Time to rethink VMS?

VMS

Video, VMS and visitor security

Video monitoring has enabled Canterbury Cathedral to safely open new generations of visitors

End-to-end video is protecting a new, purpose-built visitor centre at Canterbury Cathedral, part of a £25 million renovation project. The seven-year programme included the addition of a visitor centre housing retail facilities, a viewing gallery and community studio exhibition space.

Systems integrator Hall & Kay Security Engineering was tasked with delivering a video solution that would combine discreet monitoring with high-performance image capture. It needed to allow for real-time monitoring, while ensuring reliable recording without data loss. And because this was part of a much wider project, the video technology also had to be easy to install – essential for avoiding project overruns in this complex, multidisciplinary construction environment.

Based on previous experience, Hall & Kay recommended IDIS end-to-end tech, incorporating cameras, recorders, VMS, and essential peripherals. Also important to Canterbury Cathedral was the cybersecurity protection inherent in the technology, with its multi-layered encryptions and proprietary protocols to safeguard sensitive video data.

For HD video coverage of the entrances, retail area and exhibition spaces, Hall & Kay installed IDIS Full HD IR dome cameras. The vandalresistant models come with varifocal lenses, true WDR and IR LED to deliver images in variable lighting conditions. They connect to three 16-channel DD-1216 NVRs to handle recording and deliver 480ips live view with no visible latency reported.

Plug-and-play installation allowed for seamless and rapid connectivity and mutual two-factor authentication of devices streamlined cybersecurity measures.

The licence-free IDIS Centre VMS gives the cathedral’s constable and his security team complete visual awareness and easy control tools for efficient management, plus the ability to configure specific user permissions to give senior staff and system administrators timely access to video footage. Furthermore, the cameras and NVRs discreetly blend with the centre’s architecture.

The need for fairer VMS pricing models

By Dave Stokes, Divisional Director, Hall & Kay Completing the Welcome Centre project at Canterbury Cathedral demonstrated that to continue to grow our security division by winning new customers we need to offer VMS at a competitive price point. This was brought into focus when an existing customer contacted us because they wanted to add three third-party cameras to their existing VMS. We had to explain this meant buying a separate licence and paying what I describe as almost a penalty – around £100 to add each of those cameras as well as additional ongoing connection fees.

I now view it as unfair pricing, and customers are starting to catch on.

Across almost every other department of a commerical organisation, buyers have been looking closely at operating expenditure (OPEX) rather than just capital expenditure (CAPEX) for years when they compare technology. That message is now starting to get through to the security sector too.

Of course, if customers need to upgrade their surveillance, they understand that for most viable solutions a level of CAPEX is inevitable.

But if a customer is already analysing OPEX, we found the biggest hurdle to winning new business was the upfront and ongoing VMS license fees. Previously, customers accepted them almost as a given. But quite rightly they are now starting to ask, “Why am I paying high license fees to view a camera, and additional fees to connect one manufacturer’s camera to another’s system?” That’s a very fair question, particularly given the proliferation of IP and ONVIF.

And where we identify an opportunity and those conversations aren’t happening, we’re challenging end-users to consider OPEX before they make a final decision. I advise them to look closely at ongoing licenses and connection fees, and be clear about the costs they’ll be tied into every year including any additional cost they’ll pay to add more cameras.

We’re also encouraging customers to look at the bundle packages many VMS vendors offer, which mean customers are also often paying for features and functionality they don’t even need and use.

When you think about this pricing model in another context it’s obvious - you would never pay a yearly subscription for features on your car that you don’t use, so why accept that with surveillance? And by challenging that old VMS pricing model, it’s helping us win new business.

APPLICATION

Life safety system upgrade for Wycombe Hospital

Fitting a new life safety system to any public space can be a complex job, but when undertaking this task in a hospital, during a pandemic, the complexity increases tenfold. When Pyrotec Fire and Security were chosen as the contractors to update an existing fire detection system at Wycombe General Hospital, this was the situation the company faced.

Wycombe Hospital provides urgent treatment and planned (elective) surgery, specialist treatment for patients with heart conditions and strokes, cancer, and urological conditions along with a midwifery led unit. The project, commissioned by Buckinghamshire Health NHS Foundation Trust, was to replace an existing network of obsolete control panels and devices. Pyrotec opted for Hochiki fire detection devices to help support the project.

