HD CCTV is the way but are customers listening.

Went to a promising appointment today. It was a school in the Midlands who were suffering problems with vandalism and they wanted to stop it. Their first thoughts turned to cameras and that if they could identify the hoodlums then they could bring them to the attention of the authorities and put a stop to it once and for. The damage caused to date was around £8500 and it was inevitable that there would be a repeat performance sooner rather than later.

We looked at the place where the problems were occurring , this was in a poorly lit section of the school and it was apparent that the area would need a couple of white light illuminators. In addition we wanted to supply an HD CCTV solution rather than analogue. After all they wanted to ID these crooks  not just capture blurred images of an event that would provide no detail post vandalism.

We made the customer aware of his options, 4 analogue cameras or a 2 mega-pixel IP camera plus some LED lighting. The mega-pixel solution meant that they could expand at a later date into other areas of the school but the recording solution was more expensive than a 4 way analogue DVR to start with.

Confronted with costs the customer immediately decided that he wanted analogue, but he did not want 4 cameras just 2 after all surely if they knew the people causing the issues (they assumed it was their own pupils) then the video evidence would be ok. Again we tried to explain why in our opinion this was a short sighted non solution to his issues. Even with a Dem of HD which he was most impressed with did he insist he still knew better and wanted to keep with his idea of an analogue solution convinced it would work.

We would rather walk away, so another wasted day, another customer about to be disappointed with his cameras , another customer who will try to blame his supplier that the cameras are very poor and don’t do the job, another customer who will always rue his purchase and tell all his colleagues how useless CCTV is when they really need it…..oh and another customer who refused to listen and made price a more important point than the CCTV solution itself…………the list goes on………..

HDcctv sees growth at IFSEC 2012

last year at IFSEC 2011  HD CCTV was very much a minority side show that attracted little or no attention from the vast majority of visitors who spent their time browsing the aisles for something new and exciting to sell. Apart from the Everfocus EPHD 08 NH HD cctv dvr there was nothing to speak of, although to be fair the Everfocus HD CCTV concept did attract a minority of people but we are not too sure they were taken seriously as a product/concept that would take off.

Move forward 12 months and it seems Everfocus were forward thinking prophets of the future. HD SDI CCTV was everywhere at IFSEC 2012. There were over a hundred different exhibitors showing their HD SDI range of CCTV products and this included big players such as Samsung and Grundig. Entrants of this caliber into the HD SDI market mean the technology has to be taken seriously now.

It was interesting talking to the guys who were showing their products. Many were members of the HDcctv alliance, a group who are trying to standardize HD SDI so each manufacturers products will work seamlessly with one another, something seen as crucial in order to promote HD SDI and compete against analogue .It was even more interesting that many exhibitors were not trying to compete with IP. Its seems there is now an acceptance that HDcctv is going to compete and replace analogue in the 4 to 16 camera market place. It seems interest in larger systems is going to be limited, leaving this totally different scene to the IP boys.

HD CCTV uses existing coax, and HD over coax is a tempting way to upgrade legacy systems. Its cheap, easy, produces great results with no latency and no need for compression. Any CCTV engineer can fit it without the need for IP skills and remote support. It’s simple and the pictures are stunning.

So if you are a customer who is thinking of upgrading to HD CCTV then you need look no further than HD SDI technology, it may yet  prove the best CCTV option for you and your company.

IFSEC 2012 exhibition review

Over for another year!

IFSEC 2012 shut its doors after yet another excellently attended show.

But how excellent was it really?

Well, we visited each day, dodging the rain showers wherever possible!

On arriving at the superbly located Birmingham NEC, it seemed that each day, despite the arrival time, East car park 4 was our destination!

Excellent and frequent shuttle buses (saved getting wet!) swept us to the entrance in under 10mins – on the one occasion where the queue was more than 2 shuttle buses long, the entrepreneurial local Taxi drivers pulled up and offered rides for £1 per person !!

On arriving at the Halls, swift entrance was gained using the pre-registration number allocated if you were efficient in booking ahead – scan the bar code or enter the number and one of the lovely ladies called out your name and handed the printed pass – valid for the 4 days of the show.

Entrance was only a zap away and then into the huge and almost intimidating Halls – we started each day in Hall 5.

First job, fire up the IFSEC 2012 iPhone APP to get at the list of exhibitors that we had made beforehand

And there was problem number 1 !

We had seen the App before do it’s usual (and time wasting) thing of updating this and that, downloading this and that etc, but we were in the confines of office wifi – standby on a severely stretched 3G signal that was being shared by half the population of the world and the app took a good 20-30 seconds to get to the stage of being useable ! bearing in mind that this process was the same EVERY time the app was needed, even if already running!!

Note to IFSEC App developers – ensure that the APP only updates ONCE and only perhaps on wifi ???? PLUS……use the Push feature of iOS devices instead of pulling everytime the app runs!!!

Once passed the splendour of HUGE stands such as Tyco and Norbain (and a BIG shout out to Samsung for the hugest video wall ever!) the usual Asian section provided an in sight into this years talked about Tech……..namely HD-SDI / HDcctv recorders, cameras and transmission widgets.

