COE worked with Bradford's CCTV management team over several months to design and implement an IP-based digital video transmission network and digital recording solution for the several hundred cameras used in Bradford and the surrounding areas.
The existing COE-supplied analogue system was upgraded and enhanced with digital systems designed to free up transmission capacity and to ensure the highest possible quality recorded images are made available to the council, police and security services. This was completed within tight financial constraints by efficiently reusing the analogue technology and seamlessly integrating the analogue and digital systems.
Bradford's users are now able to search crime scenes and stored video much more efficiently than before using enhanced software and automatic video analysis of the recordings to spot movements and unusual events. Recordings can be downloaded to Home Office approved DVDs for use as evidence in court.
Andrew Wallace, COE's Chief Executive, said: "COE has provided long-term support for Bradford and we were delighted to implement our latest technology for them. The ability to retrieve high quality video quickly and provide it to security agencies is a need we see in our customers worldwide. In the same week that COE systems are managing all Singapore underground's video surveillance of the meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), COE is delivering similar technologies to customers across the UK."
Phil Holmes, Bradford City CCTV Manager, said: "The transition from analogue to digital was quick and has provided dramatic improvements to our recording system whilst at the same time allowing us to consider further IP-based system expansion. COE provided in-depth design assistance and COE's X-Net systems integrated with the wired and wireless elements of our network. We are now ready for further expansion and able to provide much better evidence retrieval for our partners."