Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/31490
16 COMMERCIAL & SYSTEMS INTEGRATORS www.securitysystemsnews.com JANUARY 2011 SECURITY SYSTEMS NEWS Knight nabs big state job with new technology Texas integrator, Knight Security Systems says megapixel cams, H.264 create efficiencies for customer By Martha Entwistle DALLAS—Knight Security Systems this month is wrapping up a large-scale video surveillance project with the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS), which involved the installation of more than 3,200 megapixel cam- eras in 336 buildings on 12 campuses spread throughout the state. “The project included cameras, serv- ers, operating software, an end-to-end network infrastructure [and a three-year service contract]. We installed 35 miles of fiber optic cable on the campuses to connect the buildings together,” said Chris Hugman VP/executive project manager for Knight Security Systems. Part of the reason Knight Security won the $12 million contract, Hugman said, is because it proposed a scalable solution using newer technology, which saved money for the state agency. “The timing of the project allowed us to do a couple of Chris Hugman interesting things that benefited the state,” he said. “We used megapixel resolution cameras throughout. Secondly, we were able to incorporate the latest H.264 video encod- ing which gives better bandwidth efficiency and storage efficiency.” Knight won the project in the fall of 2009. “Even six months earlier this [H.264] was not a generally available technology for us. The result has been very good quality images on video with manageable network and storage Vector grows Continued from page 15 base for EAS.” How does one compete with a giant like ADT? It would be difficult to compete on price or product, he said. “What differentiates us is how we deliver from a service and installation standpoint. That’s what Vector is known for,” Fraser said. Henry Bros. Kratos deal Continued from page 15 approved by the court, will resolve all of the claims that were or could have been brought in the action, including all claims relating to the merger,” a statement said. The Henry Brothers’ statement notes that its Board of Directors still supports the merger. “HBE’s Board of Directors has not withdrawn, changed or otherwise modified its unanimous recommendation in favor of the pro- posed merger with Kratos.” During the go-shop period, HBE’s financial advisor, Imperial Capital, contacted 117 potential transaction partners “at the request of and on behalf of HBE.” Of those, 11 parties went further in the process, entering into confiden- tiality agreements, and were allowed to review non-public information about HBE, according to an HBE statement. SSN requirements. The customer has been very pleased with the clarity and performance.” Image quality was important to this customer, Hugman said. Early in 2009, the state Legislature mandated that DADS install a video surveillance system to ensure that residents of these 12 campuses, who include individuals with physical, mental and emotional handicaps, were being well treated. Knight used IQInvision cameras, OnSSI video manage- ment software, Zyxel network switches and Dell Servers to provide the interactive video-monitoring interface. “In all, our entire design was comprised of only twelve separate components,” Hugman noted. How do the cameras and H.264 compression standard save money? “Using megapixel cameras we were able to use fewer cameras to cover more space,” Hugman said. “H.264 really comes into play on the network and sys- tem infrastructure. You can put more cameras on a single gigabit link to head end as an example.” In addition, the state wants to maintain an extended video archive and “H.264 allows them to do that without exorbitant storage capacity.” Each campus has its own independent system architecture with a monitoring room, and the number of buildings on each campus ranges from six to 62, and the number of cameras in each building ranges from one to more than 70 in one building. “So we had to have an architecture that was very scal- He explained the Manassas, Va. office is “We don’t rely on branches to do national accounts work.” —Gary Fraser, Vector the main hub for Vector’s national accounts business. It also has “oper- ations people in remote offices around the coun- try. What’s different is that they are national accounts offices [called SpaRPoint offices] as opposed to com- pany branches. We don’t rely on branches to do national accounts work.” SSN able to meet the requirements of each campus and having it come back to the head end,” Hugman said. The head end or the campus server rooms house from one to nine servers that record the video and serve it to the security monitoring rooms on each campus. The OnSSI Ocularis VMS is interactive and includes maps. The security personnel “can change the view, look at and review recorded video and export video to a disk if they need to make a permanent record.” Knight is monitoring the health of the security system 24/7 through its SecurePlan Support Center, a service Knight has provided in the past, but one that was upgraded for this project. “We’ve done some remote notification in the past, but now we’ve taken it to a different level,” he said. “We’re using SNMP network management tools with our own broad- band connection into the system, separate from the state network, and that’s how we’re able to monitor the health and performance of the system,” Hugman explained. “Network-based video surveillance is clearly growing in popularity, and we’re seeing clients move toward that very rapidly.” With this project under its belt, Hugman said, Knight is well positioned to leverage the lessons learned from this installation, the volume discounts it gained with vendors, and the use of the technology itself in future jobs. All this and upgrading its Secure Plan Support Center “has made us better, and our customers are the beneficiaries of that,” Hugman said. SSN ASG buys Continued from page 1 “We want to double the size of ASG’s Oklahoma market organically within three to five years,” he said. Because the TnT brand is so well known in the area, ASG will take its time rebrand- ing. The former owner of TnT is retiring, but all of the employees will stay with the company. ASG expects to hire additional employees as it launches commercial offer- ings in early 2011. It has been more than a year since ASG made an acquisition of this size. “In 2010, we purposely took our time. We slowed down on acquisitions and we continued to build out our infrastructure,” Nuccio said. However, he characterized ASG’s acquisition pipeline for 201l as robust. ASG VP of sales and marketing Bob Ryan said ASG is ready for “hyper growth” in Oklahoma and elsewhere. Acquisition Funding Services advised the seller on the deal. 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