Thermal Imagers Deployed
Canadian metals processor steps up with thermal assistance and HD cameras
- By Suzi Abell
- Aug 01, 2019
Dominion Nickel Alloys Ltd. operates on a global
scale. Dominion specializes in the purchasing, sorting,
processing, and marketing of a broad range of
high temperature and specialty nickel-based alloys.
Dominion’s operations, on the outskirts of Toronto,
are based at an approximately 20-acre facility where different
merchants bring all manner of high-value scrap metal for processing.
The biggest risk for Dominion is someone making it into the yard
undetected and stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars of metal.
The surveillance technology initially installed at the site was triggered
by outdoor motion sensors that activated any one of several
PTZ cameras for verification. Unfortunately, this setup generated far
too many false alarms to be effective.
Deploying thermal technology was an upgrade intended to eliminate
the challenges from outdoor motion sensor technology. Ed Bodbyl
and his team at Sonitrol of Canada designed a video surveillance
system for Dominion comprised 14 3xLOGIC thermal imagers, each
paired with a 3xLOGIC HD 3MP bullet camera for verification.
Cameras record to a 3xLOGIC NVR located on site.
Full Coverage
The entire yard is covered with this 14 thermal imager/14 HD camera
deployment, offering crisp HD images during the day and 36-degree
thermal images at night, backed by HD video. This solution is especially
helpful because the original motion-based PTZ deployment
resulted in high false alarm levels and limited detection range. The
combination of thermal technology and HD cameras paired with live
Sonitrol monitoring brought the number of false alarms down.
By significantly reducing false alarms, operator fatigue and potentially
costly mistakes are effectively cut down. All video images are
monitored by the Sonitrol central station and the operator will take
action on alarm to either summon a private guard service or request
that law enforcement be dispatched to the scene.
Camera views are dictated by what areas need to be monitored for
intrusion detection, and the end user has access to these images for
operational use and incident review.
Benefits of the Solution
The VERA thermal imager allows you to see where you never could
before. When using high-contrast thermal imaging, the results are a
dramatic reduction in false alarms. Unlike standard thermal imagers,
VERA provides the advantage of verification and detection in an allin-
one device. The 3-megapixel IP camera provides dual-streaming
high-definition video at a full 2048 x 1536 pixels for video surveillance
applications requiring superior clarity and detail.
The servers are fully-integrated intelligent video appliances. Preconfigured
with VIGIL VMS software, these
high-performance servers represent a cost-effective,
flexible solution that allows users to address
their current needs with the ability to scale to
meet tomorrow’s demands.
This article originally appeared in the July/August 2019 issue of Security Today.
About the Author
Suzi Abell is the marketing manager at 3xLOGIC.