Innovative CCTV for large Australian Financial Institution
SNP Security installs professional video surveillance systems for a variety of companies, when quality and reliability are absolutely essential. One such account is one of the largest banks in Australia, which hired SNP Security to completely overhaul its video surveillance system.
The Challenge
The bank’s video surveillance system employed dated technology that suffered from a variety of complications. Comprised of analog cameras and PC-based DVRs with VA capture cards, the system could no longer scale to meet the bank’s changing needs. The system consisted of 4 or 5 PCs, each functioning as a DVR and taking input from a single camera. Because each PC could only support a single camera, any additional camera installation would require a corresponding additional PC to manage it.
Due to the inherent security risks of Windows PCs, bank policy also prohibited the video system from being attached to the network. This caused the system to become not only physically separated from the larger infrastructure, but from the IT consciousness, as well. This caused the video surveillance system to be omitted from routine system and network upgrades, since all planning revolved around the non-PC infrastructure that housed essential customer and business data. With each upgrade, the video surveillance system became increasingly isolated and thus largely neglected.
There was no capability to review of video output real-time, or in an integrated fashion. Instead, any such review required the use of low-bandwidth phones, making the performance of such activities burdensome and time consuming. Camera resolution was also a significant issue, with low resolution images that were incapable of displaying visual details, should any problem arise in the bank that required a comprehensive review of the tapes.
Since the advancement of analog components effectively halted with the advent of digital technology, the bank realized that these gaps would remain permanent. In fact, the gaps would only become more pronounced as the bank’s needs increased, while the available technology remained stagnant.
Needs of the New System
As it designed a new solution to the bank’s needs, SNP Security first determined the need for an intelligent system with fully programmable cameras, possessing the flexibility to modify settings based on pre-set trigger events. It was also essential that the cameras and their storage work in a non-PC environment for added reliability and enhanced security of the system, itself. This would enable the entire system to be integrated with the bank’s existing IT infrastructure, thereby automatically including it in upgrade and routine maintenance plans.
SNP Security consultant Neil Whipp was passionate about employing new technology that would provide for high resolution images today, along with built-in flexibility for future growth to correspond with the bank’s future needs. “Using newer digital technology, we can get anywhere from 1.3 megapixels to 3.0 megapixels, and it’s only going to get better”, explained Whipp. He was also determined to design a system that would write directly to storage and enable users to view live images from multiple cameras, as well as from the storage device.
The Video Capture Solution
Once the needs were fully assessed, SNP Security selected MOBOTIX IP network cameras as the video source. The MOBOTIX cameras were the ideal solution for the bank’s needs, offering a fully intelligent system that could be pointed directly at storage. Each camera would provide 1.3 megapixel images, which is 12 times the resolution of the bank’s existing analog cameras.
To complete the installation, 22 MOBOTIX cameras were employed to provide 30 distinct images throughout the facility. The cameras were pre-programmed to continuously capture two frames per second, then automatically ramp to the industry-standard six frames per second when triggered by a pre-established alarm input such as video motion or sound detection. With three digital zoom levels and true color capture, details such as facial features could be captured and viewed, as needed.
The cameras were quickly set up and managed using the MxControlCenter, the MOBOTIX video management software that is available free of charge from the company’s Web site. The MxControlCenter provides a single interface for monitoring the output from an unlimited number of local or remote cameras, or to facilitate time searches and time synchronous playback of stored video.
Each camera manages its own storage and was programmed to utilize the MOBOTIX proprietary MxPEG format to minimize network load. Though the cameras also support the JPEG format, MxPEG format requires less capacity than JPEG, enabling far less demand on the Corporate network, as well as on the storage device.
The Storage Solution
Adaptec was selected for the storage solution. Utilizing a Linux-based operating system for reliability and security, the Adaptec Snap Server line of storage systems were completely compatible with the MOBOTIX cameras and could be integrated into the bank’s existing LAN without problems. Snap Servers also provide remarkable scalability, from 160GB desktop units to 19-inch rackmount systems that can scale from 1TB to 66TB of storage capacity, so the storage purchase for this installation could be limited to only what was actually needed. Moreover, the scalability of the Snap Servers left the door open for future growth, if the bank’s surveillance or archiving needs grow.
Since the bank’s storage needs were relatively small, three Adaptec Snap Server 110 units were chosen. 10 camera images were pointed at each Snap Server to balance the load and each Snap Server was configured to run independently on the Corporate LAN.
Results
The new surveillance system has exceeded the bank’s expectations. Five Pentium-class PCs have been replaced by three desktop-sized Snap Server 110 units. Hardware that was dramatically out of date in a continually worsening situation by virtue of its orphaned status was replaced with current technology attached directly to the Corporate LAN, thereby including it in all future upgrades and routine maintenance. Windows-based PCs with stability and security issues have been replaced with Linux-based Snap Servers for maximum reliability and security. Low resolution monochrome analog video was replaced with 1.3 megapixel true color video with digital zoom, enabling the administrator to view details of specific images such as facial features.
By all measurements, the MOBOTIX/Snap Server solution implemented by SNP Security has been an overwhelming success. The bank’s current video surveillance needs are well in hand and any future growth can be easily managed through the intelligence of the MOBOTIX cameras, coupled with the scalability of the Snap Servers. Moreover, the initial SNP Security plan incorporated the potential for growth in the bank’s surveillance needs. Quite simply, the plan is to add more MOBOTIX cameras and Snap Server 110 units, as necessary, providing unlimited extensibility of the solution. Should the bank’s archiving needs increase, the solution is equally uncomplicated. Changing the current Snap Server 110 to a larger Snap Server system would be a quick hardware adjustment that would not require any modification to the software or underlying infrastructure.
“MOBOTIX and Snap Server provided the perfect solution”, said Whipp. “The cameras are fully intelligent and no third-party software is required to manage the cameras or the storage. By combining MOBOTIX and Adaptec Snap Server in a joint solution, we were able to provide this customer with distributed intelligence combined with distributed storage.”
For more information:
Neil Whipp, National Key Accounts - Electronic Security
Email.
nwhipp@snpsecurity.com.au
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