WHEN CAMERAS SUFFER FROM PARTIAL BLINDNESS, WHO WILL GIVE THEM SIGHT?
When your car is not safe
Since Mwangi’s car was stolen from the parking lot 3 weeks ago, the parking lot Manager had been thinking seriously about their predicament. Mwangi’s car brought to total 5 cars that had been stolen in that car park in the last 10 months under his watch. The manager had already heard some rumors out there that he could be the one behind the car thefts. Partly he was angry at the harsh rumors but partly he understood where the speculations were coming from. People out there just did not understand why the thefts were still going on despite the recent installations of the CCTV cameras. He had been looking around for a CCTV installation professional that would come and assess the already existent system and advise him accordingly on the way forward.
The CCTV Professional arrives to conduct assessment (Vulnerability Assessment)
When the professional Peter arrived that afternoon, the parking lot manager took him on a detailed tour of the parking lot and showed him where all the cameras were located. When they got back to his office, Peter asked the manager why they had those cameras installed in those specific positions. The manager was shocked. He wondered why a professional was asking him such a question. Peter explained that every surveillance system should seek to answer the questions “What do I need to see?” & “Why do I need to see it?” This would ensure that the cameras were placed strategically to achieve the objectives mandated for them. Peter continued explaining that the choice of a CCTV camera in particular depends on the nature of activity to be observed. To provide guidance to a system user, four categories are usually used to best reflect the type of activity being observed. An installer is then able to fit a suitable camera to meet the requirements.
Securing things is the key objective of security
a.) Monitoring: A figure occupies 5% of the screen height. It is good for contextualization since one is able to monitor the movement of people in a wide area. It is usually used in car parks.
b.) Detection: The Person is now 10% of the screen size. Can’t be recognized but suspicious activity can be picked up. Usually used in display areas.
c.) Recognition: Figure occupies 50% of the screen size. Viewers can be able to recognize a perpetrator with a high degree of certainty. Usually used at payment points or vehicle getaways.
d.) Identification: Person is 120% of screen size. Picture quality and detail are sufficient to enable the identity of an individual without any doubt. Usually used at entrances/exits and service counters. The Manager now understood that their cameras had just been installed without regard to the extent to which images would be put into us. It was finally time to right the past wrongs and ensure that they would be able to prevent more thefts from happening and even if they did that the culprits would be caught!
From the foregoing, it is apparent that ignorance can be quite costly especially on critical areas such as security. Omissions on the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP ) in areas where life and property are at stake cannot be allowed to persist in our today’s world.Key training is critical as it equips one with the right skills to carry out necessary risk assessment and the eventual installation of the CCTV System. Besides it makes such works cost effective.
APPROPRIATE CCTV DESIGN, INSTALLATION & MANAGEMENT TRAINING BRIDGES THE GAP!
There is no denying that Installation of CCTV requires skills which have to be learned in the right environment, using the right tools as well as delivered by those who have been in the industry for a substantive period.
Why not join our next CCTV Training Program to appropriate this highly valuable skill?
