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Remote video verification - WHY?

Increases in crime against property and people have made it necessary for police response to be focused on addressing real incidents rather than attend unverified alarms.

The obvious solution would be to provide a zero false alarm rate system, but this is not a realistic goal. Primary causes of false alarms are poorly designed and installed security systems or human error in operating them. Even simple actions like the positioning of an advertising module or display near a ventilation outlet may result in a false alarm when it moves in the air currents. Therefore, it is not a practical proposition to eliminate all false alarms at the source, though careful design and installation of the alarm system can dramatically improve the situation. A viable alternative to physical attendance on site is to provide a means of remote verification from a centralised monitoring location. Attendance is then only necessary when a real threat is judged to exist. For this approach to be truly effective, it must be quick and easy to determine the cause of each and every alarm.

Intruder alarm system

Most people understand the theory of the intruder alarm system: this being detectors strategically positioned in a building, door contacts and a control panel that is usually connected to internal and external sirens on site, and connected via a standard telephone line to a central monitoring station (CMS). Most customers are under the illusion that this protects their premises, but in reality it does not make the doors any stronger or the windows any tougher, they still break when struck.

What does it achieve?

An intruder alarm system works predominantly when the premises are unoccupied. An intruder will approach a building and spend some minutes looking through windows, trying doors etc. If left unchallenged the intruder has free access to the building perimeter and any items that are stored outside the premises are susceptible to theft. An ideal opportunity is also presented to the would-be intruder to determine the best access point to the building. An intruder can, by simply looking through a window, see all manner of expensive office equipment including laptops, PCs and digital cameras left on desks. The building occupants assume they are protected by the alarm and the 'it will not happen to them' scenario. The intruder who has been left unchallenged will eventually smash a window or force a door, which in turn will activate the alarm and send a signal through to the CMS. The experienced intruder having surveyed the site and knowing what he is going to target once inside, will quickly gather the equipment and leave via the same route before the patrol officer arrives. Nothing has stopped the intruder and the customer has sustained a loss and damage to the premises.

Any loss sustained, will be covered by insurance, so who cares?

The loss can be viewed in a number of ways.

1. Costs incurred due to damage to the premises and the ensuing repair and maintenance works. Additional costs may also arise if alternative premises need to be sourced whilst these repairs are being undertaken. The often unconsidered cost is the uninsurable value of loss of time.

2. The actual loss of capital equipment is covered by an insurance policy, but what if the items are scheduled to be delivered to a customer tomorrow and there are penalty clauses for late delivery and again an un-insurable cost eventuates. A worse scenario would be if all business-critical information was stored on the stolen PC, the long-term viability of the company could be severely jeopardised. In fact intruder alarm systems are very useful, but one should understand what they are designed to do. An intruder alarm system is designed to detect an intruder after they have broken into the premises and at best will limit the time an intruder spends on the premises.

CCTV systems

Many people underestimate or take for granted the need for a CCTV system. But what is the value of installing a CCTV system? The CCTV system works 24 hours a day. The true value of a CCTV system is that it allows people to also become more efficient in their daily routine. For example a customer invests in internal and external cameras, a control system in the form of a DVR, a number of monitors and keyboards that can be positioned throughout the premises. The receptionist may have a monitor on the front desk and constantly view the car park and the perimeter while continuing to undertake her normal duties. If someone were to be observed loitering in or near the car park they can be appropriately challenged. A production manager can increase efficiency by observing the production line and stores area without needing to continually walk around the premises. A managing director while travelling, can review the business remotely to ensure business efficiencies are maintained despite his absence from the office. A recording of all cameras is kept either on a videotape or more often now on a DVR. The recording of events is extremely useful as if a visitor was to return to their car and find a dent in the door, they can return to reception and replay the video and see who caused the damage. However, our scenario of the intruder in the previous example would have produced video of the break in, but on closer inspection the intruder has a mask on and does not actually look at the cameras so what is the video footage showing us? It actually re-enforces the point that the intruder detection system limits the time an intruder spends on the premises. The CCTV system really only records the loss.

Remote off-site video verification

What is a remote off-site video verification system? Cameras are installed to give coverage of the perimeter of a premises or critical areas of a customer's business. A detection device is positioned covering the same field of view as the camera, these can be motion detection devices or series detectors or a combination of detection devices to suit the premises application. The cameras and detectors are connected to an ADPRO transmitter; this can be a transmitter only or a range of combined video transmitter and digital storage devices such as ADPRO's FastTrace. The transmitter can be connected to the customers LAN or WAN so the customer can view live and stored pictures through the infrastructure already installed, and the transmitter is connected to a phone line for signalling to a central monitoring station or CMS. In addition, the ADPRO system is connected to the customers' public address system or an amplifier with speakers sited externally around the premises. On site the customer has complete control of the CCTV system as an on site surveillance system. The difference is that when the customer vacates the premises and arms the intruder alarm system, they also arm the ADPRO system.

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