The Challenge
Dedicated Micros Digital Sprite digital multiplex recorders have been installed as part of an innovative seven-year security plan in a South African "mini-city". Melrose Arch, Johannesburg, is one of the largest urban development projects in the country, comprising a complex of shops, restaurants, offices, homes and hotels. The first phase of a three-part security system rollout by Provicom, which will include a total of 1000 cameras when completed, has now been undertaken.
The Solution
This includes 29 Digital Sprite multiplexers, 240 cameras plus 15 high speed domes, two 224 input matrixes, five workstations and a supervisor station. Each workstation consists of 5 monitors, a keypad with direct control of the matrix, dome cameras and digital multiplexers and two networked PCs.
The cameras are installed in the super basement, which spans the entire site underground, as well as the streets, intersections and walkways. While the original plans for a security system at Melrose Arch focused on analog recording with digital as an option, the eventual specification was for digital, based on the qualities and cost effectiveness of Dedicated Micros digital multiplex recorders.
The main benefits include: ease of use, remote viewing over LAN, WAN or the Internet, simultaneous hard disk recording and playback, plus incident back-up to Zip or CD-R. Gary Shelton, divisional director of Provicom, says: "The client is extremely happy with the system and we expect to install additional systems on behalf of the tenants and provide monitoring of the client cameras in the central control room."
Pauline Norstrom, Marketing Manager at Dedicated Micros,comments: "It's a great example of how leading international companies, in this case installer, distributor and manufacturer, can work together to create a very practical, cost-effective solution."
