By any measure the GB pound 114 million Millennium Point, situated in the heart of Birmingham, is an impressive flagship development and, indeed, the largest Millennium Project to have been realised outside of London. It opened in September 2001 on time and within budget (the funding having included GB pound 50 million of Millennium Commission lottery monies and GB pound 25.6 million from the European Regional Development Fund).
Created specifically to encourage interest in science, technology and education in the region, Millennium Point is now home to the innovative Thinktank, Birmingham’s award-winning Science Museum featuring a state-of-the-art Planetarium. Millennium Point also plays host to the region’s lone IMAX cinema and a number of educational establishments catering for thousands of students – all of them with a strong focus on technology and the performing arts.
Unfortunately, the existing tape-based analogue surveillance solution for Millennium Point was simply not providing the performance required for such a large scale and varied site. As a result, the decision was taken by the management team to dramatically enhance CCTV capabilities. The outcome? A hybrid solution more in keeping with the innovative nature of other aspects of operations at the Point.
Following sage advice from consultant Cogent (fm) Solutions, a comprehensive range of Dedicated Micros NetVu Connected CCTV solutions was installed by DM Fusion member Custom Technology Solutions. These include the Pick-a-Point digital matrix (in conjunction with integrator BBV) which is ideally suited to large or multiple sites, seamlessly bringing together CCTV system components within the Control room environment. There are also eight DVRs (the DS2s solution) and the very latest NetVu Console serving as a powerful remote viewing station.
Seeing the bigger picture
Mike Tolley from Cogent was brought into the project at an early stage and ultimately tasked with specifying the solution and its constituent elements.
Tolley told SMT Online: “Our involvement in the project came initially through a recommendation from the contract security company at Millennium Point, namely Corps Security. As the site is a charitable trust, it was stressed that the upgrade needed to be able to demonstrate value for money. There was a desire for guidance in terms of how this could be achieved.”
According to Tolley, in addition to having a favourable ROI (Return on Investment) the solution adopted was going to have to accommodate a number of specific end user requirements. “Corps Security stressed that they wanted a user-friendly system that could deliver high quality digital recording for every channel of video from the existing analogue DM uniplexers, VCRs and analogue matrix,” he stated, “with a retention period of 31 days. They also wanted a very high record rate for the spot monitors.”
In addition, there was a demonstrable requirement for a new touch screen mapping capability to replace the existing Petards solution. One that would integrate seamlessly with all cameras on site. “This should allow complete control of the total system including full functionality over the variety of domes and PTZs, and retain full access to dome menus.”
Other factors identified in Cogent’s initial discussions with Corps Security included the ability to support remote monitoring of external PTZ cameras at a nominated Control Centre with associated external alarms and audio, and a necessity for ensuring telemetry control over the legacy PTZ cameras. Additionally, there was a need to provide a remote security control location to view and operate a designated number of cameras without allowing full control of the overall system.
Unlocking of key deliverables
Added Tolley: “We also focused on the emergency evacuation plans, and Corps Security being able to retain access to the CCTV system away from the site’s main Control Room. The ability to have NetVu Observer viewing software from Dedicated Micros co-located at Corps Security’s regional Birmingham office would facilitate this so that a local site officer, with knowledge of the Millennium Point, could be re-deployed to the branch office and take full control of live, recorded images and telemetry of every camera on site as and when necessary.”
In terms of the final solution, Tolley believes that the infrastructure devised by Cogent meets these stringent requirements: “Focusing on the successful partnership between Dedicated Micros and BBV brought together all of the elements we needed to deliver an overall system solution. The NetVu Connected technology also unlocked key deliverables such as remote transmission of alarms to a central station, remote access and control over the system from a satellite office and the facility for the local West Midlands Police to use the NetVu Observer software.”
Once the technical specification was written by Cogent it was issued, for competitive tender, through Millennium Point/’s finance department to a list of local Dedicated Micros Fusion-approved installers. This ensured the involvement of companies from the area – for enhanced client support – and those with in-depth specialist knowledge of the specified solutions.
Sealed bids were received by the client, and these were opened and signed by another independent person to completely comply with the client’s financial auditing procedures. Cogent then evaluated the returned bids and submitted a full report to the client, enabling Millennium Point’s management to make an informed decision and appoint the successful contractor, the aforementioned Custom Technology Solutions.
Overcoming the installation challenges
According to Brett Evans from Custom Technology Solutions, a number of major challenges had to be overcome during the implementation stage of the surveillance upgrade.
“One of the key considerations was the fact that Millennium Point – and Thinktank – is an extremely popular location hosting thousands of visitors every day,” Evans told SMT Online. “Consequently, the switch to a new, enhanced surveillance solution was going to be a delicate process. For example, it was imperative that we were able to ensure any downtime of the CCTV system was kept to an absolute minimum. Crucially, during installation there was never a time when the whole system was taken off-line. Corps Security always had something in place to assist them in managing the site.”
Moving from an old analogue matrix (complete with multiplexers and VCRs for over 100 cameras, not to mention three different monitoring and control locations) necessitated careful planning by the Custom Technology Solutions team. The whole process was overseen by Mike Tolley, who was tasked with managing the project on behalf of Millennium Point.
