High-Speed Security

Do you understand the latest security technology available to the self-storage industry? Have your vendors explained its importance or how you can save money and create a more efficient service for customers?

The latest trends in self-storage connectivity have a long track record in other industries. Now these technologies will allow you to provide better solutions and future proof your facilities. This article describes the latest security trends, provides insight to their benefits, and addresses considerations to make when determining whether to implement them.

Traditional Connectivity

Traditional self-storage security installations include a computer in the office with an access control and security controller connected via a serial, or RS232, cable. A wire runs from the controller to communicate with remote devices like keypads, relay boards, cameras and multiplexers.

For the past 30 years, this solution was the standard. It had connectivity and bandwidth limitations, but it worked OK for small installations, allowing them to open and close gates and place alarms on individual doors. However, you had to directly connect the controller to the computer, and you could not easily access it unless you were on site. Additionally, you were severely limited when you wanted to add a high-quality security solution using high-resolution cameras and recording devices.

Ethernet Connections

Today, your access control and security vendors provide controllers that support a standard RJ-45 Ethernet connection and communicate to the computer network via TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol). Youre probably familiar with these technologies if you have a broadband connection; its how you connect to the Internet.

If your controller supports Ethernet, you just have to connect it to the facilitys network and configure from any computer on the network that has the controller software loaded. Once the controller is installed, you can access the controller board via a virtual private network (VPN) and manage your site from anywhere via an Internet connection. A typical configuration is shown in Figure 1. (Note: You cant put the controller just anywhere in the facilityit should be in a secure location.)

Figure 1

Security Cameras

Over the past two years, a wide range of security cameras using Ethernet and TCP/IP connectivity has been introduced. Most vendors have stopped innovation on their traditional analog cameras and DVRs to concentrate on the more flexible IP cameras. You should ask your supplier whether you need to install or upgrade to a digital camera solution and what the benefits of this are over the traditional analog.

These new cameras look exactly the same as their predecessors, with fixed, dome and pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) configuration. The installation of the cameras looks very similar too, requiring communications cabling, weatherproof enclosures, and heaters and blowers if mounted outside.

However, digital cameras have some subtle differences. For instance, you can now run audio, motion detection, PTZ controls and even power over the Category 5 cable instead of running these over separate lines, making connectivity much easier. These cameras are intelligent and can determine when to capture and send images. The additional bandwidth available using Ethernet enhances the resolution and quality of the video.

This new end-to-end digital solution means customers can view images in high definition and use a network video recorder (NVR) to capture them in a true digital formatmeaning the quality of the recording is exactly the same as the quality of the live image. With analog solutions, the recording to a digital format required a conversion, which inevitably degraded the quality of the recorded image.

Facilities that currently have an analog solution and want to upgrade can use the latest digital video recorders (DVRs) that support a direct digital interface. This lets you add digital cameras one at a time as your budget allows.

Digital Video Advantages

Moving to an all-digital video solution sounds like a great idea, but you need to make sure your network can support the additional bandwidth it generates. An IP camera capturing video at MPEG 4 will send a steady stream of 11.5 Mb/s (megabits per second) through your network. If you only have a 100 Mb/s network, youll quickly overrun the available bandwidth with these cameras.

Thankfully, the data-networking market has a wide range of products to solve these issues. An ideal solution would be a switch with 16 10/100 Ethernet ports and a 2 gigabit Ethernet port. You connect your cameras to the 10/100 ports and your NVR to the gigabit Ethernet port, and your bandwidth issue is alleviated.

Youll also need to decide what information you need to store on the NVR. A single camera can use 124 GB (gigabytes) per day of storage capacity. Ideally, youll configure the cameras to capture information when a predefined event or alarm occurs to limit the amount of storage capacity required. With an all-digital solution, your stored images are identical to what was originally seen on the screen, in high definition, making it easier to identify people, license plates and suspicious activity on and around your facility.

Future Connectivity Options

A new technology that will improve connectivity even more is Power over Ethernet (PoE), which will allow you to run power over two unused wires of the Category 5 cable. This technology requires a specialized switch but will allow you to use a single wire between the switch and keypad, door controller, mux or relay board, combining communications and power over the same cable. An entire site can use the connection, dramatically simplifying installation. Look for these devices later this year.

Wireless and Video

With the advent of digital video, many storage owners inquire about using a wireless network to communicate to their remote cameras. The most common wireless standard is 802.11g, which uses an Ethernet protocol to send data at 54 Mb/s. On the surface, it seems like you could connect three or four cameras to a wireless network, but thats not the case.

The 54 Mb/s bandwidth is only for ideal situations and limited distance. Once you get past 100 feed, the available bandwidth can drop significantly, eliminating the advantages of the wireless network. If at all possible, a hardwired solution using PoE cameras provides the most consistent communication option.

The self-storage industry is no different than any other in that technology comes at you very quickly, and you need to understand when to embrace the new capabilities available. If you know the competitive advantages of these technologies and how to market them, it will give you an edge over your competition, leading to higher occupancies and profit.

Mark Byrne-Quinn is the marketing/product manager for PTI Integrated Systems, which provides advanced access control and security solutions for the self-storage industry. He has a strong background in driving leading-edge technology with companies like Compaq and Intel. For more information, call 800.331.6224; e-mail [email protected]; visit www.ptisecurity.com.