The hospital was fitted with a network of 26 control panels, pre-programmed off site. Loop by loop, each fire zone had old devices switched out and replaced with Hochiki’s ESP Intelligent range of addressable fire detection and alarm equipment. The range offers a sensor solution which can be adjusted for sensitivity reducing false alarms – vital for a hospital environment.

Justyn Soames, lead Project Manager for this job, said of the complexities of the project: “When you are working in a hospital it is vital that the job is carefully managed to ensure there is no loss of old or new fire alarm system coverage. Therefore, it is imperative that you work with systems and devices that are simple to fit and test.

“The NHS Trust we work with use Hochiki across several of their sites, so it was important for them to have consistency and familiarity, it makes the training of the system and evacuation procedures much easier for example.”

The main challenge of this job was undertaking the changeover during the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Pyrotec engineers worked with the client managers and hospital departments to manage the working areas in respect to staffing and patient levels, with each fire zone given its own timescale as part of the project.

“It was important to manage the needs of the client to continue the operational requirements of the hospital against the requirement to change over the system,” said Justyn. “This needed to be done in a timely manner as we were changing over large fire detection loops to ensure round the clock detection. It was an exceptionally smooth transition from the old set up to the new with minimal disruption to the site and project programme.”

“When you are working in a hospital it is vital that the job is carefully managed to ensure there is no loss of old or new fire alarm system coverage. Therefore, it is imperative that you work with systems and devices that are simple to fit and test”

APPLICATION

Sensors protecting 5-star London hotel

Optex has specified and installed its Redscan RLS2020 LiDAR laser sensors at a new five-star Londoner hotel in Leicester Square.

Part of the Edwardian Hotels London group, The Londoner, which opened in September 2021, is billed as the world’s first super boutique hotel. It has 350 rooms across 16 storeys including six basement levels, featuring six concept eateries, a private members club, a cinema, a wealth of meeting and event space and an entire floor dedicated to health and wellness equipped with a gym, pool and spa.

The hotel has six restaurant and bar areas in total with expensive whiskeys, wines and other drinks on display 24/7 with no shutters or coverings. Given the cumulative value of the drinks behind each bar, the hotel needed to find a security solution to keep its valuable stocks protected. The solution needed to be accurate and reliable, and capable of integrating with the hotel’s existing security system, as well as being aesthetically discrete.

Optex specified and installed its Redscan RLS2020 laser sensor in the ceiling at each of the seven bars. The RLS-2020 sensors provide a customisable ‘virtual’ wall or plane that cannot be seen by the naked eye with a 95-degree detection area of 20x20m or 30m radius detection range.

The laser technology works by analysing the speed, size and distance of the objects detected, meaning they track the objects within the detection area and understand the ratio size/distance of the object. This provides the ability to accurately detect a specific size of object either at distance or close up. In the event of any movement being detected, a security alarm is raised, and alerts are immediately sent to the 24-hour on-site security control room.

Darren Carter, Group Director of Safety, Security and Sustainability at Edwardian Hotels London, says: “We’ve worked with Optex for a number of years, and installed their technologies at a number of our other hotels in the group. The laser sensors are a simple, yet highly effective solution, providing the highest level of detection that easily integrate with our wider security operation at the hotel.”

Ben Linklater, Optex Commercial Director, says: “We are proud to have worked on such a prestigious project, with the Londoner set to become one of the world’s most talked about hospitality experiences.”

Installation helps improve Amazon delivery services

Interphone has teamed up with Amazon Key for Business to enable easier, more efficient Amazon deliveries to multi-dwelling units (MDUs) in the UK. As an Amazon service provider, Interphone will install and maintain the Key for Business device free of charge to qualifying building owners and managers within the commercial residential marketplace.

Key for Business gives Amazon drivers the ability to enter buildings and deliver packages without assistance, eliminating driver access issues and reducing the need for redeliveries. Residents can receive Amazon packages safely, whether they are home or away, and building staff can spend less time managing deliveries.

