A Hybrid Solution

Jun 1, 2008 12:00 PM

As the provider of choice for the greater community of Scottsdale, Ariz., Scottsdale Healthcare's mission is to identify and provide exceptional health care services to the community. A nonprofit organization, Scottsdale Healthcare was founded in 1962 as City Hospital of Scottsdale. Today, it serves the Northeast Arizona valley and beyond with three hospital campuses, outpatient centers, home health services and a range of community health education and outreach programs.

With a combined staff of more than 6,500 at its three hospital campuses, Scottsdale Healthcare serves thousands of patients annually. The large volume of pedestrian traffic in and around the numerous buildings calls for continuous security. To accomplish this, Scottsdale Healthcare uses a uniquely configured hybrid video surveillance system built on a combination of best-in-breed network and analog video surveillance solutions from Panasonic Security Systems, Secaucus, N.J.

The daunting task of continually expanding and evolving security and video surveillance capabilities at Scottsdale Healthcare is the job of Lyle Smith, manager of safety, security and emergency preparedness. “When I started at Scottsdale Healthcare, our IT department had already installed some Web cameras to monitor their IT rooms. They were viewing the cameras locally for their own purposes, and then started expanding the deployment of cameras for general surveillance applications, so our system expansion has been an integrated effort with IT from the beginning.”

“When I came on board, I wanted to further expand the facilities' video surveillance capabilities to address critical security issues. We sat down with our IT people to make sure that we were going in the right direction and to address bandwidth allocation issues,” Smith continues. “We needed a way to balance our security needs with IT operations so that the video surveillance system did not overwhelm the facility's network with continuous volumes of video and control data pouring over the network.”

One of Smith's primary security objectives was to link the three hospital campuses together for centralized monitoring and control. With the three campuses located seven to 10 miles apart, it was imperative to use the existing network backbone. The challenge was to devise a system configuration to allow more cameras to be added to the system while minimizing bandwidth usage. Another objective was to replace existing Web cameras with new Panasonic i-Pro Series professional network cameras for better imaging capabilities and features.

The hospital worked closely with a Panasonic Authorized Dealer, Lanmor Services Inc., Phoenix, to come up with a solution that promised to deliver better control while maximizing available bandwidth. Smith worked with Kip Cunningham, vice president and general manager at Lanmor; and Lowell Kramer, western regional integration specialist, to design a system combining IP and analog video surveillance systems connected on a networked platform for centralized monitoring and control. John Dobradenka of the Pacific Group, Panasonic Security System's sales representative in the area, provided additional design and support for the project.

The hybrid system employs a variety of Panasonic IP and analog cameras feeding into remotely located digital video recorders (DVRs) and network video recorders (NVRs). Video and camera control signals are then networked into Scottsdale Healthcare's command center without the need for any video servers or additional coder/decoder (CODEC) devices.

The key to the unique configuration is distributed architecture. By deploying a series of “satellite” video surveillance systems, Scottsdale Healthcare can easily manage many video surveillance cameras and recorders remotely via a network backbone, regardless of their native platform. In areas where cameras are installed using CAT-5 cable on the network, video signals are input directly to a Panasonic WJ-ND300A NVR, which allows as many as 16 cameras to be multiplexed digitally. In those areas where analog cameras are installed, the cameras are connected using standard coax cable to Panasonic WJ-HD300A Series DVRs, which provide IP digital outputs to integrate with the facility's existing networked backbone. All of the cameras are digitally routed through the respective DVRs and NVRs onto the network where they are centrally viewed, controlled and managed using Panasonic's WV-AS65 PC Management Software.

“This unique hybrid configuration was the best viable solution for us as we didn't have the funds required to install a separate dedicated network specifically for video surveillance and security applications,” Smith says. “In fact, we don't have the need for an additional dedicated network using this implementation model and we have all but eliminated previous issues concerning bandwidth utilization.”

The Panasonic NVRs deployed at Scottsdale Healthcare offer scalable operation and ease of installation with auto-IP detection and set-up. The units feature a 960 images-per-second at 32 camera refresh rate (MPEG4) and multi-format recording (JPEG/MJPEG/MPEG4) with data stream control between live and recorded images. The WJ-ND300A accommodates up to four optional hard drives onboard plus an optional external RAID 5 and/or expansion modules allowing 28 hard drives. For the analog-based systems, Scottsdale Healthcare relies on Panasonic's WJ-HD300A Series DVRs that provide over 500 TVL, high-density recording (60ips/120ips at CIF) with full rate live multi-screen resolution (60 to 960 ips) and a base disk capacity of 500GB expandable to 15 Terabytes. With the addition of Panasonic's WV-AS65 PC Management Software and WV-CU650 System Controllers, Scottsdale Healthcare can eventually network up to 100 Panasonic NVRs and DVRs simultaneously.

Given the scalability of the hybrid network system, Smith has been expanding the system using predominantly analog “satellite” systems built around Panasonic's WJ-HD300A Series DVRs and analog camera systems. The deployment of the analog systems is less expensive than expanding existing network infrastructure or installing a dedicated video surveillance network. “We've found that this hybrid network solution using building blocks of analog satellite systems is the most cost-effective way to further expand and manage our system,” Smith says.

Scottsdale Healthcare has been upgrading and expanding its video surveillance system with a variety of Panasonic IP and analog PTZ, dome and fixed cameras. The cameras provide coverage of emergency rooms and the pharmacy, as well as all entrances and exits to monitor and record pedestrian traffic. Other key surveillance areas include supply loading docks and areas where high-end medical equipment is delivered and stored. Cameras are also deployed in pediatric and infant care areas to complement Scottsdale Healthcare's comprehensive abduction prevention systems. To date, there are more than 125 cameras installed with plans in development to double that number over the next year. Plans are also in development to integrate the facilities' DSX access control system that will allow security personnel to view and capture images every time an access card or proximity device is used to gain entry to a secured area.

To supplement the advanced video surveillance capabilities, Scottsdale Healthcare's security staff includes a highly trained canine unit certified by the Arizona Law Enforcement Canine Association. The canine patrols are active round-the-clock and are used mainly as a deterrent, according to Smith. “We continually train and test our dogs because they have to be very compatible with people, yet aggressive on command, and still pass rigid annual certification criteria,” he says. “We believe this is an outstanding program and one of the best possible deterrents we've employed over the years.”

“I can bring up any camera on any computer in the hospital network that we've loaded the Panasonic software on,” Smith says. “I can access all three campuses in the security office and in my own office, and I can download any video footage I need and save it off-line to document an incident. I also have access to the entire video surveillance system from my home, which gives me instant access to a situation that may be in progress.” In addition to Smith, key executive management personnel have viewing capabilities from their offices. To prevent unauthorized access to the network, the Panasonic WV-AS65 PC Management Software provides various levels of authorized access and control.

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