Singapore Institution Deploys Mobotix Cameras
The Republic Polytechnic (RP) in Singapore is a post-secondary institute established in August 2002. All students and staff have notebook computers that are connected with the campus network via wireless LAN.
The RP built a mobile computer infrastructure in order to implement its concept of the paperless campus. Using their computers and the connection to the wireless networks, staff and students have everything they need to do all their work. Numerous network cameras supplied by German manufacturer Mobotix have been part of this high-tech environment. The cameras are used for security and administration tasks and were easily integrated into the existing network infrastructure.
Since the RP has been designed to hold up to 13,000 students in the future, the administration has been looking for ways to reduce the staff needed to monitor laboratories, special areas and sports facilities. In addition, the RP was also interested in increasing on-campus security. In order to meet these goals, the administration decided to have network cameras installed.
The cameras were installed to monitor laboratories, the student cafeteria, sports facilities, the main entrance, service area and library. The labs were outfitted with cameras primarily to reduce staffing requirements, while increased security was the main reason for having the cameras in other areas.
Because the Mobotix solution is software driven, the cameras can be easily upgraded at no additional cost to provide better features and software enhancements. Another benefit was the high degree of user convenience and the fact that this solution requires no additional back-end software — not even on the FTP server.
A total of 75 network cameras were installed, which all connect to the RP's fiber-optic LAN backbone. The recorded image data is transmitted in encrypted form and stored externally on the RP's file server with a NAS storage capacity of up to two terabytes. Staff can control and configure the system for event-controlled or time-controlled recording via a central management console without requiring any special training. Each camera, for example, can be set individually to record a specific time before and after events, including sound from the camera's microphone.
Upon events, the cameras send emails with attached video clips. To prevent unnecessary event emails, the cameras are using the built-in weekly schedules to report incidents only during off hours. The weekly program also handles holidays and specific times of day. Because the images are already compressed in the camera, the network load caused by the transmission is very low.
Grand Rapids Community College Picks Up Ingersoll Rand's Hand Geometry readers
Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) in Michigan serves nearly 22,000 full- and part-time students in an eight-block campus located in the heart of its city's downtown. With the challenges presented by a metropolitan location, complex demographics, a large number of public buildings and a high level of movement, security is a natural and ongoing area of concern for the college community.
Of particular interest were the main computer data center and the cashier's office, where substantial amounts of cash are handled. Scott Martin, of GRCC's facilities department, said “Because we had a number of specific issues at play, the board of trustees asked us to investigate enhanced security measures. The first step in that initiative was to determine what access level and credentials were needed.”
The card access system in place at the campus did not provide critical areas with sufficient protection against potential theft of data and resources or vandalism. One problem was that cards were easy to pass from one person to another, and lost cards could be misused. To overcome these obstacles, GRCC had previously migrated to a one-card system, using the cards for parking and point-of-sale purchases as well as door security.
While that product is sufficient for those applications, a higher level of security was needed for the data center and financial areas. GRCC selected Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies, utilizing field-proven hand geometry technology so only authorized people can gain entrance to critical areas. Each hand geometry reader is a complete door controller that provides door lock operation, request for exit and alarm monitoring. All biometric data and decisionmaking capabilities reside locally to ensure that the doors are secure and will continue to operate properly even if all communications to the main access control computer are lost.
GRCC now has three readers deployed to protect data and finance areas. The readers are integrated into the building's security network, which includes door position sensors, motion sensors and cameras, and the entire system is easy to operate remotely. “We can do everything from a laptop, controlling the doors and monitoring activity,” Martin said.
Audit trails provide empirical data and information needed to investigate problems that may occur within the secure areas. The hand geometry readers offer the protection of dual credentials, using both the biometric hand characteristics and a PIN number.