Tag Archives: Integrated

Raytec,the lighting solution for CCTV

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About the Raytec lighting system

Raytec supply state-of-the-art lighting systems, basically they have pitched their product as an energy saving method of illuminating areas covered by CCTV cameras. They use energy efficient LED lighting technology that can either be white light of infra-red.

Energy saving

By using LED lighting, cost savings can be quite dramatic, cameras nowadays need very little light to work effectively, so, although the light given off is not as bright as a traditional halogen light, it is still highly effective and can also be used as working light to. We did notice that if you look directly at these lights they can be blinding,  so we do not recommend this!

So how much can it save?

A recent study estimated  that an organisation using 200 old-style CCTV lights will save at least £90,000 per year by switching to Raytec LED technology. This is based upon 4,400 hours usage per year at 10p kw/hr; The above cost saving also takes into account bulb changes including the labour involved  to change existing halogen light bulbs and fittings.

How often will the bulbs need changing?

Well, Raytec have proved that their lights have a longer life cycle than an ordinary halogen. Not surprising really as halogen bulbs tend to be highly volatile and often burn out the nipples that hold the bulb in place when they blow. Halogens are generally poorly manufactured (therefore the low cost) and rust making them very difficult to get into to change the bulb if they have been up on a wall for a number of years. Better reliability means of course when a critical situation arises ie a break in or an accident the lights are more likely to be working and the incident caught on CCTV .

Lighting Amnesty

Raytec are currently promoting a “Lighting Amnesty”  the hope is end users and CCTV providers alike will be encouraged to upgrade to be more energy efficient and of course gain more reliability.

Cost.

Inevitably all things come down to cost. To be fair the Raytec illuminator is not cheap by any stretch of the imagination. Security companies have struggled purely on price to integrate this product and sell to end users and get Raytec lighting up on the wall. Lead times are poor as well. When you order the product 6 weeks is not unusual. So if Raytec are to see more of their product sold the above must be addressed

Can we get integrated CCTV solutions using this product?

Installers need this product. It will eventually be the only realistic way to light a site but competitors may take a good share of the market if they are able to replicate the LED solution at a cheaper price without infringing on any patents.

Video sphere VMS software

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Why VMS ?

There are many benefits being touted about Video sphere VMS software.The main one we can see is the ability to support so many applications and be so flexible when trying to design a hybrid CCTV system.

The framework to have a scalable IP CCTV solution.

Video sphere can support small, medium and large applications that need IP CCTV solutions but need to consider legacy analogue devices . By using codecs all analogue camera equipment can be converted to IP CCTV cameras and integrated into the VMS framework. Video streaming of high frame rates up to 256 IP or converted analogue cameras per server. Ultimately by correctly configuring the network servers VMS can support thousands of cameras across a company group.

MPEG4 and H.264.

Both the above video compression formats are supported by VMS as is multiple PTZ IP cameras and video sphere HD IP solutions. As we mentioned before codecs in the form of Edge encoders are used to introduce analogue cameras in to the overall solution and this then enables existing equipment to run analytics that make these cameras intelligent this has to be considered a valuable upgrade benefit.

Alarm switching.

An important part of all IP solutions is the ability to support alarm switching to follow analytic generated alarms. VMS does this and can also be integrated to data sources such as ATM and POS transactions.

Conclusion.

VMS is a powerful piece of software , designed to be future proofed and has many features and benefits that will suit designers of IP camera solutions and integrated CCTV. It does need a robust server to work in unison with it that can back up recorded images effectively and this does add to the cost. However VMS does offer the maximum flexibility and has many benefits over black box solutions that ultimately will become a thing of the past over time.


Integrated IP intruder alarm solutions

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Integrated IP intruder alarm solutions

This site is all about saving money. Sometimes you do have to spend a little to save a lot;  This is defiantly the case when dealing with intruder alarms on multiple sites.

A facility Manager’s utopia?

So how can IP and integrated security help here? Facility mangers will be very familiar with the pitfalls of dealing with multiple sites looked after by several different alarm companies.

Integrate , make things simple !

The hassle of dealing with different service departments and invoices can often be confusing. |Facility managers need one one point of contact in order to control their costs.

Monitoring

Another issue is monitoring. Your sites may use dualcom, Redcare, Redcare Gsm or digicom. For those people who have limited knowledge of how all these different technologies work can be a costly minefield.

So what is the solution ?  It’s quite simple, standardize.

Standardize

How does it work? You need to consider an IP communication platform to signal alarms to the central station and a central PC within your own organisation for administration of codes and fault monitoring.

Upgrade to integrated security.

Firstly you will need to change the control panel on  all your sites. This is going to cost money but some alarm companies may do this for a very good price in order to secure your long term business.  Secondly by using an IP platform such as Emizon you will find some very good savings to be made on your annual monitoring costs. Typically £150 per site per annum.

Networked

The alarm panels will also report to your server and can be networked so that you the facility manager will know what is happening with each panel.  This takes the need away to rely on a service engineers report and invariably the charges that will accompany this call out. The software is simple to master and gives back control to the end user.

So by integrating all your sites together,  long term savings will be inevitable.

Please feel free to contact us for more detail.

What is an integrated security system?

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Integration

An integrated system is generally one that will link together two or more different types of security on your site. These will generally be:

  • CCTV
  • REMOTE MONITORING
  • ACCESS CONTROL
  • INTRUDER ALARM
  • GATES AND BARRIERS
  • INTERCOM ENTRY SYSTEMS
  • NUMBERPLATE RECOGNITION SYSTEMS ..ANPR
  • FIRE ALARMS
  • TIME AND ATTENDANCE
  • PAYROLL

Benefits

Obviously once integrated, all the above systems together can give your organisation huge benefits. The information at your finger tips can help with many issues ranging from increased security, cost savings through staff streamlining and health and safety.

Many large organisations have compatible systems in many different locations linked together on networks across the world.

The scale of these systems is highly flexible however and they are designed so no job is either too big or too small.

Hybrid CCTV

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Legacy equipment.

Where legacy CCTV equipment cannot be removed due to cost implications manufacturers are now coming up with some ingenious solutions in order to accommodate both the past the present and the future.

These are called hybrid network surveillance servers and combine analogue and IP cameras into a single box solution.

This is of course a huge market place and one many facility managers and security managers are looking into with much enthusiasm.

So this is where the hybrid recorder fits in and can cleverly be incorporated into the IT budget or security budget depending on which is the healthier at the time.

So how does it work?

Existing coaxial camera’s are simply reconnected in the usual way to the new recorder, nothing clever here, but by using existing networks within or outside the facility new IP cameras can also be hung off the same unit. This opens up possibilities of connecting IP cameras from remote sites or from areas previously inaccessible or financially un-viable to a normal coaxial cable run. Areas served by wireless IP networks are also now easily connected where surveillance would have been considered impossible before.

Web browsers.

Remote access via web browsers gives huge flexibility to view and control systems from anywhere and means dedicated on site staff may not be required, initiating big cost savings.

These units are becoming very flexible to meet a rapidly changing market place. They need to record, transmit, trip outputs and need to be extremely reliable. If you want to ensure you buy a good unit make sure it is not the cheapest and make sure it offers a five year warranty.

Help.

Our aim is to help and advise you through this exciting new field of CCTVsurveillance, but don’t hesitate to contact us for further more detailed information