Day: August 11, 2021

Situated at an altitude of 5500 feet above sea level, Namchi (means sky high) is one of the famous and biggest tourist destinations in Sikkim, a state of northeast India. Surrounded with spectacular view of the mountains, emerald and green forest, Namchi is well-known for its old monasteries, sacred temples, and annual festivals such as Namchi Mahotsav. Namchi was selected to be part of the Smart Cities Mission, an ambitious programme of Govt. of India. Under this programme, the city aspires to be a ‘world-class’ tourist destination and simultaneously maintain ecological balance with a vibrant community, offering an enriched quality of life supported by a robust local economy.   In recent years, the city infrastructure has also shown rapid growth and welcoming thousands of tourists each year. Hence, making the city vulnerable to threats driven by overcrowding, chaotic traffic, haphazard parking in addition to other law & order issues. In the first phase of the project, the Namchi Smart City Limited wanted to cover its citizens as well as tourists with Namchi, the ‘Sky-High City’ becomes ‘Smart City’ with Videonetics AI Powered Unified Solution a robust surveillance system with proper traffic management without disrupting the normal day to day activities.   The solution  After thorough assessment of the requirements and consequent discussions with the officials of Namchi Smart City Limited, Videonetics designed modular and scalable unified solution, based on its Intelligent VMS and AI & DL powered video analytics, aimed to ensure continuous monitoring, efficient traffic monitoring, quicker response times and faster access to evidence in case of investigations and law & order management.  Eyeing on every corner of the city A group of over 120 IP cameras have been installed at the important locations to monitor the entry and exit points connecting to the city, public ways, transport hubs, tourist attractions, markets, streets, traffic junctions to name a few. Now, security operators can easily view and manage citywide deployed IP cameras with intuitive interface of Videonetics Intelligent VMS, having complete situation[1]al awareness and can respond smartly to critical situations. Moreover, the smart navigation feature of Intelligent VMS allows simultaneously viewing of the live and the recorded videos in the same interface, which helps in prompt investigation of past activities without taking their eye off from the current incidents. Parking and directional analytics Namchi being a hilly terrain, has narrow roads with limited scope of turning it into broader ones, the authorities used to manage the traffic by declaring some of the roads as one-way carriage. Frequently, the city faced chaotic traffic congestion and accidents, due to unauthorized parking and wrong-way driving. To address such concerns, Videonetics artificial intelligence powered video analytics including no parking detection and wrong-way movement detection, were deployed to detect such situations. Operators are notified as soon as any vehicle is parked in a restricted zone and if any vehicle moves in the wrong direction. The Videonetics unified solution empowers command control operators to receive real-time insights from the city and upon recognition or prediction of unusual behaviour, they receive an immediate alert and notify the authorities.  Centralized view of the city Videonetics Intelligent VMS and video analytics application are seamlessly integrated with Namchi Operations Center (NOC), an Integrated Command Control Center (ICCC), to simplify the response coordination between stakeholders and speeding up incident resolution. Working in conjunction with city administration, control room operators can switch from camera to camera using dynamic maps, empowers them to obtain critical event information as well as manage emergency situations by alerting respective stakeholders for quick action. And when necessary, Videonetics unified solution makes it possible to share forensic videos across departments, facilitating more collaborative and successful response efforts. Namchi adapting to ‘New Normal’ with COVID-19 War Room As the coronavirus pandemic evolves with different waves, Namchi smart city officials decided to transform ICCC to COVID-19 War Room by seamlessly integrating with Crisis Control Response and Mitigation System (C2RMS), an operational intelligence platform from Astrikos Consulting and Videonetics unified solution. By having this powerful and distinctive integrated solution, operators monitor violation of COVID-19 guidelines such as social distancing, crowd formation, people gathered without masks, predicting gathering and so on from the command control center and provide actionable alerts to authority or on-ground officials, for effective enforcement and decision making. In parallel, C2RMS proactively monitors and assess the spread, deeply conducts preparedness assessment, and delivers real-time insights on capacity management of hospitals such as status of hospital beds, oxygen, PPE Kits etc, to the authorities.     The result The sagacious collaboration between Videonetics, Astrikos Consulting and Namchi Smart City Ltd, has become an exemplary model for other cities. Videonetics unified solution has exceeded city administration’s expectations in terms of its intuitive functionalities, identifying suspicious activities and ensuring smooth traffic movements. And the solution’s open architecture allows the seamless addition of more cameras and integration with other security systems as the city continues to grow and identify more needs. It signifies future development potential with maximum impact on people. Furthermore, the integrated solution has been extremely helpful for the city authority in aggregating and visualizing the video data collected over time, to deliver critical statistical information such as directional traffic data, traffic flow insights, hotspots of public gathering etc. Eventually, increasing the situational awareness, standardizing response protocol and implementing SoPs at city level and enhancing collaboration across various departments/ bodies emphasizing ‘the citizens come first’ mindset of Namchi city. Thanks to the integrated and unified solution that not only supported Namchi to achieve but also exceed its security goals.  

