The Salvador Shopping mall migrates its CCTV system to IP with Genetec

Genetec's Security Center solution has allowed the Brazilian Salvador Shopping mall to migrate its security infrastructure to an IP platform. An open source solution that combines video surveillance, access control and license plate recognition.

Considered one of the ten largest in Brazil, The Salvador Shopping mall has migrated its old CCTV system (Circuito Cerrado de Televisión) analog to IP. And it has done so using the Security Center solution from Genetec, a platform that combines video surveillance, access control and license plate recognition.

This project started in mid 2013 but it was not until this month of February when its installation was completed. The company responsible for its implementation has been the integrator Estrela, which opted for Genetec technology “because it is an open platform.” (open source) and standardized, which gives us the freedom to choose any hardware manufacturer. We analyze other possibilities for video management, but we gave up because they forced us to always work with the same brand of hardware. Con Security Center, If we decide to change cameras in the future, we have a wide variety of solutions compatible with Genetec”, explains Alecsandro Vinicius, head of the Security Division of Salvador Shopping.

Vinicius also highlights the high image quality of the Security Center solution as a determining factor for its choice, as well as its ease in searching for images and the possibility of customizing the system according to the operator's requirements..

At the moment, there are installed 196 cameras, 92 of which are mobile and 104 fijas, half located inside and the rest in the parking lot. The staff of the Salvador Shopping Security Division plan to expand the project to 300 cameras for 2015.

One of the biggest challenges they had to face in this project was having to change all the fiber optic cabling., Necessary for IP video surveillance system, as well as the transmission of data through this network. “Since this shopping center is very large and some cameras are more than a hundred meters from the nearest rack, which makes it difficult to transmit information via fiber optics”, comments Vinicius.

With this migration, the Salvador Shopping mall has achieved a more efficient closed-circuit television system that “helps us clarify the facts.”, allows us to identify suspects and provide the images to the police. This translates into greater comfort and safety for visitors, which are our greatest concern.”.