"Milestone is still so easy to use, even with upgrades: we put up a new server, installed the software, loaded the DLK, and we were done. I don't see how it could get any easier." - Steve Dickerson, Manager of Academic Computing at Wichita State University in Kansas
Challenges: An old VCR tape surveillance system functioned very poorly and was time consuming. The Wichita State University Main Campus has two computer labs with 75 workstations, generally open till 10 pm. 90% of their security issues occurred when the public came in to use the labs. Theft, vandfalism and minor incidences of misbehaviour are the main problem to monitor and control. The West Campus is across town, with additional facilities to keep track of, the Koch Arena was refurbished and presented the typical crowd control issues to control, while the National Institute for Aviation Research (NIAR) division is located in the Raytheon complex in another part of town. Issues with a patron from the community also cropped up - one person was using the Internet to run a side business!
Solution: Milestone XProtect Enterprise IP video management software is the core surveillance platform. The Main Campus labs use Axis video servers with Panasonic analogue cameras and some newer Axis network cameras. The West Campus is using Axis cameras indoors and IQinVision megapixel cameras in the parking lots. The School of Art Design is also using Axis cameras with XProtect Basis+ to protect their computers, and the NIAR facility is using Milestone to monitor their tests. ISG Technology Inc., a Certified Milestone Partner, Axis partner and Cisco partner, assists WSU with their IT and surveillance needs.
Advantages: University locations that are spread out geographically are monitored both centrally and locally with a solution that is remarkably easy to install, operate, maintain and scale over time. Temporary events can be covered and new buildings easily added. Remote access allows managers to keep track of activities from home during off hours, too. The surveillance works for more than just security: it is a managerial tool and also used for quality control in the aviation test facilities. The cameras act as prevention, and the archived video is quickly searchable and exportable to share with campus police: a number of incidences have been resolved using the video evidence in court.
Wichita State University has over 14,000 students with an average age in the upper 20s. It is a metropolitan university that is community-based, with many students already working and getting degrees at the same time. Academics include Engineering, Business, and the Fine Arts, with a specialty in aviation, thanks to the local influence of that industry (Raytheon, Airbus, Boeing, Cessna). WSU sponsors huge sports programs, especially basketball and baseball. The university is closely tied to the community with its activities, both academically and culturally. Building the West Campus helped the institution reach out even more to develop that interaction.
Steve Dickerson, Manager of Academic Computing in the University Computing & Telecommunications Services department (UCATS), is the person who originally adopted Milestone software here. He upgraded to the digital approach from an old VCR system in 2001, and has found it very easy to upgrade to new versions of XProtect since. The surveillance was first used in the PC labs and later expanded with the newly-built West Campus, the Koch Arena renovation, and the aviation test site across town in Raytheon's buildings. WSU's base site license for XPE is in place for other departments to make use of by simply purchasing additional camera licenses.
Dickerson selects the IT equipment that is used in the university, particularly in the computer labs, and is interested in maintaining their security to protect those investments from theft and vandalism.
"We got in touch with ISG Tech for supplying some computers and started talking about getting some network surveillance, too. When I first got here in 2000, we'd had a security incident in the PC lab and we only had a VCR then. It was an old system where you could only see one camera at a time with almost three minutes between each view, so there was plenty of time to steal something unseen. I took the VCR to be repaired and was told that cleaning had to be done every 10 hours and the head replaced every 1000, so I knew there had to be a better way; I found Milestone on the internet and what attracted me was that it's easy to use."
Dickerson recalls that they had an Axis server for the four Panasonic analogue cameras they had at that time. "I found an old PC, installed the Milestone software (then called Surveillance Pro), put the cameras on the network and we were rolling! We threw away the old CCTV circuitry, the VCR and tapes, and now we have a more streamlined network solution. We've since upgraded the software and expanded its use to other buildings."
"The surveillance these days works well as a deterrent but also as a resource to search, analyse and resolve any incidences after the fact. I also use it as a managerial tool to see when the labs are opened and closed. If there are problems with anyone not wanting to show their access card or if someone gets angry, we can look it up to show what happened and help train the managers in how to handle the situation better, not stand too close and escalate the matter, or take it out in the hall," explains Dickerson. "Using it for this overview and managerial review showed me that the labs were not being used properly at night when it used to be open to the public 24 hours - it was more of a sleep station at night with folks coming in to line up the chairs to make a bed!"
Evidence for the police
"The campus police were very interested in the new surveillance system because we had several incidents with theft in the labs and we were able to catch them with the video. We could see one guy going up and down the aisles, looking, just waiting for his chance to steal bags. It only took about 15 minutes: he stole a book bag with valuable contents, so it was quite serious. It is so easy to get the evidence with Milestone: I produced a CD with video the police used as evidence to get that guy."
They also caught another wrongdoer who sat behind other people, waiting for someone to leave who forgot to sign off. He then sat down and sent threatening emails to a professor.
"We could trace the email to the person whose address it was, who knew nothing about it, so the video gave us the visual information from the lab. That was gratifying to resolve. I was able to find it right away by the date of the emails," says Dickerson.
Expansions to West Campus, Sports Arena and more
Once the police learned about the system, the idea took hold: it was a solution that could be core to the entire campus security. They expanded the system to cover the new campus on the West side of town.
