All power to the people

Building management systems (BMS)

have now come full circle. We are all used to talking about technology integration in terms of ‘boxes’ speaking to other ‘boxes’ or, on a wider scale, systems chatting away to other systems, but nowhere in that two-dimensional equation is there mention of the third – and arguably most important – component. Systems talking to humans.

It’s a sort of systems Feng Shui. Put the wrong kit in the wrong place and the whole ying and yang of the building disappears down the nearest CCTV camera!

Systems can provide the raw data and even locate it all in one place for ease of use and convenience, but it is the intuitive human eye that draws the intelligent conclusions.

It is also the human eye that will set the business agenda to make informed decisions about how we design and construct buildings in the future. Particularly true, it must be said, when you bear in mind ‘bigger picture’ issues such as global warming or the microeconomics of power optimisation.

Those factors are hugely important in the open systems world in which we now find ourselves. Today, we are moving away from commodity box shifting towards value-added solutions that balance the economic and environmental equations by providing commercial properties – in other words, the biggest fossil fuel polluters on the planet – and their managers with the means for monitoring environmental performance, while at the same time reducing energy costs over the lifecycle of a given building.

It’s good to ‘talk’

In turn, these systems are linked-in with security, fire and access control systems all capable of ‘talking’ to each other.

That said, the playing field continues to remain uneven. There is still much to do when it comes to educating the industry. Those ‘thought leaders’ – the vanguards of the debate on intelligent buildings – have now come full circle in their thinking, and the human element is being placed firmly at the centre of all discussions. The approach is to put human beings back in the driving seat and in direct control of the technology that is designed to make their life easier.

Let us take a macro and micro view of security by way of example, partly because the move spoken of here has been driven by economics – if truth be told, the barrier to most building and facilities managers being able to think and act ‘outside of the box’.

The increased cost of manned security is being driven by Government legislation and the quality assurance procedures necessary to maintain high standards. Eventually, this will result in fewer officers of better quality relying on greater use of technologies that not only ‘talk’ to each other, but which also provide real-time information for the officer(s) concerned in order to help them carry out their tasks in a less stressful way.

In this instance, the integration process is three-dimensional – electronic-to-electronic and electronic-to-human.

All of the relevant research on monitoring of CCTV images points towards long, difficult and stressful hours of constantly scanning screens. This undermines the image of skilled operatives who monitor and control the cameras, and are able to interpret and act upon the images produced. It is therefore little wonder that subtle incidents can pass by unnoticed in front of the human eye, which in turn wrongly undermines the important role played by CCTV in reducing crime.

Professor Martin Gill – the director of Perpetuity Research and Consultancy International – conducted a survey of the effectiveness of CCTV in shopping centres and retail outlets (‘What the offenders say’, SMT, October 2003, pp47-48). He and his colleague Jerry Hart concluded that surveillance can only work in reducing crime with the right staff and levels of training. In his own words, Professor Gill stated: “You cannot simply place a camera on top of a steel pole and hope for the best.”

We believe in an holistic approach to the issue. Technology only works if the human interface – the chemistry generated with the security officers, if you like – is right. Monitoring systems need to be intuitive, prompting action, determining workflows and priorities for the security operatives while eliminating human error wherever possible.

Digital Sentry is one system on the market that actively harnesses this three-dimensional approach. The technology offers Active Alert. Rather than relying upon constant monitoring, exceptional behaviour – as determined by pre-set parameters – is recorded and highlighted, making it far easier for security staff to respond to time-sensitive incidents. This also allows for fewer security officers on site – as determined by the economic arguments already put forward here – to concentrate on other priority tasks of importance to the client organisation.

The video server also converts analogue camera inputs into digital outputs, while the IPIX Insight provides features not available elsewhere. Operators can pan, tilt and zoom through live, recorded or exported video directly from within the Digital Sentry interface.

In addition, multiple operators are able to simultaneously monitor views from a single command view camera.

