Our Story.
Since our inception, SaferCities has focused on enabling safety by connecting the world. This purpose is apparent in our independent consultancy and the vGRID SaferCity Platform.
Over the past 14 years, we’ve contributed to many significant and challenging projects. Below are just a few that have shaped our journey and helped define who we are today.
Startup
SecuroGroup (now SaferCities) was founded by Scott Bain to leverage 20 years in the enterprise network industry to consult to the CCTV industry and government organisations.
IoT (Internet of Things) for CCTV
The company investigates and tests technologies to bring the CCTV industry into a growing IoT world.
Scaling Up
Over 20 CCTV & Network projects have been completed for Auckland Council-controlled organisations.
The Lightbulb Moment
Scott witnesses a violent attack, captured on public-facing CCTV inaccessible to Police, and had the lightbulb moment to connect public-facing CCTV to public safety agencies in real time.
Real-Time Situational Awareness
The SecuroGroup Convergence Server went live to give Police situational awareness during the FIFA U20 World Cup & Cricket World Cup, connecting 13 different stadiums with 12 different CCTV systems.
Largest Public CCTV Network
SaferCities managed the deployment of the largest wireless-networked public-facing CCTV system in New Zealand.
ANPR Integration
Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) integration into vGRID is developed in partnership with NZ Police, enabling real-time alerts for stolen vehicles, as well as historical search capabilities.
Platform Expansion
The SecuroGroup Convergence server was re-architected to keep up with demand and rebranded to the vGRID SaferCity Platform. Our first customer in the USA goes live.
Rebranding & Major Projects
SecuroGroup was rebranded to SaferCities to assert our vision to the world. The design and procurement of a $5M project to upgrade and integrate 12 large venues in Auckland was completed.
Community Evidence Collection
vGRID Vault was created to enable the community to provide evidence to Police without an in-person visit. Originally an MBIE-funded Covid-19 initiative, use of vGRID Vault has grown exponentially with over 5000 cases every month.
Innovating Public Safety
SaferCities pioneers a hybrid Business Association project combining private and association-owned CCTV assets into an integrated public safety solution without impacting existing systems.
Expanding Reach
NZ Police approach 10,000 vGRID Users, giving almost all authorized staff more tools to make New Zealand safer. SaferCities begins projects in Australia, leveraging our learnings in the New Zealand market.
Growth & Leadership
Following rapid growth, we doubled our team and opened our new headquarters in Ellerslie. Ex-Commissioner of New Zealand Police Mike Bush joins the SaferCities leadership team, prior to departing as the Australian Victoria Police Chief Commissioner.
Australian Expansion
SaferCities establishes SaferCities Pty Ltd in Australia and stands up a vGRID Datacenter in Canberra. Western Australia Police Force go live with vGRID and a state-wide rollout initiative.
Auckland City Rail Link
Our design to enable passenger safety for New Zealand's largest infrastructure project moves into the testing and commissioning phase.