“We literally changed the system over camera by camera, ensuring only one camera at any one time was ever off, and there was never a loss of recording of any camera for more than ten seconds,” continued Brett Evans. “Some of the camera configuration was also carried out when the site was closed, which meant that work could be completed when the system wasn’t so busy.”
Another element of the installation was the re-mapping of the whole CCTV system, with CAD plans provided to integrator BBV for configuration of the new mapping system as part of the Pick-a-Point digital matrix. Commented Evans: “With more than 100 cameras spread over six floors and covering inside and outside locations this was no simple task, but with the support of BBV we were able to make it happen.”
From an installation and costing point of view, a key advantage of adopting Pick-a-Point for Millennium Point is the fact that it’s able to replicate the simplicity of operation associated with a traditional analogue matrix by allowing control of multiple video servers or DVRs without the need for thousands of metres of cabling.
Other new systems specified for the project which greatly assisted the installation process include NetVu Console for the Technology Innovation Centre, which is part of the Millennium Point site. This consists of a traditional, ruggedised, PTZ-style keyboard from Dedicated Micros that can be readily connected to the network and a local monitor to provide a remote viewing point on the surveillance system.
Evans explained: “NetVu Console really came into its own when operators at one control location at the Technology Innovation Centre required access to 26 cameras out of over 100 that were spread across eight DVRs. Under normal circumstances, that’s something which could only be achieved using a large scale matrix and intricate programming. By using NetVu Console, a dedicated monitor and keyboard was quick and cost effective to set-up and deliver the requirement to view the 26 cameras without all of the usual complications.”
Evans is a strong advocate of Dedicated Micros’ NetVu Connected CCTV solutions. “We have an in-depth knowledge of DMs’ technology, and have used their products as our preferred option for more than a decade now. Although in this case we were working to the systems specified by Mike Tolley, our knowledge of their capabilities and DM in general meant that we were confident all the elements would work well together to deliver the required outcome.”
As an aside, Evans is also hugely positive about the benefits of being part of the DM Fusion programme. “We have an excellent relationship with Dedicated Micros. In fact, the opportunity to work on the Millennium Point project came to us as because we are a member of the programme. We have been impressed with the support we have received through DM Fusion and, in terms of the Millennium Point project, it was good to have input from DM project support staff. They actually came to site and helped to tweak the system for more performance gains.”
Management matters: the end user’s perspective
Viewing the project from an end-user perspective, Harry Rashid – the security manager at Millennium Point – is most certainly pleased with the changes made to the CCTV infrastructure.
“The reality was that the old system had struggled to cope,” he explained. “It was simply too slow and cumbersome for what was required. Investigating an incident usually meant trawling through hours of tape-based footage, a task for which time – and, therefore, money – had to be allocated.”
Alongside that, replacement analogue recorders were becoming increasingly difficult and expensive to source so, even if the performance had been there, Rashid felt that they were clearly not going to be a long-term option.
Already, Millennium Point is starting to reap the dividends on the ground of the new NetVu Connected solution. Rashid stated: “From Day One it has delivered real savings in terms of space, time and money compared to the obsolescent and unwieldy system it replaced. The Control Room is no longer filled with over 1,200 VHS video tapes to be trawled through, and there’s no requirement to rewind and replace tapes as the digital recording is continuous.”
He continued: “Our security officers have really welcomed the simplified, user-friendly operating procedures. There is now much greater system functionality with the ability, for example, through Pick-a-Point to call-up and use a clear overview touch screen map covering all parts of the site. Consequently, when an incident happens we are able to track it back within seconds of its occurrence. The Control Room staff have direct access to any material which they can also readily provide on DVD should it be needed by the police.”
Multiple map screens and detailed imagery
Looking in more detail at the capabilities unlocked by Pick-a-Point, operators such as those at Millennium Point can simply select cameras using Pick a-Point GUI (Graphical User Interface). Multiple map screens and highly detailed map images readily allow operators to select a camera on-screen without having to know which DVR the camera is linked to. Unlike many virtual matrix solutions that are dependent on a PC to record, view or playback video, Pick-a-Point Icon is a stand-alone, hardware-based workstation which eliminates reliability and training issues associated with PC-based systems.
When it comes to Millennium Point, Pick-a-Point has also been fully integrated with the Galaxy intruder alarm systems on the site, so that the touch screen mapping system can identify where the alarm has come from and automatically display relevant cameras on screen after sending them to preset to view the alarmed area. This significantly improves the response to multiple security systems previously not integrated.
In terms of actually dealing with incidents, Rashid cited an example from late last year which demonstrates the ability of the new surveillance infrastructure at Millennium Point to take effective action: “We had a theft in our Christmas Marquee, which previously would have meant having to trawl through hours of VHS overnight footage. Instead, we searched for motion in a particular area and found the perpetrator within minutes. After that, we co-ordinated for his arrest. Using the enhanced CCTV capability we tracked him back to his vehicle following the incident, and had the vehicle blockaded. When the culprit returned to complain about his car being impounded we alerted the West Midlands Police who attended quickly to make the arrest.”
Looking ahead, Millennium Point now has a hybrid CCTV infrastructure whose digital and analogue components operate seamlessly together. It’s a surveillance system that’s easy to control and, unlike the previous solution, one that can readily cope with the demands of an extremely popular site. It’s also scalable to meet future challenges.