"When we built that, budget was allocated for the Milestone IP video solution and we put in as many cameras as we could all over the place, in the hallways and computer rooms," says Dickerson.
The West Campus is more non-traditional with flexible hours for classes on a part-time basis. There are a number of high schools in the area whose students can also take classes at that location. WSU has a security guard and authority figures walking the area all the time, too.
Two IQEye 501 megapixel cameras from IQinVision were added in the West Campus parking lot entrances for getting good coverage, like facial recognition.
"We can zoom in to see any details. I get unbelievable images there - also from the Axis 210A and 211 models. The Koch Arena setup, with Axis 231 cameras on the huge ceiling scoreboard, gives us great visibility there. I can go to those camera views, zoom in to look at the crowd, and see what soda name is on a can in someone's hand!" exclaims Dickerson. "We do test other cameras, but we've stuck mostly with the Axis cameras: I've never had any situations with an Axis camera - they're just load up and go. ISG helps us to know what's best in each environment."
At the main campus PC labs, the cameras are in full live operation when the computer labs are open, whereas on the West Campus the cameras record based on motion detection, which saves lots of disk space.
"There's no issue on bandwidth," attests Dickerson. "We're a Microsoft platform institution and it was important for me to standardize our systems for more efficient maintenance, keeping everything up and running."
The word is out - the mind set is changed: people know the surveillance is there. NIAR learned about it and asked to come on board with the system, too, where they manage their own local system for monitoring aviation testing. They have patrons who have donated to the school, and can give them access to see what is going on - so those cameras are getting very special use.
Very Easy Administration and Maintenance
"I'm an IT person and never had any experience with surveillance, so when we switched from the old VCR to the digital approach, the first time I installed the Milestone software and connected it to the cameras, I was shocked - it seemed too easy! Within an hour I had it working with four camera images in view," confirms Dickerson. "When I get new cameras and put the MAC address in the Milestone software, they appear on the screen right away - that's so easy for me to administer."
"Setting up schedules is very easy in Milestone, too. If there's a change for holidays or any other reason, I can shut off some cameras during a week break, for example. They just run in the background until someone calls with an issue, which is so easy to find: I just pull up the video by the date and timeline browser. It's really fast," he says.
Dickerson also had to figure out camera locations and their use of the system, how to set it up and how much storage it would take. "That's why I use partners like ISG. They came over about our IT needs and could talk about the surveillance cameras, too, sharing their expertise."
WSU had started the first Milestone system in 2001 using a standard PC that was lying around, but the Executive Director has since approved a dedicated 450-gigabyte hard drive that is protected in the server room.
"Milestone is still so easy to use - even the upgrades: we put up the new server, installed the software, loaded the DLK, and we were done. I don't see how it could get any easier," he smiles. "On a couple of incidences when we've had to change computers or hard drives, what I've done is just copy the current database and let it start up on its own - just re-name it and start up the Milestone software. It's just so easy to use."
Dickerson describes the good technical support: "For the couple of issues I've had like MAC addresses I've had to delete or things like that, I just emailed to Milestone Support - I don't know where it's going, US or HQ in Denmark - but I always get my answer back really fast and it's always what I need. There's a lot more to the software than I'm using, but it's nice to know I can grow with it."
XProtect's remote access is a welcome functionality. Dickerson likes the web access to the surveillance system, to check cameras from home. There are instances when he needs to see what is going on, if he is depending on someone else to close the labs - he just looks at the camera views to see if the lights are out, etc.
Fast Upgrades for New Features and Ongoing Scalability
WSU upgraded straight from the old Milestone Surveillance Pro product up to XProtect Enterprise in 2006. Even with such a new version of the software - after 5 years of development - everything was recognizable and the process was the same.
"To me it was amazing - that upgrade took maybe only an hour and a half in all. The look and Graphical User Interface was way better along with more options for displaying, recalling and setting up the camera schedules," states Dickerson. "We have a Product Maintenance Agreement so we can always upgrade to new versions of the software. I try to keep up. I'm hoping to expand into other areas around campus that would be well served with this system, too."
To record special events, they simply put up a camera to record it. Dickerson also relates an incident with someone destroying the bathrooms, plugging up the plumbing so they ran over. He quickly installed a ceiling camera, recorded them going into those rooms and caught them.
"The pricing is such that it's easy for me to add new network cameras and scale up on the Milestone platform," says Dickerson.
Good Overview for Being in Control
Steve Dickerson administers the surveillance system campus-wide. From his Main Campus office, he can see which cameras have failed and need attention - most all of which were caused by power outages during storms. He likes being in control and having the overview.
"Word has gotten around about the system and we've given access to the campus police on both the Main and West Campus to look at it. I let them see what they need to see, I can customize the views and users individually by location, labelled to make it easy to know which hallway we're looking at - they can tend to look the same!" he comments.
What also impressed him with XProtect Enterprise was when someone wanted him to check video on someone unusual walking around the West Campus: "I could pull up multiple cameras from that location and watch the person walking through one view into the next, tracking them. That was kind of fun!"
"I've never had any problems with the system," concludes Steve Dickerson.