  Everbridge, Inc., the leading global player in critical event management (CEM), recently announced that three California county school districts became the latest to select the company’s industry-leading K-12 School Safety software solution to address crisis situations affecting schools and districts. Everbridge’s School Safety platform provides public safety-grade applications to accelerate response times and coordinate efforts to address crises affecting K-12 districts. The platform enables school administrators to orchestrate a collaborative approach for incidents including campus violence such as active shooters and bomb threats, as well as lockdowns and medical emergencies. The Fresno County Superintendent of Schools, among other K-12 districts across California, recently selected Everbridge to help protect their students, faculty, and staff during such emergencies. “Everbridge has provided a simple solution to school safety and their team has stood side by side with all of our Fresno County educators in an effort to solidify emergency partnerships,” said Dr. Hank Gutierrez, Deputy Superintendent, Educational Services, Office of Fresno County Superintendent of Schools Fresno County, California Office of Education among latest K-12 schools across 17 U.S. states and four countries to select Everbridge school safety platform to accelerate response times and coordinate emergency management efforts on K-12 campuses. Everbridge serves as approved partner for Alyssa’s Law mandate passed in Florida and New Jersey calling for silent panic alarms linked to law enforcement and first responder services. According to the FBI, 69% of active shooter incidents conclude in under five minutes, which does not leave time for uncertainty or indecisiveness. The Everbridge School Safety software provides a comprehensive solution to address critical events in seconds by engaging appropriate personnel on campus and at the district level, and first responders in an immediate and coordinated way. “A healthy learning environment will remain impossible without a sense of safety and well-being in the halls and on campus,” said Tracy Reinhold, Everbridge Chief Security Officer and former head of the FBI’s Intelligence Division, “As schools navigate threats both old and new, they need smart, reliable technology that can connect with first responders and on-site staff to ensure an immediate response to any emergency – from medical incidents to crisis situations. The faster we can make people aware that they need to take action, the better the outcome will be.” Everbridge’s School Safety functionality supports K-12 schools/ districts across 17 U.S. states and four countries, quickly orchestrating everything from: Equipping law enforcement with valuable insight of the situation. K-12 Schools Increasingly Adopt Everbridge’s School Safety Software to Protect Students, Staff, and Faculty in Crisis Situations Fresno County, California Office of Education among latest K-12 schools across 17 U.S. states and four countries to select Everbridge school safety platform to accelerate response times and coordinate emergency management efforts on K-12 campuses. Everbridge serves as approved partner for Alyssa’s Law mandate passed in Florida and New Jersey calling for silent panic alarms linked to law enforcement and first responder services. Automating school lockdown procedures via a panic button. Providing schools with the most technology and device integrations in the industry, including integrations with building access controls, shooter detection systems, and more. Engaging school and district leadership with one-touch conference calling. Helping to avert issues of violence or bullying on campus by empowering students, teachers, and staff to speak up through the anonymous tipping app. Safety Status check-in via two-way communication. Analyzing data after the incident for improvement planning. The Florida Department of Education recently chose Everbridge as an approved partner for the state’s Alyssa’s Law mandate. Beginning with the 2021-2022 school year, Florida public and charter schools will be required to demonstrate compliance with Alyssa’s Law, named after one of the students killed in the tragic shooting at Marjory Stoneman LightEdge Standardizes on Invixium Biometrics for Elegant, Touchless Access Control High-security data center standardizes on invixium biometrics for modern touchless access control Data centers require unique security solutions to ensure that their customers’ most critical assets are protected from theft. LightEdge, a premier provider of cloud and colocation services in the Midwestern United States, sought a biometric solution that matched the company’s high-level goals of security and futuristic design. Beginning in 2018, LightEdge sought to standardize on