Video servers from Axis Communications, the global leader in network video, have been deployed by security installer King Communications (working in partnership with security ADI-Gardiner) to help modernise The Lighthouse's CCTV system and protect some of Scotland's finest design treasures.
A total of four AXIS 241Q Video Servers have been used to convert analogue images (from the 16 existing cameras already positioned throughout the six-floor building) into digital video streams which are then stored, monitored and managed via The Lighthouse's local area network.
The new system now stores 26 days of digital images on a Milestone Professional video management system which is installed on a U rack mounted server offering two Tera Bytes (TB) of storage. King Communications has also integrated an external storage device providing a further TB of storage on demand. The whole system took less than a week to install and test.
The Lighthouse, formerly the Glasgow Herald newspaper building, was designed by Charles Rene Mackintosh himself more than 100 years ago and now serves as the Scottish national centre for architecture and design. As such it holds some of Mackintosh's most prized pieces of work including one of his chairs, which is reputed to be worth more than a quarter of a million pounds alone.
Within weeks of installation, the new system has already proved its worth following a security incident. The Lighthouse's IT manager, Angus Stewart, explained, "We were able to very quickly locate relevant images by searching on sequences of motion-triggered video by date and time. We were then able to send AVI files of these images, together with relevant sections of the Milestone database, which enabled the police to zoom in and out and sharpen up the viewing of recorded images. The police were very impressed with both the quality of what they received from us and the functionality that we provided them with to assist their analysis of the video."
Martyn King, managing director, King Communications, summarised, "We were able to provide The Lighthouse with a very comprehensive upgrade to their existing surveillance system without throwing out their existing CCTV infrastructure and whilst using the building's already well-specified network infrastructure. The solution they now have offers an easy upgrade path to full IP-Surveillance and is both highly scalable and effective today. Options like remote monitoring via a PDA are now very easy to implement if The Lighthouse's management wants to increase security levels during specific exhibitions for example."
Stewart reinforced the value of the new system, "We hold exhibitions of works valued at thousands of pounds each and are now able to install additional cameras at key points looking over these works at very short notice. In terms of image quality and flexibility the system has already more than proved its worth."
Steve Gorski, managing director, Axis Communications (UK), commented, "The Lighthouse has clearly benefited from some of the benefits of IP-Surveillance in terms of functionality without significant expense and whilst keeping cabling and camera fitting works to a minimum which is clearly an important consideration when installing systems in a building of this significance and value."
