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Greenpoint Stadium CCTV contract awarded

2010 fever is hotting up as business around the country begins preparing for the FIFA World Cup. i to i technologies is playing its part in this exciting process by providing an intelligent security solution for Cape Town's Greenpoint stadium.

Wayne Clarke, product manager at i to i technologies, says that the company is fully aware of the responsibility that comes with such a massive task, as the eyes of the world will be scrutinising the security aspects of the event.

"We are partnering with Dimension Data on this project and are responsible for installing the CCTV surveillance, access control and intrusion detection systems at the stadium," says Clarke, who is working as the systems architect on the contract.

"CCTV surveillance, in particular, will play a major role in keeping the players, spectators and various personnel safe and secure at all times during the high-profile games."

The CCTV system includes various different types of cameras - all of which are from the state-of-the-art Bosch range of products and supplied by Pentagon Technologies, i to i's preferred CCTV supplier.

Anton Hochleutner, sales director of Pentagon says that they have been supplying i to i technologies with CCTV surveillance products for more than four years.

"We were happy to have played our role in this enormous project," says Hochleutner.

"The surveillance system that we are installing is a complete IP-based solution, making it easy to manage and more reliable than traditional CCTV systems, as all the cameras are connected on a network and footage is stored in a digital format.

"We are using a combination of static cameras, high-speed auto dome cameras with 360° vision and zoom capability, vandal-proof static dome cameras - which are made of tougher material than conventional cameras and cannot be unscrewed - as well as thermal imaging cameras both inside and outside the stadium. These heat-sensitive cameras are extremely useful in misty or smoky conditions when normal cameras are rendered ineffective and therefore have an important safety component to them as well," explains Clarke.

i to i technologies is also installing two pieces of equipment that will have an important crowd control function during the games.

"We are also installing two 21 megapixel cameras on either side of the field," says Clarke. "Considering that the average camera today has about 7-10 megapixels, this is extremely powerful and allows one to zoom right in to the facial features of a person standing in a crowd on the other side of the stadium."

In addition, i to i will be responsible for the access control and intrusion detection systems of the administration blocks, both of which will be linked up to the Building Management System to ensure complete integration of all the various security features of the stadium.

"This is a massive undertaking and has required a lot of planning and collaboration between ourselves, Dimension Data, the Electrical Engineering company WSP and the client - the City of Cape Town Council. We have also had to accommodate and comply with FIFA regulations to ensure the system we have designed meets their requirements," says Clarke.

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