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Casino chooses NVT

UK's Bury New Road casino, owned and operated by Rank Group Gaming Division, is the first of the company's revolutionary new 'G' Casinos to be opened.

Billed as Manchester's hottest new venue, the facility boasts regular live entertainment, from the country's leading comedians, to prominent singers and bands.

Its unrivalled selection of non-gaming based entertainment continues late into the evening at its Sports Lounge and two bars, whilst contemporary food is also available in its Italian style restaurant. For clients wishing to 'dip a toe in the water', the G Casino boasts a large 'Party Zone', where new players can learn the intricacies of the casino world, whilst playing for low stakes in a relaxed low-pressure environment. More experienced gamers can chance their luck on multiple roulette and blackjack tables alongside a vast hundred seat poker room, complementing the latest in slot machine technology.

Accommodating technology

At a total cost of over £4 million, the new G Casino represents a fresh approach to the traditional gaming facility, and Rank Group Gaming Division wanted to extend this new thinking throughout the site's comprehensive security system.

A high-quality CCTV installation was cited as a cornerstone of this security system by the casino's management, as John Butler, director of security at the company explains: "Bury New Road is an important site for us as it is the first of our new G Casinos. We needed a CCTV security solution that would support the potential future growth of the casino, deliver high-quality images, be unobtrusive to customers' enjoyment of the casino, and blend with the dynamic and fresh look of the building's stylish interior."

To specify an effective security solution that would fulfil the Rank Group's criteria, they turned to specialist installer, ID Group, who worked closely with Rank management from the G Casino's planning stage, in early 2005. Throughout the casino's many distinct areas with their modern interiors, ID Group was presented with the challenging task of installing a bespoke CCTV solution without compromising its aesthetics.

At the sharp end of the system, this was achieved by using the latest in miniature dome camera technology. The camera units were positioned throughout the facility and linked to alarm presets, used to cover entrances and exits of the building, particularly interior doors with restricted access. This allows the nearest P/T/Z camera to move into a pre-set position if a door is used without the correct authorisation, providing invaluable video evidence to staff and management of who used the door and when.

UTP provides the key

With a total of 72 cameras, comprehensive scene coverage allows management an overview of all gaming areas. This provides a valuable casino management tool, as images can be reviewed to provide instant clarification of gaming proceedings, in the event of a contested bet result.

ID Group's biggest installation challenge was finding an unobtrusive way to transmit the system's camera images to the control room, whilst keeping civil works around the casino to a minimum, whilst providing Rank Group management with the highest quality video for back of house review. The solution was provided with the use of unshielded twisted pair (UTP) video transmission technology from Network Video Technologies (NVT). Due to the significant space saving qualities of a UTP cable network compared to coax, ID Group was able to install a dedicated UTP infrastructure throughout the casino, with minimal civil works.

Installation time was also greatly reduced; primarily as installing the entire UTP multipair cable infrastructure requires only the same time as pulling a single coax. The resulting time saving can then be passed on to the end user in the form of a less expensive and more economical CCTV installation, with the benefit of less facility 'downtime' needed for the work to be carried out.

Bespoke performance

ID Group installed NVT NV-214A-M passive transmitters at each camera, and NV-813A 8-channel and a NV-3213A 32-channel passive receiver hubs in the control room. Using NVT passive transmitters and receivers enabled ID Group's engineers to provide a video signal of the highest quality, as required by the casino's DVR equipment. The passive receivers were chosen due to NVT's unique feature of 'fully variable' potentiometer adjustment; allowing infinitely variable and accurate adjustments to video signal gain to be made to compensate for the varying camera cable transmission distances of the casino installation.

Should further gaming tables need to be added or the interior decor of any of the gaming areas changed, adding additional or moving existing cameras is an easy task thanks to the multiple 'spare' pairs ID Group included in the installation of the UTP cable network. This allows new or relocated cameras to be catered for with minimal effort, cost and importantly, disruption to the business.

Matt Allen, sales director at ID Group concludes: "We are delighted to have been involved with the G Casino at Bury New Road. It is a great opportunity to be involved with a project from day one, where security is treated with paramount importance to the design. The casino is a flagship for Rank Group Gaming and a true showcase of sophisticated security and technology. NVT's award-winning products, expert help and technical backup proved invaluable in providing a bespoke, quality surveillance solution for this unique facility."

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