Hikvision Provides Security and Confidence Tools for South African Campus

It seems there isn‘t a week that goes by when some type of horrific schoolrelated incident is in the news. This phenomena is not linked to any country, but the unfortunate script usually includes someone - often a student - arriving on campus intent on doing harm to fellow classmates and the faculty. While this represents the absolute worst case scenario, there is also a less dramatic variety that has recently received a great deal of attention: bullying.

A great deal of effort has been put into the elimination of student bullying. Much time has been spent on the best possible methods to reduce this phenomena, and one tool that is gaining popularity is the use of professional CCTV solutions. In South Africa‘s Western Cape Province lies the town of Strand. Known for its beautiful beaches, the town also has excellent academic facilities, with one of these being Strand High School. Fortunately, Strand High School offers a peaceful learning environment to provide an excellent Afrikaans school education for its student body. Recently however, as a proactive measure, school administrators drew up plans for a security solution that would firstly make sure that school rules and regulations are adhered to and, secondly, decrease occurrences of bullying. To achieve this it would be necessary to offer clear video surveillance of school entrances and exits, monitor any person entering onto, or leaving, school property and ensure video surveillance over the athletic fields and general school grounds.

Effectiveness on a Budget

In essence, administrators wanted a CCTV solution that would provide surveillance over access control and the school‘s general grounds. To turn this idea into a reality, Hikvision‘s Official South African Distributor, Sensor, and South African security installer combined to design, and install, a solution that addresses these security goals. Ben Bekker, Director of the installers Cam Live Vision, noted, „It became clear in the initial stages that the specifications of the client, combined with school budget concerns, required that very specific cameras were used. We had to be very intelligent about designing a solution that addressed these often disparate goals."

Ben Bekker opted for a PTZ model to cover surrounding school grounds (including playing fields, outdoor cafeteria, and parking garage), as well providing optimal viewing of school entrances and exits. Specifically, the Smart PTZ DS-2DF7284 series 2MP network IR PTZ dome camera was chosen. With units placed on the front and back of the school building, PTZ functionality offers a full 360° of coverage. However, this is only one piece of the puzzle. Another was a 20x optical zoom that provides the coverage needed for all the school, in its entirety. „It‘s the 2MP resolution that allows the School Principal and Vice Principal to accurately identify an individual, whether they are at the main front entrance or behind the rugby field," explained Mr. Bekker. „This model‘s IR capability and 150m IR range are definitely of use to give us security during the night, even if students are not present," Mr. Bekker added.

Challenging Lighting Conditions

The company‘s box cameras were chosen for indoor locations and for specific outdoor areas. The DS-2CD864F-E(W) 1.3MP network box camera was combined with a TV0309D-MPIR lens to view indoor school hallways, indoor cafeteria, and outdoor courtyard space. As this courtyard is largely covered, weatherproofing was not a camera issue. As with the previous speed dome, great megapixel resolution was also a must. However with the addition of the IR lens, spaces that experience difficult lighting are properly addressed. This is due to the lens‘ vari-focal IR function and auto iris, providing clear images in a quickly-changing lighting environment. „One example is our school‘s interior hallways," said Mr. Bekker.

„These hallway doors open directly to the outside so when a door is suddenly opened, normally dark areas are immediately saturated with bright sunlight, requiring this lens and IR functionality when returning to the dark."

Peak Times

Since Strand High School‘s Principal and Vice- Principal use their PCs to conveniently monitor this IP solution, the Hikvision‘s iVMS Software was combined with the DS-9632NI-ST embedded NVR. As this device supports 32 IP camera channels, it allows these administrators access to whichever camera is currently needed. This comes in particularly handy during peak hours, such as the morning when the students arrive and the afternoon when they leave for the day. After only one week using this solution, instances of bullying decreased. Mr. Bekker noted this was confirmed by both students and Strand‘s

Principal. Furthermore, teachers can now review high-quality video to easily identify students who break school rules, such as leaving school grounds during breaks. Importantly, everyone entering and exiting school premises is closely monitored, bringing Strand High School both security and a sense of confidence during these changing modern times.