How to approach the selection of video surveillance, access control and security and fire alarm systems?
How to approach the selection of video surveillance, access control and security and fire alarm systems?
I would like to dispel the existing cliche in the field of security systems step by step.
A security system is not a goal. The goal is to ensure the necessary regime at the enterprise, organize control over all possible situations — prevent dangerous situations and, in the event of an emergency, organize an investigation.
We often see a picture of a businessman complaining that he has 16 video cameras installed, but he does not understand why. And the answer is simple — HE DOESN'T NEED A SYSTEM OF 16 video surveillance cameras, upon detailed examination it turned out that he only needed two — at the entrance and in the reception area.
1 The first step is to make a list of possible incidents.
It is necessary to understand the concept of SECURITY. As one Israeli told me during negotiations on the supply of security systems to Russia: «Security is a different thing, for one it is an iron door at the entrance, for another it is barbed wire and a bunch of dogs, so you must always understand what a person puts into this word.» Let's turn to Wikipedia. Security is a state of a complex system when the action of external and internal factors does not lead to deterioration of the system or to the impossibility of its functioning and development.
1.1 We make a list of possible incidents.
For Business, two types of Security can be distinguished:
physical — protection from fires, robbery, illegal entry;
protection of business processes — control of production processes, data protection.
Now let's consider everything in order. First, let's consider the classic schemes
.
1.2 Selecting methods for neutralizing dangerous events
Fire protection.
Here we must give credit to our State, it has already thought of everything. Law 123-FZ describes how, what and where it is necessary to install, and obliges to comply with these requirements by force. Fire alarms are necessary for early warning of a fire so that people can be evacuated. Many do not know the fact that the speed of fire spread can be faster than the speed of a running person.
The problem is that our valiant citizens try to save on fire alarm systems. I saw how a «fire alarm for cover» was installed in a furniture workshop. There was also video surveillance, it is unclear for what purpose. Then after the fire, we all watched the recordings of how it caught fire, how it burned, how it burned. The alarm went off when everything was already ablaze. Sad. None of the security systems were useful due to banal illiteracy and negligence.
Robberies, illegal entry.
The Department of Non-Departmental Security and Private Security Companies will help us. These organizations provide (implement) remote security. They install and design systems themselves. The tasks of the security alarm are to scare off a robber (if necessary, especially if security structures are not notified), to notify the relevant services to detain criminals.
I think it is necessary to indicate another point of view on the current state of affairs. Below I provide a link that talks about the protracted war between classical schemes and solutions based on video surveillance. You can study the materials and articles that the opponents rely on.
http://goal.ru/left/news_1238101200_1103.html
I believe that the truth is in the middle. It is necessary to combine different solutions.
Video surveillance — this system is an excellent addition to classic solutions. There is already video surveillance with flame and smoke detection. We have examples where the recording and notification of the START of a fire on video occurs earlier than by a fire alarm. This will allow rescue measures to be taken much earlier. In the example about the furniture workshop, such a function would help the owners to extinguish the beginnings of the fire and save their property even with such a crooked «fire department» as theirs. In the event of a robbery, video surveillance will allow information to be provided for operational search activities.
All kinds of modules for tracking moving objects, identifying vehicle numbers and much more significantly complement classic fire alarm solutions. You can find more details on the websites of manufacturers ITV, DSSL, GOAL and others.
Control of business processes, safety of commercial data.
The goal of any business is to make a profit. Therefore, business processes must always be carried out. The control of these processes must be approached from the point of view of management science, and technical means are only tools. I often see people thinking that simply installing equipment solves problems with personnel. WITHOUT DATA ANALYSIS, it is just a bunch of chips … expensive chips.
Access control systems can be used to solve such problems as restricting personnel access to a particular place in the enterprise (the less they know, the better they sleep); the issue of late arrivals is resolved after a month of work, when the accounting program mercilessly informs violators that they have lost part of their salary. It is much easier for managers to say: “It wasn’t me, it was the program. I would definitely regret it. You signed the terms of employment. I can’t cancel it. I want to, but I can’t.” This technique is called Empty Boat, those interested in management technologies should visit Vladimir Tarasov’s seminars http://tarasov.ru/school/biography.html or read his books. The combined use of management knowledge and technology produces excellent results.
A little more about video surveillance
Video surveillance is essentially a universal tool. In skilled hands, it can solve a lot of problems. Many people make the mistake of installing video surveillance cameras without a well-thought-out algorithm for their use. It is often said that video surveillance is simply a «toy for the rich.» It is not the cameras that are important, but the video analytics — «intelligent video surveillance» — a system of software logic that allows you to analyze images. The simplest analytics can be video recording «by motion» with subsequent analysis. For example, we need an employee to be constantly near a machine — as a result, viewing the video archive, we do not need to waste time watching the entire video. We immediately see when he was absent from the workplace, and then disciplinary measures follow.
Often we have to deal with people's desire to save on video analytics, which is why the meaning of video surveillance is lost. Even sadder is that many installation companies support this desire in a conversation with the customer due to the fear of losing the client. As a result, the client buys a banal video recorder, which, in fact, is just an ordinary video recorder and there is no smell of analytics here.
2 Step two — design.
About 6 years ago, I came to negotiate with the plant director, a wise Adyghe. He tormented me for a long time, asking what we were offering him and why. I told him about analytics and other advantages. After that, he agreed with our proposals, but demanded a project… for the installation of 4 video cameras. This surprised me then. And he told me that he built a house without a project. As a result, despite the fact that he is a professional builder, he rebuilt the house three times.
Conclusion: Saving the budget for research and design will inevitably lead to an increase in the cost of installation and further maintenance of the system.
Step three — installation and commissioning.
Almost any installation company will be able to install the selected system, but not every company will create the correct concept of the security system and then carry out commissioning taking into account the selected algorithm. I recommend that you have one person responsible for all types of work.
Conclusion
I hope I have explained the current state of affairs in an accessible way. Finally, I will reduce everything to a simple formula: look for one contractor responsible for all the work and demand from him a CONCEPT for the future security system — how you will manage the system, how it will help, what it will prevent.
Author: Boris Trush, CEO of the company «Security and Comfort»
More articles by this author: (http://seccom.ru/blog/user/3.php)