Learning by example

Technology only works if the human interface – the chemistry generated with the security officers, if you like – is right. Monitoring systems need to be intuitive, prompting action, determining workflows and priorities for the security operatives while eliminating human error wherever possible

Two working case studies are the best way to prove some of the points made here.

The new security Control Room at The Mall Shopping Centre in Selborne Walk, Walthamstow, east London was designed and installed by one of Tour Andover Controls’ partners, namely G1. The CCTV system went ‘live’ last April, and takes care of the video monitoring requirements of the Centre’s interior spaces, retail shop fronts and car parking areas by way of high speed domes.

Inside the Control Room are four large, high resolution LCD monitors located on the Operations Desk. These are used for monitoring alarms, CCTV images, Shopping Centre car park images and also for spot monitoring. For the recording of video images, the client set-up incorporates a dedicated digital system which makes it easy for security Control Room operatives to locate any incident within three or four seconds. In turn, operator stress is greatly reduced and their overall effectiveness improved.

Alex Bagnall – operations manager at The Mall – comments: “Motion detection has been introduced as a technology we didn’t have before. The Control Room has been so well designed that we are 100% certain it is going to improve the monitoring environment. That will have beneficial effects for the safety and security of all visitors to The Mall.”

Bagnall is an active participant in the local Action Against Business Crime initiative, which is aiming to establish, support and develop firm and effective links between businesses, other local crime reduction schemes, the police and various local agencies.

Consistent systems strategy

On an individual level, another example involves the work of Ray Wheatley, the security manager at Dublin City University which is situated on an 85-acre campus three miles to the north of the River Liffey in central Dublin. The site includes the John and Aileen O’Reilly Library and the Helix Arts Centre in addition to a number of academic, research-specific and residential buildings. The campus is used by staff, members of the public and more than 10,000 registered students.

Dublin City University has 15 permanent security staff covering over 35 separate buildings – a substantially lower headcount than other, similar institutions where one security officer per building is the more likely ratio. This low headcount is directly attributable to a consistent strategy of technology development on Wheatley’s part that, to date, encompasses networked intruder alarms, car park control systems, access control installations and digital CCTV. Integrating this little lot has been achieved at the same time as a reduction in insurance premiums due to the effectiveness of the security measures now in place.

The success of Wheatley’s strategy is based on two clearly linked strands. The first is the deployment of leading-edge technologies. The second is that of ensuring security staff are fully-trained in the use of all equipment such that its many and varied benefits are realised.

Exploiting the IT network

The campus’ IT network is fully exploited as part of that security strategy. The integral DVR system may be administered from literally anywhere by an authorised user. This has speeded up information retrieval times no end, and has also ensured that security staff have the right information to hand before they dash from one end of the campus to another in pursuit of would-be thieves, etc.

Over the past decade, car crime on campus has fallen dramatically – by up to 75%, in fact – as the new technology has been deployed. That reduction in crime has also been attributed to a growing awareness among the wider populus that Dublin City University is a place where the guilty are caught and subsequently convicted. More than 25 successful convictions have been secured thanks to DVR evidence.

Due to the high image quality of the recordings, the local police – the An Garda Siochana – now approach members of Ray’s team for CCTV pictures whenever incidents occur adjacent to the campus. They also use equipment to process images from elsewhere. Wheatley’s close co-operation with the police has resulted in the award of a Certificate of Appreciation for professionalism.

Instilling a ‘team ethic’

When it comes to the success of the security set-up at Dublin City University, Wheatley is convinced that the ‘team ethic’ he has instilled is vital. Wheatley is a man who’s prepared to lead from the front.

Wheatley also makes time to be an active contributor to the wider community of University-based security professionals. At present, Ray serves as the executive member for Eire of the Association of University Chief Security Officers (AUCSO).

All-in-all, Wheatley is living proof that the ‘human touch’ is genuinely making its presence felt in building design and security management at both the macro and micro levels. The message? “Effective communication makes for sound integration”.