biometrics for a unique security application for both employ Douglas High School in 2018. The new legislation calls for silent panic alarms linked to law enforcement and first responder services. Already passed into law in New Jersey and now Florida, Alyssa’s Law is quickly gaining traction around the U.S. The legislation requires the Department of Education to set up a model panic alert system that can be used by public and charter schools in Florida’s K-12 districts. The alarm will be used to ensure school officials can contact nearby law enforcement quickly in the event of an emergency. Many colleges and universities also leverage Everbridge for their critical communications, contact tracing support and return-to-campus initiatives, including the University of Denver, UCLA, Harvard University, California Institute of Technology, University of Maryland College Park, University of Oregon, University of Texas at Austin, Michigan State University, and Washington State University. Internationally, notable schools that deploy Everbridge solutions include Nord University in Norway, Technical University of Denmark, Imperial College London, and the American University of Paris.  

  Data centers require unique security solutions to ensure that their customers’ most critical assets are protected from theft. LightEdge, a premier provider of cloud and colocation services in the Midwestern United States, sought a biometric solution that matched the company’s high-level goals of security and futuristic design. Beginning in 2018, LightEdge sought to standardize on biometrics for a unique security application for both employees and visitors. Prior to modernizing their access control, LightEdge was using a hand geometry-based system to activate visitor cards as part of their check-in process and to secure critical areas with mantraps. Across LightEdge’s seven locations in the Midwestern United States, the security system would have to provide access control for hundreds of people including data center employees, tenants and visitors at each location. Further, LightEdge has experience with RS2’s access control software and the HID SEOS cards used at card reader doors, so their new biometric solution would need to be compatible with existing solutions. Standardizing on futuristic biometric access control locks down unique security workflow LightEdge selected the Invixium IXM TITAN because it is a high security biometric solution that blends airtight access control with sophisticated design thanks to its multi-biometric capabilities and elegant construction with an all-aluminum body and a 5.0” LCD screen to display authentication instructions. The installed system is integrated with AccessIt! by RS2 Technologies and has replaced hand geometry and card readers at two of LightEdge’s seven locations so far. After two years of continued use, LightEdge is pleased that this system offers the high security and fitting design promised, in addition to the partnership and expertise offered by both RS2 and Invixium.  LightEdge’s benefits of migrating to access control with IXM TITAN include: Future-focused security: Biometrics offer the highest level of security possible, and touchless face recognition like that offered by IXM TITAN project an outward appearance of future-focus and sophistication. Seamless transition: Integration with RS2’s access control software ensures a smooth transition from LightEdge’s previous biometric solution to Invixium’s solution, so employees and visitors can enjoy a seamless experience. Sophisticated design: The overall design of IXM TITAN, featuring an aluminum body and large IPS LCD screen, evokes an image of design-consciousness and elegance for users. Standardized support: Standardizing on Invixium and RS2 allows the centralized LightEdge IT and security teams to better support each data center. “Uncompromising security is integral to Invixium’s DNA,” said Shiraz Kapadia, CEO & President at Invixium, “We understand that Data Centers like LightEdge need high-security solutions to assure their clients that their information and assets are protected from theft. IXM TITAN continues to deliver that and more with our signature security expertise and exquisite design that perfectly meet the demands of our most future-focused customers.” “LightEdge requires uncompromising security. Biometrics help us ensure the high level of accuracy we demand from our access control system. Our direct relationship with Invixium provides us with tailored support from a company that’s large enough to support our needs, but also intimate enough to be very personal. Standardizing on RS2 and Invixium helps us ensure that our system upholds our values of high security, modernness and futuristic design,” said John Martin, Director of Data Center Operations at LightEdge Solutions.  

