings to include services from its alarm monitoring center, which has enabled continuous growth and modernization of the company. Today, our security services include facility monitoring or patrol monitoring, site protection for large industrial companies in Liechtenstein and event security. From the alarm monitoring center, we provide alarm monitoring, video alarm monitoring, refrigeration monitoring and telephone services. We also offer an emergency call service for seniors or vulnerable individuals. We recently introduced our software, Cool365, for remote temperature monitoring as a software-as-a-service solution.
How has ARGUS’ refrigeration segment recently evolved, such as introducing its flagship Cool365 software?
ARGUS has been providing refrigeration services for around 30 years. Today, we monitor around 6,500 food retail locations and we handle around 1 million alarms per year in this area. The benefits for our customers are clear; approximately 75% of all alarms can be resolved remotely or scheduled during normal working hours. This means emergency technician deployments do not incur additional costs. The Cool365 software was developed as an internal tool to assist our dispatchers in assessing and managing temperature alarms. We have a fully digitized notification process to ensure 100% traceability for our customers. The software is now at its advanced stage of development, and various customers are currently managing their systems and alarms using our Cool365 platform. Its uniqueness lies in its ability to monitor various control systems from different manufacturers, meaning we maintain a high level of neutrality. A wide range of different manufacturer systems can be integrated with our solution.
What new disruptive technologies is ARGUS utilizing in its operations?
We are now testing artificial intelligence as a real-time translation tool for our alarm-monitoring dispatch to communicate with companies from different countries. especially in the refrigeration segment. We need to talk 24/7 in various languages to our customers in places like the UK or Spain. It is a challenge to find employees who speak multiple languages in our business location. Additionally, ARGUS obtained the ISO 27001 certification in 2023, signaling to the outside world that data security is a very important issue for us. This topic is becoming increasingly important due to the rising number of cyber incidents, and we aim to continuously improve in this area.
What is ARGUS doing to lower its carbon footprint and implement more circular activities?
We have had a photovoltaic system on our roof for several years. In 2022, we changed our climate system to save energy. We are now beginning to employ electric cars. Two of our cars are now electric with electrical engines, and we are now testing if our petrol security service can go green. Recharging vehicles has been challenging as we go for many kilometers in one night with just one person. However, the technology is improving, and we hope to use it more in the future.
What is your long-term vision for the company as demand for security and monitoring platforms increases around the world?
We are open to working internationally with our software-as-a-service solution. In October, we participated as an exhibitor at Chillventa in Nuremberg, the world’s largest trade fair for refrigeration technology. We presented our Cool365 platform and our processes and had almost every continent of the world at our stand interested in our products. We are at the starting phase of moving into international markets. We need to work more in the international software segment to give our platform more exposure. It is important we present ourselves as a reliable and trustworthy company; security is connected to trust and respect and is very important to us. In the coming years, we aim to enhance our service quality and continue to digitalize our processes so both our company and customers can benefit. We strive to grow in the international market for our remote services, especially refrigeration monitoring.
Why is Liechtenstein considered an attractive place to do business?
Liechtenstein offers a highly business-friendly environment, especially due to its stable political landscape and proximity to Switzerland and the European Union. Liechtenstein also has a favorable tax system for businesses, which is very attractive for international companies. We have a skilled workforce and low unemployment. We also have strong connections to Austria, Germany and Switzerland. Liechtenstein offers a secure and supportive business climate.