Security Press Releases

RVR gets CCTV on the road at Silverdale Tours



CCTV on its own can be a useful deterrent to crime. CCTV combined with a professionally delivered remote monitoring service, however, takes the effectiveness of CCTV to a new level, as Nottinghamshire-based Silverdale Tours Limited recently discovered.

Silverdale had a major issue. It needed to protect a fleet of more than 50 vehicles garaged at its new headquarters in Colwick, Nottingham. With coaches sometimes valued in excess of £300,000, and with vandalism and break-ins occurring on neighbouring sites, it realised that security was a necessity, not a luxury.

Changes in government employment legislation meant that certain solutions, involving manned guarding for example, were no longer viable. The cost was prohibitive, for no discernible improvement in security. This led the company to explore the option of electronic surveillance, which in turn has led to a solution that is already more than proving its worth as Managing Director Sean Doherty explains:

“The obvious solution to our security needs was CCTV, but our initial assessment was that CCTV in itself was not as effective as having guards on-site. Based on previous experience we looked at remote video monitoring, and specifically Remote Video Response (RVR).”

The new depot has both static cameras and VCL domes. The cameras are integrated with the access control to see and record who enters/leaves the site and control access out of hours. Images are transmitted using Fast Vu technology over IP to the RVR monitoring station in Gloucester.

RVR is among the first to offer a complete range of bespoke solutions to meet every need, and brings a number of key benefits to customers. It has specific digitised site maps, for example, which enables operators to familiarise themselves and interact with each site, allowing them to recognise instantly where an intrusion has occurred and respond quickly and efficiently to an alarm activation.

This aspect of the service has particularly impressed Sean. “In the age of league tables, the Police are keen to use their resources in a manner that achieves a conviction. The beauty of RVR is that the Police can be called while the criminals are still on site and the video evidence makes it easier for the Police to gain a conviction.”
 
Sean goes on to say: “The operators use their skills and knowledge of the site to distinguish between a false alarm and a real break in. This does wonders for our relationship with the Police as they know that when they get a call it is a verified alarm and know there is a good chance they will have evidence to convict. As a result they are always very prompt in responding to our calls.”

One of the reasons for specifying an IP solution was that Silverdale did not have an ISDN line, and as such the CCTV could be installed using the existing IT infrastructure. Not only did this save money, but it also saved significantly on installation time.

It also means that the Managing Director and Operations Director can dial in to the site from home at any time to view activities and/or in the case of an alarm activation can formally verify an alarm as being genuine from their kitchen table!