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A fly on the wall for guarding

Many companies in South Africa employ security personnel as their first line of defence in shop fronts or as part of their business operations. However, when a security incident occurs, it is often difficult to assess the liability of the parties involved. Incidents are usually dealt with after the fact.

SerVision’s real-time low bandwidth streaming allows the control room to view the activity of the incident in question via GSM or WIFI and respond accordingly in real-time. This is according to Mark Chertkow, MD at Graphic Image Technologies (GIT), a company that specialises in mobile and remote closed circuit television (CCTV) and control room technologies.

“Security management teams have to rely on the guard’s version of events or eye witness accounts, without having a comprehensive view of the reported incidents as they happen. This can have serious implications. Complaints against security personnel have the potential to cost them their jobs as they have to prove their standpoint from their version of events alone. Often it comes down to a ‘he said, she said’ scenario and companies face a difficult task to take decisive action if necessary, be it legally or otherwise. The additional live access moves the solution from a post-event analysis tool to a real-time proactive solution,” says Chertkow.

He says there has always been a need for a wearable CCTV solution that is affordable, allows for live streaming of the CCTV and forms part of an organisation’s CCTV operation, but technology and cost constraints have hampered deployment in the past.

“Traditionally wearable closed circuit television CCTV security solutions were bulky and uncomfortable to carry around for long periods of time, and also not easy to use or rugged enough to withstand everyday wear and tear. In addition, they do not allow for live viewing of the CCTV pictures.

“Also, while being able to log events, video recording was limited due to hard disk drive space constraints and guards had to resort to recording as and when incidents happen and then download it later at their control centres. As a result, there was often no accurate representation of the chain of events to legally protect the jobs of the guards and reputations of their companies,” he adds.

In response to this, SerVision developed a lightweight wearable CCTV security solution – the CVG-M video gateway unit – using proprietary video compression technology to transmit and record live high quality video with the use of its built-in 3G GSM module or Ethernet interfaces.

Says Chertkow: “The unit is compact enough to be worn comfortably by security personnel for long periods of time and is powered by a 12 V portable battery. Housed in a small hip pack or backpack, the CVG-M sports an internal cellular modem and supports two video inputs for live streaming, using miniature cameras as well as an audio input which is connected and mounted on a shoulder strap.”

It also features a built-in GPS module, which allows management to track the location and movement of the on-duty guard at all times. The miniature cameras and microphone fit on the shoulder strap or helmet of the guard, which makes it well-suited for undercover operations. The live video feed is recorded and accessed directly by high-level control room personnel and first response teams either via a mobile device or on site. With this device, the probability of the perpetrators getting caught thanks to the video and audio surveillance is significantly higher.

Concludes Chertkow: “The unit allows organisations to spend less time on assessing wrongful accusations, and also increases the accuracy of the security incident reports, making staff more efficient and productive, with the assurance they have proof to back up their version of the disputed incidents. In addition, the CVG-M provides a proactive support element to your guarding solution.”

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