For small and medium enterprises, tight budgets have meant that investment in technology has been very cautious; with business owners reluctant to invest unless ROI can be achieved quickly.
Security and CCTV is one area that businesses acutely recognise as necessary in order to protect valuable assets, yet typically small businesses are not always likely to have dedicated security officers in place.
With this in mind, it is increasingly important for SMEs to find cost-effective ways of deploying and monitoring surveillance systems
1. Focus on image quality
A focus on achieving optimum image quality is particularly important for a small business. To satisfactorily protect assets, identify crime or accidents, and address any similar safety or security issues, one good image is more valuable than 25 blurry ones.
Utilising a system which provides VGA or 1.3 megapixel resolutions should be considered a minimum, and in general, systems which capture 5-6 frames per second will provide sufficient speed, while ensuring that storage costs are kept low for businesses which may have less capacity to archive data.
2. Integration with other systems
Many SMEs will wish to incorporate other security and safety measures such as alarms and other access controls alongside CCTV systems.
Integrating these different systems together will prove to be a worthwhile method of achieving smart security, as the resulting system would mean that should one alarm be triggered, the associated CCTV footage could be located and analysed with ease.
3. Remote access to cameras and data
It is now possible to access CCTV footage from a number of remote or mobile locations using networked systems.
With smartphones increasingly gaining in popularity, a smartphone client should be considered as essential for quick access to CCTV footage on-the-go.
For the SME, mobile surveillance solutions, which provide flexibility and ease-of-use give SMEs the freedom to manage video surveillance and security systems wherever the CCTV operator may be, avoiding the need to be tied to one location to keep the building secure.
This flexibility fits seamlessly into everyday working practices, boosting efficiency and security across the business.
4. Easy maintainability and reliability
Small businesses, which may not have a dedicated CCTV operator, shouldn’t need to worry about the data-to-day operation of surveillance systems.
A reliable CCTV solution provider offering the latest hardware in a well designed robust system should be chosen to ensure adequate reliability.
Future needs should also be considered: although some features such as scalability tools may not be used in the first instance, having these available will help to ensure the long term ROI, and that the needs of the organisation can be met as the business grows.
Free software should be avoided, as it is important to choose a vendor that will provide good long term support, which meet expectations of the business.
5. Utilize “smart” technology
Feature rich systems incorporating intelligent cameras and technology help to focus recording on events that are important.
For example, smart motion detection can initialize recording only when motion is detected in specific areas, or alternatively, when something remains static for too long. This could send out reports on potentially suspicious behaviour, such as movement within a small office at night.
This brings about great business benefits for SMEs, reducing both cost of storage and the time spent searching through videos to find specific clips, and instead only records real threats, improving efficiency and further streamlining the surveillance process.