From The Field

Aug 1, 2007 12:00 PM

EDUCATION

Prince George's County Schools Award Video Surveillance System Contract

The Prince George's County, Md., public school district has awarded its security systems contract to North American Video, Brick, N.J. Prince George's County Public Schools is the second largest school system in Maryland and the 18th largest in the United States, with an estimated enrollment of more than 134,000 students. The school system employs approximately 16,000 full-time employees, including close to 10,000 teachers.

The contract award includes design and implementation of a video surveillance system that integrates North American Video LCD displays. The project is valued at more than $100,000 and was begun when the term ended last spring. “The need to provide a safe haven for teachers and students is important in cultivating a safe and secure environment that's conducive to learning,” says Ron Freschi, director of North American Video.

Berkshire Farm Center Installs High-Definition Video Surveillance

With the mission of preparing at-risk children to again live safely within their home communities, The Berkshire Farm Center, Canaan, N.Y., wanted to bolster the round-the-clock security of its residential students. When it came time to upgrade an aging CCTV video surveillance system, the school chose the Crystal HD high-definition video surveillance system from CoVi Technologies, Austin, Texas.

The CoVi system is the first phase of a large deployment of cameras throughout the campus to capture and record video in a resolution with up to 12 times greater quality than analog video. The system allows school administrators to retrieve and review surveillance video without requiring additional network bandwidth capabilities.

In September 2006, Berkshire deployed a complete CoVi Crystal HD system including the high-definition cameras, each with a DMM (Distributed Media Manager) to record and store video at the “edge” of the school's existing IP network. In all, the solution monitors 17 buildings across the campus and is “fail-safe,” meaning that if the school's network goes down, the CoVi system continues to operate.

“Working with more than 200 at-risk kids and their families annually at the Residential Treatment Center creates a very real security issue that is fundamental to the success of our programs,” says Harith Flagg, Berkshire Farm CEO. “The video quality of the CoVi HD system allows us to increase the detail in recording student and faculty incidents.” Flagg adds that the system has improved school administrators' response time to incidents and has reduced investigation time. “This allows us to continue to devote resources to our core function of helping children in need.”

GAMING

Choctaw Nation Casinos Deploy Network Cameras To Monitor Games

More than 300 network cameras from Axis Communications, Chelmsford, Mass., have been installed at three casinos owned by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. The cameras will be used in conjunction with the Universal Video Management System (UVMS) solution from Petards Inc., Baltimore.

Axis network cameras were installed in the Durant, Broken Bow and Pocola casino locations to monitor gaming floors, high-stakes poker tables and slot machines. The Choctaw Nation chose a network-based solution to handle the increased foot traffic in existing and new casinos and because network cameras are easy to install and maintain. The Choctaw Nation selected the AXIS 216FD, among others, for its advanced image processing that provides crisp images in low light. The installation also included AXIS 206 and AXIS 211M Network Cameras and AXIS 231D+ and AXIS 232D+ Network Dome Cameras.

Most of the cameras used in the casinos provide automatic iris control, a feature critical for capturing video among the bright and flashing lights of a casino.

“Choctaw Nation is experiencing a high level of growth that demands sophisticated surveillance technology,” says Dan Breshears, executive director of Tribal Police Security and Surveillance for Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. “A network-based system enabled our team to take advantage of Power-over-Ethernet, thus eliminating the need for power outlets at camera locations.”

PUBLIC FACILITIES

Arizona Courthouse Bailiffs Monitor Building With Megapixel Cameras

The Superior Court of Arizona in Coconino County, located in Flagstaff, has upgraded its courthouse security with IQeye megapixel cameras from IQinVision, San Clemente, Calif. The cameras are managed by an OnSSI network video recording system from On-Net Surveillance Systems Inc., Suffern, N.Y. IPVision, Tucson, Ariz., was selected as the systems integrator, design and engineering firm for the security system installation.

The Coconino County facility and its staff of bailiffs oversee access to the building and courtrooms, and they focus on preventing weapons from coming into the building. To meet these challenges the courthouse installed 27 IQeye 701 megapixel network cameras at strategic locations in the public access areas of the courthouse. Video from the cameras feeds back to a central command-and-control center in the courthouse, where it is monitored and recorded by the OnSSI software.

The system allows monitoring of critical areas without the need to physically locate limited personnel in these areas. Prior to the new system installation, bailiffs spent a considerable part of each day standing in vulnerable areas to monitor traffic and look for threatening activity.

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