Upgraded Surveillance at Izmir International Airport in Turkey

As part of the construction of a new domestic terminal at Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport, the airport operator TAV EGE and systems integrator Sensormatic Guvenlik Hizmetleri created an integrated surveillance system that enables security personnel to monitor both the old and new terminals using one platform.

Part of Turkey‘s tourist region, Izmir is also a major import-export center, ranking just behind Bursa and Istanbul. Because of burgeoning tourism and business needs, the area has seen a steady increase in air traffic and Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport currently ranks fourth among the country‘s airports for passenger traffic. The introduction and growth of low-cost air carriers also prompted the need to create a new 200,000m² domestic terminal with eight passenger gates and a multi-level parking garage with more than 2,500 spaces. TAV Airport Holdings is Turkey‘s leading airport operations company, operating airports in Turkey, Georgia, Tunisia, Macedonia, Saudi Arabia and Croatia. TAV and its contracting arm, TAV-Ege, hold the operating rights for the domestic and international terminals at Izmir airport until 2032.

The existing terminal was operating on a video surveillance and access control system originally installed in 2001. With the construction of the new domestic terminal, a platform needed to be put in place that would accommodate the use of existing technology at the old terminal, such as analog cameras, with a new, IP-based infrastructure and all the modern, attendant products in the new building.

Old Beside New
For its integrated solution, TAV, together with the systems integrator Sensormatic Guvenlik Hizmetleri, chose Tyco Security Products‘ victor unified security solution. The supplier provides access control, video, location-based tracking and intrusion solutions in over 177 countries around the world, in multiple languages and employs over 2,800 employees globally. Now, using a single interface, security personnel at the airport gained the ability to manage live and recorded video via multiple VideoEdge NVRs, also from Tyco Security Products. These allow the nearly 700 analog cameras located in the old terminal to migrate to the IP-based system, along with 600 new IP cameras that were installed in the new terminal. VideoEdge allows multiple video streams for live or recorded viewing, including alarm-based incidents. The recorders also provide embedded video analytics to help security officers recognize and investigate suspicious activities in real time, such as loitering or objects left behind.

The airport‘s new system also includes the Software House C-Cure 9000 access control platform for security and event management for monitoring activities, managing personnel and creating reports. The access control platform also serves as a redundant system to the victor security management system. The use of the C-Cure 9000 access control system also helped TAV personnel to have control over access to restricted areas such as customs, the apron and parts of the terminal. The integration between the CCTV and access control systems also alerts operators if an alarm occurs at an access control reader by automatically triggering the view of the related camera. The system is integrated with the airport‘s fire systems to assist staff with proper procedures during an emergency, and is also enabled for integration with the airport‘s perimeter security system.

Growth Potential
In migrating to IP-based technology, the airport was able to replace about 120 older monitors and 30 DVRs. New display monitors from AG Neovo were added along with a Bosch public address and intercom system. The security platform serves as the backbone for the integrated PA and intercom. Although no firm plans are in place to add cameras, the scalability of the overall system based on victor, VideoEdge and C-Cure makes it easy for the airport to expand its video and recording capabilities in future. The integrator Sensormatic, part of the Securitas group of companies, together with airport officials ensured that an additional 25 percent of capacity was built into the system for future installations and upgrades.

Sensormatic, also took the lead on technical and operator training, conducting a one-week seminar and locating a dedicated technician at the airport to assist operators and security personnel as necessary. “The migration to an IP-based platform was our main goal,” said Adil Akkaya, Systems Coordinator at TAV Construction and Operation, “and we easily achieved that by continuing our relationship with Sensormatic and selecting Tyco on which to build our surveillance and access system.”