On the case

When champion racehorse Best Mate won his third successive victory at the Tote Cheltenham Gold Cup this year, his security was ensured by a 24-hour monitoring system designed and installed by the IVS Group.

The racehorse secured a place in history with his third successive Gold Cup victory, a feat that has only been achieved before by three other horses including the legendary Arkle.

Trainer Henrietta Knight approached the IVS Group to provide security for the horse and the yard. IVS installed a wireless CCTV system coupled with patrolling security guards that enabled the racehorse and surrounding areas to be monitored 24 hours a day.

An infrared camera was installed on to the stable, from where live video footage was relayed back to two guards in a bespoke mobile patrol vehicle. An additional dome camera was installed on a mast fitted on top of the vehicle. The guards viewed the images on two screens in the vehicle.

Towering success

An unusual CCTV surveillance project at the Tower of London, the UK’s number one heritage attraction, has been completed by Meyertech Ltd.

The purpose of the system is to allow visitors to observe work being carried out on the 13th century Wakefield Tower.

Stone conservation repairs are being carried out and a new conical lead roof is also being designed.

The work for the Historic Royal Palaces conservation project required a single full function camera to be installed above the roof of the Wakefield Tower on a scaffold framework that encompassed the entire tower during the works. Installer, Videcom of Waltham Abbey, undertook the work.

Camera control is provided by a touch screen monitor at the base of the tower within a public viewing booth. It enables any visitor to view the conservation and construction. The visitor can pan, tilt, zoom and focus the camera over certain areas of the site and witness the progress of the project.

Meyertech Fusion software integrates the camera control and monitor presentation. The touch screen was provided by Touch Screen Solutions, and a Mark Mercer Heritage dome was selected to provide the colour camera enclosure.

550 cameras on network

A group of CCTV specialists in Teeside who work for Atkins Telecoms undertook work on the UK’s largest and most complex digital CCTV network.

The £8.5 million Nexus CCTV project provides continuous monitoring and recording at Tyne and Wear Metro and bus stations.

The project comprises of:

• CCTV systems in all 58 stations on the Metro network;

• Additional systems at remote bus stations and multi-storey car parks;

• New digital recording system of all cameras

• A new 2.5Gb digital network linking all stations and six control rooms;

• Central monitoring facility at the metro control room;

• Five monitoring facilities at the CCTV control rooms of the five local authorities.

• Two police stations are also linked to the system giving them access to 550 cameras.

• The scheme allows the tracking of suspects across the whole of the Tyne and Wear area.

Atkins worked on a tight deadline with Nexus (the Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Authority), Metro and the main contractor SDA Protec. Careful co-ordination was needed to ensure sub contractors were on site at correct times to tie in with the restrictions of a railway.

DVR makes things easy

Bristol-based installers and central monitoring station provider, Private Security Services, has overhauled security at the UK head offices of Friends Provident, the financial services group.

The installer had previously upgraded security to a digital PC-based surveillance system at the Friends Provident offices in Exeter, but compatibility problems were experienced when replacing old mono PTZ cameras with a new colour dome system.

Bob Castle, systems consultant at Private Security said: “The digital system struggled to record colour images from the new cameras. It was hit and miss whether they captured full colour or black and white pictures during the day – with obvious implications for the quality of footage captured.

“Having solved the problem using a Dedicated Micros DS2 digital recorder, we were subsequently asked to specify and install a new system at the Salisbury offices.”

Three DS2 digital video recorders control 27 cameras located around the building perimeters and car parks – including three Dennard 2050 dome cameras and 21 fixed cameras. The system spans three buildings – two administrative centres and a unit about two miles away.

Said Castle: “Management at Friends Provident wanted the latest solution in an easy-use format which wouldn’t baffle their security guards with complicated new technology. This is why we specified the DS2.”

Car park secured

The IVS Group, has just completed a £100k project to achieve Secure Car Park status for the St Martins Gate multi story car park in Worcester.

The project involved installing over 50 static CCTV cameras throughout the car park. All images at the 796-space car park are now digitally recorded 24/7 from the 50 cameras positioned in prime locations. Footage is relayed to a central control room within the police station.

Furthest southerly camera?

Universal Security (UK) Ltd, based in Plymouth, has installed probably the furthest camera south in the UK.

The project entailed installing a fully functional day/night dome camera on a six meter fixed column to the walkway around the Control Tower at St Just Airfield, Penzance. The airfield, operated by Isle of Scilly Steamship Company, needed the update of their camera system to ensure they continued to meet the Civil Aviation Authority guidelines.

The install was completed in two days and involved manhandling the 25 stone tower from ground level up into position during high winds.

Chris Pearson, Air Traffic Controller said: “ The engineers were efficient and worked well as a team producing a very good standard of work and a quality system”.

Mailbox gets CCTV delivery

Reliance Hi Tech has installed a CCTV system at the new BBC studios in the prestigious Mailbox building in Birmingham. The planned move by the BBC, from its existing Midlands studios at Pebble Mill to the new building sees the continuation of a long standing relationship between the organisation and CCTV manufacturer Pelco.

Reliance installed Pelco 200 series CCTV cameras within the new studios, covering both the public and reception areas, whilst a Pelco DX 9000 digital recording system is being used by the BBC to record images from all 35 cameras.

This new system will monitor all equipment being installed as the BBC undertakes a 12 month move into the modern studio complex which will house over 1,200 staff.

Pelco DX9000 digital recording systems are also used at BBC Television Centre, Bush House and Broadcasting House in London as well as at the principle BBC World Service building and BBC Northern Ireland in Belfast. DX9000 and Esprit ptz camera systems have also been installed at the BBC’s Broadcast Centre at the White City complex.

Safety centre upgrades

Enfield Public Safety Centre, in north London, has specified the Universal Video Management System from PI Vision as part of a major upgrade from analogue to digital recording.

The centre has been built as part of a £2.5 million CCTV and alarms monitoring project that will eventually see signals being brought in from schools, hospitals and other civic buildings.

Signals from CCTV are brought back via fibre optic links. The council has invested over £300,000 installing an additional ten miles of cabling in the surrounding area.

Where possible, the centre will also tap into existing communications links that are owned by government bodies and train operating companies.

Smart locks for luxury hotel

NT Security has installed 34 Miwa AL5H ‘Dual Technology’ smart locks and a KFDS encoder system at the Prestonfield Hotel, Edinburgh.

Subject of a £2.5m restoration, Prestonfield is a 17th century house in the city centre and internationally recognised as one of Scotland’s best privately owned hotels.

For guestroom security, distributor NT Security installed Miwa’s AL5H ‘Dual Technology’ electronic smart card lock.

NT Security Technical Manager, Doug Edge said: “The Miwa AL5H, with smart card capability, unlocks the potential for smart card applications tomorrow as hotels move forwards from magnetic cards to smart chip and processor smart cards.”

Sports gear protected

Consultants and installers Integrated Electronic Security (IES) have carried out a major security overhaul at leading sportswear retailers, JD Sports. IES specified a digitally networked system based on Dedicated Micros’ DS2 multiplexers and Dennard dome cameras at some of the group’s 380 stores.

AIan Baker at IES said: “The CCTV system is designed to link in to the client’s garment tagging devices. If tagged goods are taken through the security barrier, the in-store alarm is triggered and the digital images stored within the hard disk recorder.” Images can then be viewed remotely from the company’s Security Remote Monitoring Control Centre.

Tim Edwards at JD Sports said: “Integrating CCTV monitoring with our garment tagging system ensures immediate verification, so that we don’t compromise on speed of response.” The system is also being used to visually verify intruder and PA alarms and to track stock movement in the goods-in department.