DCI Delivered On Security Contract For The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
When the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial was dedicated as an official National Park, the personnel of Dynamic Concepts Inc. burst with pride in their contributions to this widely-praised addition to the National Mall in the Nation’s Capital.
“To see the unveiling of this stunning memorial to Dr. King and to know that we had a part in completing it was an overwhelming moment,” said DCI Chairman and CEO Pedro Alfonso. “Of all the work we have done over many years, this is among the most gratifying with the greatest lasting impact upon the American public and millions of visitors from around the world.”
The Turner Construction Company, a partner in the Memorial development joint-venture entity, chose DCI to install, document, and test a complex security system throughout the four-acre site. The project created the unique challenge of assuring protection for this historic national treasure, but doing so unobtrusively so as not to detract from the solemn dignity of the Memorial or interfere with the contemplations of millions of visitors for decades to come.
The Memorial was opened to the public in late August 2011 and officially delivered to the National Park Service for ongoing maintenance and operation on August 28, 2011. As part of its contract, DCI provided security-system installation, training and operation manuals to NPS.
“It was a challenging project,” Mr. Alfonso recalled, “because it was necessary to work with 21 other contractors and subcontractors to coordinate our installation, documentation, and testing of a complex security system.”
“Unfortunately, in the post-9/11 environment in the U.S. Capital, security at public venues is of the utmost importance,” he reflected. “We must make sure our citizens and visitors are safe when they visit our most prominent national memorials. But we have to do so in a way that does not alarm people but instead makes them feel comfortable, safe, and welcome.”
DCI succeeded. The MLK Memorial security system installed by DCI includes intrusion detection devices, alarm monitoring, duress alarms, a CCTV video management system, video surveillance and assessment, digital video recording, an intercommunications system, equipment cabinetry, and an uninterruptible power supply interface.
The beauty of it is that Memorial visitors will never know it’s there – while it’s protecting them every minute of every day!