“Key for Business will be available free of charge to building owners and managers for any multi dwelling unit (MDU) with eight flats or more,” explains Julian Synett, CEO of Interphone. “The cloud-based solution offers both financial savings and operational improvements by eliminating the need for onsite staff to handle incoming Amazon deliveries, while providing enhanced convenience for residents.”

Interphone will supply, install, and maintain the Key for Business device, which integrates with a building’s existing access control system with Amazon’s delivery app. Once fitted, Amazon drivers receive authorised, time-limited building entry, so they can deliver packages to an individual property or secure drop-off point during Amazon’s delivery window.

Key for Business helps enhance the security of buildings, residents, and their Amazon packages with multi-factor authentication that ensures drivers are verified in real-time via the cloud, and can only access a Key for Businessenabled building when carrying an Amazon package for that address. Three criteria must be met for a driver to gain entry – they must be physically onsite (live geolocation tracking); have the package for that address on their vehicle; and be within the specified delivery time window.

“The installation and ongoing maintenance will be provided by our field-based engineering team that operates across London, the Home Counties and the southeast of England,” says Julian Synett. “We will also have direct access to Amazon support to ensure we can respond quickly to any issues.”

APPLICATION

Redeployable CCTV monitors construction for 2022 Games

Revader Security has supplied over 20 redeployable CCTV cameras to West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) to provide visibility of multiple major construction projects being undertaken in anticipation of the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The Transport for West Midlands capital construction programme comprises several major Commonwealth Games critical projects within the Perry Barr area, including the A34 highways scheme, Perry Barr Rail Station & Bus Interchange, Alexander Stadium, A34 Sprint and A34 public realm works.

The scale of simultaneous construction activities within a constrained geography and along one of the busiest radial corridors into Birmingham city centre presents acute transport challenges. The redistribution of traffic flows is expected to cause significant potential disruption to the regional transport network, which therefore requires intensive CCTV monitoring and rapid incident response.

Revader’s redeployable CCTV cameras combine camera, recording, storage and wireless video transmission in a single unit. They can be installed within minutes and repositioned to subsequent locations to suit changing surveillance requirements. The units can operate from a variety of power sources, including mains and battery.

Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) is able to relocate cameras from site to site according to construction schedules, traffic volumes and the variable levels of disruption caused to surrounding infrastructure. The camera units are primarily attached to street lighting columns adjacent to major traffic routes.

Data and video feeds are fed back to TfWM’s Regional Transport Coordination Centre in Birmingham, where these can also be shared with regional Urban Traffic Control centres and third parties such as the Police. It was therefore important from the outset that the new cameras interface with existing network infrastructure and control room systems.

Revader Security worked in partnership with CDC Technical Services (TfWM’s appointed consultant for the project) and Total Integrated Solutions (the authority’s incumbent maintenance provider) to ensure that the cameras integrated seamlessly with existing CCTV systems.

New fire detection panels at Broxbourne School

Comelit’s Atena fire detection panels have been installed at an eight-form entry secondary school and sixth form academy, designed as part of a £100m development in Broxbourne, Herts.

Broxbourne School offers multiple educational buildings, including a new indoor sports hall, 3G football pitch, a multi-use games area for sports such as netball and tennis, together with The Broxbourne Music Centre and will host 1500 students.

Headteacher of Broxbourne School, Paula Humphreys said: “We’re all so excited to be in our new buildings which enhance not only the learning experience of our students but also provide a fantastic resource for local groups and the wider community in and around Broxbourne. Of course, within this, a significant part of the delivery was ensuring the buildings were fire safe, and compliant to latest standards, as a duty of care to all.”

Matrix Fire & Security, working alongside Greenside Integrated Services and main contractor, Mid Group, relied on Comelit’s fire safety portfolio.

Matrix installed the Atena two-panel network system, which operates on up to four loops per panel to service up to 250 devices per loop. Together with the combined detectors and sounders, Atena’s capability matched the size and scope requirements of the new campus.

With its networked two-staged alarm procedure, combined with Class Change and a Lock Down facility, the Atena system encompasses panic alarms and Fire Brigade notifications programming. It can manage potential nuisance alarms effectively, to minimise disruption to learning, whilst also safely evacuating students and staff in the event of a genuine fire.