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A birds-eye view for Pran Boulevard

The Pran Boulevard development in KwaZulu-Natal, designed by the Paragon Group and developed by Shree Property Holdings, has transformed the face of Umhlanga Rocks Drive in the prestigious precinct of Umhlanga Ridge. Its two modern buildings are made up of 5640 m² of lettable space and boast office areas, common spaces, conference facilities, canteens and a coffee shop.

No expense was spared on the construction of these magnificent, green buildings and the structure was specifically divided into two buildings to enhance natural light as well as respond to the hot and humid climatic conditions common within the tropical climate of KZN. The area between the buildings is used as a space where staff can enjoy social interaction and has a large overhanging cantilever roofing that provides shade for the outside eating spaces. It also has a parking bay able to accommodate 240 cars in a multi-level basement garage.

With its large open spaces and vast common areas, the developers saw a need to deploy a state-of-the-art security and surveillance solution that could literally cover every ‘nook and cranny’ of the property. As a greenfields site the benefit was that there was no legacy equipment that needed replacing and the team could design a system with the latest digital-centric technology to meet their needs.

Flexible access to security footage

As the development is made up of office rental space with a multi-tenant model, the developer wanted to be able to provide each tenant the ability to view their own security where needed, as well as tap into the primary control room. This includes video footage of not just the office areas but also the parking garages, common areas, restaurant and pause areas.

After using its IT Partner, THUSA, for the consulting work during building, the tender was awarded by Pran Boulevard to The Surveillance Factory. With years of experience specialising in designing, implementing and managing video surveillance solutions, they set about building a solution made up of Axis cameras, Milestone software and Dell EMC server and storage solutions.

“The client requirement was clear, they wanted a modern, user friendly surveillance system that could monitor all areas and integrate seamlessly with the control room environment,” states Deon Chiesman, owner of The Surveillance Factory KZN. “They also wanted high-end cameras, access control solutions and overall good quality equipment. There could be no room for error and no situation where inferior product could be blamed if something went wrong.”

75 Axis cameras

According to Chiesman, the client and their consultants are well versed with Axis network cameras and the quality that the brand stands for, and as a result the tender was awarded. The system deployed now safeguards the property’s 65 doors and includes 75 cameras.

The AXIS M3105 was chosen to secure both the entrances and exits to the building thanks to its innovative flat-faced design. This camera also offers Wide Dynamic Range (WDR) – Forensic Capture for excellent detail when light levels vary greatly such as entrances with bright daylight outside and dimmer light inside.

The AXIS P3037 panoramic unit was also selected. This camera allows for 360° overviews and provides four individually cropped out and dewarped view areas where users can digitally pan, tilt and zoom in on areas of interest. Outside of the building the AXIS P3225 with recess mounts have been deployed as well as AXIS-P14 series, these have been colour coded in an aluminium casing to match the exterior of the building. All cameras are connected to the core server room and can run on a full UPS backup should the power go out.

“The landlord at Pran Boulevard places extensive emphasis on security and his security team monitor every aspect of the building daily. In fact, they can tell you who is in the building, what is going on at the site, and track the movement of people and cars, with a licence plate recognition system at the entrances. They are currently considering the integration of a full access control solution with the system,” adds Chiesman.

The surveillance system runs from the core server room and from there it splits into two core network nodes and the cameras connect to these nodes, with one in each building, perfect for potential failover. All cameras are managed via the Milestone management software and the software enables granular visibility for each tenant as well as the security control room. The server hosting the system has more than 10 TB of storage space that hosts video footage for 90 days, but with capacity to expand should it be required, ensuring it can be used for reactionary and preventative surveillance.

Business benefits

The security at Pran Boulevard is world class, the property is safer and the security team are able to manage and monitor the environment, with full visibility to all offices, open areas, entrances and exits as well as parking garages. It has also allowed Shree Property Holdings to reduce the costs associated with additional security patrols.

“The client is happy with the system as it meets all of their requirements. The quality of the system and the images captured are superior to any other solution investigated, and they are already talking about expanding the intelligence capabilities of the system to improve on preventative surveillance and access control into the future,” ends Chiesman.

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