  Narita International Airport is Japan’s busiest airport and the first to acquire the Airport Health Accreditation (AHA) implemented by Airports Council International (ACI). Smiths Detection will assist Narita Airport to install 62 units of Ultraviolet (UV) light tray disinfection equipment in its latest effort to enable safer travel. The UV disinfection equipment will be integrated with 62 advanced security checkpoints across the three terminals by March 2022. “To best prepare for the resumption of international air travel, we are taking various measures to stay ahead of the curve and safeguard passenger health. This includes installing automatic UV light disinfection kits to disinfect security trays. The kit is proven to eliminate up to 99.9% of bacteria and viruses including coronaviruses, protecting passengers and staff from tactile transmission of contagious diseases.” said Susumu Kitabayashi, AVSEC Senior Manager, Narita International Airport, “As we look to secure our terminals and provide travellers a peace of mind, we are working with Smiths Detection who has provided reliable and experienced onsite support to meet the industry’s highest standard.” Additionally, Narita Airport has made investments in fully integrated checkpoint and hold baggage solutions to help ease traffic, reduce passenger wait time, cut down on touch points, and streamline security processes. These include: HI-SCAN 6040 CTiX, a computed tomography (CT) X-ray scanner producing high-resolution volumetric 3D images for quicker baggage assessment and low false-alarm rates. It allows electronics and liquids to remain in bags, speeding up passenger screening and reducing touchpoints. Evo, an automated smart lane that helps keep trays and passengers moving eliminating bottlenecks and streamlining the screening process. The body scanner eqo, a body scanner which automatically detects contraband of any concealed material and reduces the need for physical pat-downs. Checkpoint.Evoplus, a remote screening and operations management platform for faster decision making. HI-SCAN 6040-2is, an advanced dual-view X-ray system for cabin baggage, shortening inspection time. CTX 9800 DSi, a CT-based explosives detection system (EDS) for screening of checked baggage which provides high-levels of detection and low false-alarm rates. “We are delighted to be working with Narita Airport to take its security commitment to greater heights,” said Aurelien Guilbert, Managing Director, North Asia, Smiths Detection, “Narita Airport has been a forerunner in introducing technologies in its operations and security processes, and we are confident that with the latest installations, passengers travelling through Narita Airport will feel safe and assured in this uncertain time.”  

