Torbay Council has had an upgrade of its public space surveillance system. After winning a competitive tender, OpenView Security Solutions has upgraded the CCTV control room at the council’s head offices in Castle Circus in Torquay and installed 120 HD wireless digital cameras, connected through a new town centre wireless network. The new system has been progressed over the last 12 months but was officially switched on in October 2019. The council says it’s for public safety, to reduce crime and help find vulnerable missing people.
Steve Cox, Environmental Health Manager at Torbay Council says: “The ability to demonstrate a successful track record in successfully completing many other similar high profile projects and the cost were key factors in awarding OpenView this contract. The installation was completed without any service disruption and we have been impressed by the way that OpenView has worked closely with us ever since and the high calibre of the specialist technicians that were assigned to the job.”
Torbay’s £420,000 project to upgrade the public space CCTV network was funded by the council with £60,000 contribution from Alison Hernandez, the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
Alison Hernandez said that CCTV has proved its worth time and time again in terms of deterring crime and convicting criminals, but it can do so much more than that, she added. “Across Devon and Cornwall we have all too many cases of high risk missing people, with 11,114 people reported missing in the year to March 2019. High quality CCTV is a vital tool in the armoury when it comes to finding these vulnerable individuals. It also helps to protect front-line police officers and compliments the roll-out of body worn video.”
Some 120 new IndigoVision HD cameras are in town centre and multi-story car park locations, and Romford-based OpenView fitted the CCTV control room with a new IndigoVision Control Center video management suite. This provides Torbay with detailed images for most of the public CCTV network. This was installed during quieter periods to minimise service disruption. The control room has radio links to police, retailers and other partners such as street pastors.
Also installed was a wireless IP network comprising point-to-point links from millimeter wave wireless network product company Siklu, and wireless connection product firm InfiNet, to connect across the seaside resorts of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham (pictured). As well as providing fibre-like performance and low latency, the new IP network is future-proofed and provides enough bandwidth the installer said to add more cameras to further extend network coverage.
Torbay’s Lib Dem council leader Steve Darling said: “The new wireless CCTV infrastructure will enable us to achieve significant revenue savings by eliminating the need for expensive leased fibre lines. These savings will be offset against the capital repayment costs making the investment for the council cost neutral. In addition, the new digital system captures the highest quality images. I have spoken with the two inspectors responsible for neighbourhood policing in Torbay and they were delighted at the improved standard of picture that the new digital CCTV system has generated and felt this would have a significant impact in tackling crime on our streets.”
Chief Superintendent Keith Perkin, Devon and Cornwall Police commander of the South Devon area, added: “This will support our efforts in reducing crime, keeping people safer and bringing to justice those who are intent on breaking the law. Too often, many escape justice because of the quality of the images captured on CCTV. The new technology will undoubtedly help us in our investigations, leading to more people being put before the courts.”
And Andy Ward, Sales Director at OpenView said: “The award of this important contact demonstrates that OpenView is now widely recognised as being one of the leading independent suppliers of CCTV and wireless infrastructure solutions that deliver a high quality and resilient service. With highly skilled, manufacturer certified technicians strategically located across the UK, we have a unique ability to meet the requirements of projects of every size in short timescales.”
