With over 550 retail outlets worldwide, OBI is a leading brand in the building and DIY sector across Europe. Founded in Germany 40 years ago, the company now employs around 38,000 staff. OBI began its international expansion in Italy in 1991 and now employs over 1,700 staff across 47 stores with floor spaces ranging from 2,000 to 7,000 square metres, and a total floor space of 135,000 square metres. In 2009, OBI welcomed over 11 million customers through its doors.
With over 550 retail outlets worldwide, OBI is a leading brand in the building and DIY sector across Europe. Founded in Germany 40 years ago, the company now employs around 38,000 staff. OBI began its international expansion in Italy in 1991 and now employs over 1,700 staff across 47 stores with floor spaces ranging from 2,000 to 7,000 square metres, and a total floor space of 135,000 square metres. In 2009, OBI welcomed over 11 million customers through its doors.
Thanks to a positive response from Italian consumers, the OBI Group is successful in achieving its objective to cater for every aspect of home improvement at affordable prices for customers who enjoy putting their skills and creativity to work completing DIY projects in their spare time.
Over the years, OBI has always invested effectively in physical security with intruder alarm and video surveillance systems. With the experience OBI has gained in security and its own technical expertise, Inres, the division of the group which manages OBI's security requirements, recognised the opportunity to improve and optimise OBI's security procedures using the latest technologies on the market. Inres' vision was to integrate intrusion detection and video surveillance in the OBI stores and to simplify operation and management with one user interface.
The new solution needed to take into account OBI's existing security systems to minimise new investment and provide a solution suitable for its current and future requirements. It would be implemented in all stores throughout Italy, both in new buildings and during the renovation of existing buildings.
To achieve this, OBI decided that it required a security system that would allow the integration of intrusion and video surveillance functions to deliver a more powerful and flexible solution. OBI also required a flexible access control system that could be integrated with the security system so that one swipe card could be used for both the access control and intrusion functions.
OBI defined that the integration software must provide a simple, intuitive yet comprehensive graphical user interface, possibly using "touch screen" technology, to enable store managers to use the interlinked and complex security system quickly and easily. This graphical user interface was to be located in the main information and control centre located in the reception area of every store.