  When Cubic Transportation Systems and Transport for London identified that the Limehouse Link Tunnel in London’s East End would benefit from an upgraded traffic safety monitoring system, they opted for the advantages offered by Predator Ultra HD cameras from 360 Vision Technology. Let’s face it: traffic tunnels are cool. Perhaps it’s their artificially lit, subterranean nature, coupled with the unspoken thrill of passing smoothly, at high speed, through an entirely manmade structure. Maybe it’s their place in Hollywood’s celluloid iconography, light tracing the contours of our protagonist’s face as they race toward, or away from, one crisis or another. Maybe it’s the way tunnels are the embodiment of human ingenuity made solid, engineering as pure solution: let’s get from A to B as efficiently as possible, and if that means going under or through whatever gets in our way, well, that’s what we’re going to do. Whatever it is, tunnels are irrefutably cool, and the Limehouse Link Tunnel is one of London’s coolest. Opened for use in 1993, it stretches for a little over a mile under London’s East End. Travelling along the A1203 from the Highway to Canary Wharf, it takes vehicles under the Limehouse Basin, Limekiln Dock and Dundee Wharf, then curves north-east under Westferry Road to emerge near the West India Quay DLR station. It’s apt that the entrances and exits to the tunnel are known as ‘portals’ – the Limehouse Link Tunnel transforms commuters into virtual time travellers, entering from the historic, fabled streets of the East End and emerging, blinking, into the hyper-modern glass and steel-emblazoned environs of the reclaimed Canary Wharf. Those portals are adorned with distinctive artworks, glimpsed by the passengers in the thousands of vehicles which traverse the length of the tunnel in both directions every day – on the western end is Zadok Ben-David’s circle of silhouettes, ‘Restless Dream,’ while the eastern portal features an untitled abstract by Nigel Hall.   Underground safety For a massively busy tunnel like the Limehouse Link, safety is paramount. Speed limits are set at 30mph, and Transport for London traffic management teams constantly monitor the live video feeds from cameras sited strategically along its course to ensure traffic flows smoothly and any incidents can be acted upon swiftly and safely. The camera system in the Limehouse Link Tunnel is maintained by Cubic Transportation Systems. Award-winning Cubic has worked with TfL for many years, helping to deliver the famed Oyster payment system and continually working to reinvent the way integrated technology is used in managing traffic and public transport across London. Recently, it was decided that the existing cameras in the Limehouse Link Tunnel were in need of an upgrade. Cubic Senior Field Services Manager Neil Ashford explained. “The older cameras that were being used in the tunnel had become obsolete,” he said, “This was due to camera part obsolescence fault levels increasing, and critical areas of tunnel coverage becoming more challenging to maintain with adequate CCTV coverage. Roadside cameras need to be tough and reliable, so we needed a ruggedised model that could withstand the rigours of constant use in that environment.” Cubic had used Predator Ultra HD cameras from UK manufacturer 360Vision Technology on an earlier tunnel project, and this experience convinced Neil Ashford, and Cubic, that they’d be up to the task. The Predator PTZ camera range is a high performance, fully featured range of ruggedised pan-tilt zoom cameras, designed and manufactured in the UK. The distinctive Predator range comes with multiple protocols as standard, allowing quick and simple integration with DVRs, matrices, and IP VMS systems. The Predator Ultra cameras provide HD images, 30x optical zoom, and extremely low light operation. Technically adept One challenge the Limehouse Link Tunnel upgrade project faced was transmission – how best to ensure the 1080p HD images captured by the cameras could be sent to the TfL control centres. Thankfully, in addition to its direct IP connection options, the Predator cameras feature a 12-pin connection in the base of each unit, allowing the new replacement cameras to be connected directly to the existing cable infrastructure of the old camera system. This feature alone saved significant time and installation costs. “Being able to install the new Predator cameras without making any changes to the local camera infrastructure was a great advantage in reducing installation time and cost of the project,” Neil Ashford said, “Another of the key factors in choosing to use the Predators was the relationship we have with the manufacturer. They are the true expert on the camera, and working directly with them can help us to quickly and efficiently solve any issues that might arise. “Being UK-based is part of it, but the crucial thing is access to knowledgeable staff. I have a highly technical team of engineers, and thankfully 360Vision have highly technical staff who listen to and address any problems that we find with a camera. It’s a very good working relationship. In fact, I would go as far as to say that they are the best supplier I have ever worked with. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them on future projects.” Proactive monitoring A total of 56 Predator Ultra 30:1 HD cameras are now in active use in the Limehouse Link Tunnel. The cameras are monitored at a variety of locations including the primary Transport for London Network Management Control Centre (NMCC). The complex 24-hour NMCC operation integrates previously separate control departments into one central hub, providing a more efficient and linked-up approach to roads management. It’s part of the ‘Vision Zero’ approach to traffic and transport strategy, with a long-term aim of eliminating all deaths and serious injuries from London’s streets. Operators look out not just for active incidents such as accidents and collisions, but for anything that has the potential to cause one, including loose manhole covers or potholes. When one of these situations is spotted, the Predator camera is zoomed in to confirm its cause and help to diagnose a swift solution, which could include closing…