Nearly all stands (compared to VERY FEW last year) were extolling the virtues of HD-SDI / HDcctv as the new method for High Def CCTV images………. many interesting conversations took place on compatibility – all centring on the Genum chipset that seems to ensure compatibility amongst various manufacturers – SEEMS ??? well, at one point, we asked a camera supplier to borrow a camera to take next door to his Korean neighbour making DVRs…….sure enough, it worked, we could not however advise this will always be the case so HDcctv compatible seems to be the way forward here.

But, HD-SDI is definitely now more prominent – we expect to see major UK distributors push this retro-fittable tech out to their customers during 2012-2013

Another area of concern was meeting areas – ok, I guess if you are a big corporate exhibitor, hiring a meeting room is de facto, but if you are looking for a quick conversation with a new supplier, where do you go? We were planning a discussion with a leading Korean manufacturer……we thought combining with some refreshment would be relaxing……no seats in the heavily busy internal cafe/rest areas so headed out to the lobby area. EVERY cafe/eating area packed………. options included sitting side by side around the outside walls !!!

Surely some meeting areas with refreshments makes sense?

So, Hall 5 was where the main action was but to be honest, we were strangely warming to the exhibitors in Hall 4 !! Seemed to be more of the IP based guys (Axis, Milestone, IndigoVision) were up there and somehow, it kind of felt more ‘techy’ up there, like a club that announced “downstairs for cable, upstairs for IP!’

Milestone and Axis were showing various new technology – Axis with a HUGE PTZ camera and their Thermal offerings……..Thermal seemed to feature very well throughout the show, mainly because of its superb analytical capabilities. We saw several companies such as Flir and 360 Vision demonstrating their products on various partner stands to good reception.

Milestone had an interesting ‘wall’ of affiliated partners – companies such as IFSEC award winners Ipsotek showed their excellent analytics and Milestone integration to good effect!

The usual bevy of beauties lined the stands – obviously employed for their amazing product knowledge. So, what was the thought on this years IFSEC?

Well, apart from the troublesome app and the lack of meeting areas, really rather good – the new tech appearing is refreshing, the layout over 2 Halls was spot on and the show had enough to fill 4 days of interest easily.

Roll on IFSEC 2013!

White light illuminator ,IR illuminator

White light illuminator, IR illuminator or even halogen lighting. Which ever form of lighting you chose to compliment your HD CCTV system it is crucial to consider your CCTV lighting plan with the same level of thought as you choose your HD SDI cameras and your recording solution.
An HD CCTV system without an White light illuminator is like a conductor without his orchestra. One needs the other.  Without lighting you will not see anything and colour is impossible to reproduce. HD CCTV is far more sensitive to light levels than analogue and installers need to let their customers know at point of sale. Don’t just hope ambient lighting will be sufficient. It wont!
In response to the obvious need for CCTV lighting many HD SDI camera manufacturers are including IR illuminator LED’s within their camera unit itself. Anything from 12-96 IR LED’s can be seen fitted to many HD SDI cameras now depending on the distance the installer is trying to achieve. These cameras work well and we would recommend them , however there is always a scenario where a White light illuminator will be needed, this is of course where colour images at night are important.
Here at HD CCTV solutions we stock one of the most robust range of white light and IR illuminators on the market. Manufactured in the UK, these tried and tested CCTV illuminators are ideal where an HD CCTV system is being deployed.
So think CCTV lighting when designing HD CCTV systems and think White light illuminator for colour IR illuminator for covert lighting , easy to install highly cost effective and efficient and a compliment to any CCTV system you are installing.

Cheap security means no security.Know when to walk away!

Cheap security , worthless service contracts. Where is the industry heading?

Its the worse feeling for any business but sometimes security companies need to learn when the time is right to simply walk away from a potential client. There are times in the security business when we as installers need to know when we are being squeezed too hard. It is very tempting to keep cutting costs to keep a “big name” but if a client is looking for the lowest cost of service in order to fulfil their remit and your organization has built a reputation over the years as highly qualified and trained security professionals, giving a service that is second to none, then you need to have the balls to tell your potential client they need to look elsewhere.

Quite simply put, a company/client prepared to compromise service in favour of cost are not looking for an organization who provides your level of service and commitment. It’s always a fine line of course and we are all out there to make our business a success but some buyers are starting to take advantage of  too much good will as companies fight for the ever decreasing contracts on offer.

Most businesses will know when they are being taken for a ride but can’t they help themselves still trying to deliver even if it is at their own expense but they must realize they are just undermining the entire business for a valueless contract. Over the last 3 years or so there have been too many organizations out there prepared to buy business  and they will always bid lower then everyone else.

poor customer service

This results in awful service for end users and everyone is a loser, the good suppliers miss out , the customer gets disillusioned and the company  that wins the tender makes no profit, sometimes they even make a loss. Minimum wages result for engineers and this drives the good guys out of the industry. The problem is when the dust settles and all involved in the tender process realize the mistakes that have been made …its too late……… for everyone.

If this rings true with your organization then give this blog a retweet and lets put a stop to this practice once and for all.