Epping Forest, London’s largest open space at about 6,000 acres, stretches 12 miles from Manor Park in east London to just north of Epping in Essex. The forest is managed by the City of London Open Spaces Department. The department sought CCTV, that avoided light pollution that harm the wildlife. The City of London relies on CCTV for security and the visual management of its staff and facilities in sometimes remote and dark areas.
The Basson Group is a long-standing preferred supplier for the City of London Open Spaces Department and was asked to supply all the infra-red (IR) cameras for the Epping Forest Office after a spate of thefts of heavy plant and farming machinery. One of the sites in the forest where this type of machinery is kept, called The Warren, has no real perimeter fence. In winter, in darkness, the area was a target for local thieves aware of the high value of the stored equipment.
The City of London had favoured using separate mains-operated illuminators that caused light pollution and was expensive in energy. As suppliers of IR CCTV cameras, the Basson Group was asked to upgrade the corporation’s hardware.
More than 20 static IR cameras now monitor the area. In particular, the IRB2 84VHQ was preferred as these cameras are designed to give clear and crisp images day and night. The IRB2 84VHQ has a central pod that houses the camera, with two further pods that contain a total of 84 IR LEDs. Separating the IR LEDs from the main camera body means that even if a spider builds a web across the front of the camera, the IR won’t reflect back into the camera iris. This also prevents the night image from being distorted by rain droplets collecting on the front of the camera glass and the IR reflecting from the rain droplets back into the camera iris.
The City of London’ was keen to avoid maintenance by having to clean the cameras regularly. Richard Barrell, Asset Management Officer at the City of London Epping Forest Office, said: “I would have no reservation in recommending The Basson Group to any business or Local Authority as an excellent, reactive, customer-driven supplier of CCTV cameras and equipment. In my experience, Basson’s cameras are among the best products that we have ever used at the City of London’s many sites.”
About Basson
The Basson Group was established in 1971 and offers CCTV infrared and light-enhancing cameras. For more information, e-mail: [email protected] or visit www.bassongroup.com.
