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Secure lifestyle at La Petite Provence

Camsecure, a projects-based security solutions company, has incorporated a comprehensive surveillance system at the picturesque La Petite Provence residential wine estate in Franschhoek, Western Cape province.

In spite of the fact that crime statistics for this upmarket estate remain fairly low, the residents felt that the previous, outdated CCTV and access tag system needed to keep pace with new technology and trends. The estate is situated on a 36-hectare farm so the area of coverage is fairly large.

Camsecure’s MD, Francois Malan, pointed out that the residents had expressed the need for a system that would allow easy access, while providing security controls. “The administration of the existing access control card system was cumbersome and problematic.”

Phase 1 of the project was awarded to Camsecure in March 2012. The proposed solution was based around the Milestone licence plate recognition (LPR) software and included Axis cameras. “The critical point for Camsecure was ensuring that all systems could be readily integrated. Single-vendor solutions, without the ability to integrate with other third-party hardware and software are not cost-effective or sustainable,” Malan explains.

Axis and Milestone

“The Axis network camera, fitted with an infrared illuminator, offers superb video performance and provides images with better contrast, clarity and resolution. Milestone’s LPR software allows registered vehicles to access the estate easily, thus eliminating any possible traffic jams at the entrance. We also have the ability to institute a dual system using both LPR and access cards if required,” Vivian de Meillon, regional manager for Camsecure Cape Town adds.

“The LPR software accesses a database of all resident vehicle number plates and thereby issues an instruction to the access boom to be raised when a valid number plate is registered,” he added. The surveillance solution makes it possible to blacklist vehicles that have been red-flagged for any reason.

“The second phase includes the monitoring of the estate’s perimeter,” says Malan.

The roadside perimeter will be monitored by surveillance cameras, networked with the entrance camera on Milestone’s software. There are a number of streetlights at intervals along this perimeter which provide a degree of ambient lighting at night. “We debated whether to use thermal or low-light cameras for this installation, but since the main intention is to alert the security guards to any intrusion, we felt that the Axis Lightfinder technology camera was the ideal solution,” Malan explains.

Seeing the light

The Lightfinder technology incorporates a CMOS sensor with exceptional light sensitivity. The advantages of the Lightfinder technology are high light sensitivity, excellent image quality with low noise but a wealth of details, and better colour reproduction in low light.

In order to reduce the carbon footprint of the installation, Camsecure elected to deploy wireless, solar powered technology in place of copper cables powered by electricity. “Not only is the use of wireless, solar-powered communication environmentally friendly, it is also very cost effective and flexible in terms of current and future installations. No excavation for cable routes is required and additions or changes to the current system can be readily and quickly implemented,” says Malan.

The phase 2 installation will include video analytics that will inform the security guards of event-driven incidents when a breach of the perimeter is detected. “When an alarm is activated, whether by the entrance camera or a perimeter camera, the guard will receive notification on a monitor of the mapped incident area as well as the video feed of the incident. By locating the camera responsible for activating the alarm, he will be able to accurately pinpoint the area of concern and react accordingly. The system can also be programmed to provide the security officer with instructions. This provides a complete audit trail for each event,” notes Malan.

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