Rooms with a View | CCTVImage
Completely different And now, as they say, for something com-
pletely different. the University of Glamorgan CCTV System.
But actually, it isn’t so different from a town centre system, as universities face the same problems as town centres as an open access site with high traffic, especially pedestrians. They also have a more specific responsibility, as a private organisation, for the safety and security of their customers, the 1,600 students living on their campuses, as well as other challenges. A member of the CCTV User Group for over a decade, it is a system I have always wanted to visit. David Mann, the security manager, is highly respected in the industry, having pre- viously been regional executive member for Wales for the Association of University Chief Security Officers (AUCSO). David was also the AUCSO representative for the CCTV User Group during the same period.
This year is the centenary of education on the main campus, which originally was used to train miners. In the 70s it gained polytechnic status and then became a university in 1992.
David Mann, security manager, Glamorgan University
It now houses a jet aeroplane to train aeronautical engineers amongst many other innovations. Further change is on the horizon with the Cardiff campus increasing in size and a merger with the University of Newport and their two campuses resulting in a lot of expansion of the CCTV system. By now I am sure David’s business plan to deal with this will be
well advanced if not completed, with the emphasis on the software rather than hardware, with some other upgrades including 42-inch screens for monitoring and the principal aim of future proofing the system to give the current six-year-old technology an additional 10 years of life, and increasing resilience and disaster contingency with duplicate control rooms.
Currently there are over 150 cameras on all their campus sites, maintained by CDS, but this is liable to double with the additional areas. The cameras are linked via the university IP network which covers all sites, and it is fortunate that the critical time for CCTV is
the evenings, whereas other network users are principally daytime. As well as the external site cameras, there are cameras in the accommodation blocks with cameras on the front doors and fire exits. Apart from CCTV, his team also monitors fire and intruder alarms, a new access control system and external motion detection sensors at the Cardiff campus.
The main control room is now located at the campus reception, with six people on duty there during the day and three at night, with someone always watching the CCTV monitors. To protect the reception staff in the accommodation office, some of the cameras also have audio recording. However, their role is wide ranging, with other responsibilities for car parking and security in its widest sense. Their SIA licences cover security, door supervisors and CCTV, and even the car park barriers have cameras providing images of those pressing the entry button or inserting an access card.
The campus is often used for conferences and even film pro- duction including Casualty, Dr Who, Stella and a Sarah Jane mystery, posing many addi- tional challenges. In terms of
effectiveness,
there are quarterly meetings between David, the local authorities and the police to discuss what’s happened and share any concerns or intel- ligence, with the computer logs
recording the day-by-
day activity. Liaison with the police is good and incidents are varied, ranging from issues which are alcohol related to a lad stealing copper pipe back tracked through the campus, and the theft of an electric wheelchair.
Altogether a fascinating visit and yet another on my list to visit again once the new system is up and running.
Spring 2013 18
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