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Framingham-based company providing UN General Assembly security

Print | Comments () Posted by Jaclyn Reiss September 25, 2012 12:22 PM

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By Jaclyn Reiss, Town Correspondent

As the United Nations General Assembly gathers in New York this week to talk about keeping the world safe, a Framingham company is looking out for the security of the attendees themselves.

Security Detection, a Framingham-based security company, has been called on for the second year to provide metal detectors and X-ray machines for the annual meeting.

The company has also provided the equipment for Super Bowls, NBA All-Star Games, Universal Studios in Orlando, Fla., and for the Dalai Lama's U.S. visits, according to their website.

"We do a lot of traveling," said Mike White, president and owner of Security Detection.

White grew up in Framingham, attending Marion High School and then took classes at Massachusetts Bay Community College before starting his company about 20 years ago.

White started with an office in Watertown, but now has nine offices nationwide. He moved his base of operations to Framingham in 2005.

"We’re glad to come back home and operate out of the town we grew up and live in," White said, noting many of the employees are local residents or natives.

He said the company also conducts business locally, and has sold or rented equipment to Boston public schools and Framingham State University.

White said he started the company because he simply saw the need for security technology, even before the Sept. 11 attacks.

"We started off doing clubs and bars and things like that," White said. "Now, we’re one of largest companies to provide this equipment in the US."

The job itself, however, has its perks. White said he has celebrity encounters frequently - and while he declined to provide specific names, he laughed and said noteworthy personalities can give security quite the headache.

"We've had some run-ins with celebrities not wanting to go through security, or wanting to stay in their limos - we have all kinds of issues with them," White said.

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Jaclyn Reiss can be reached at jaclyn.reiss@globe.com