Democratizing Access
Dover International Speedway implements safety and security for NASCAR races and Firefly Music Festival
- By Barbara Rizzatti
- Oct 06, 2020
The Dover International Speedway’s high-banked,
one-mile concrete oval race track is known as “The
Monster Mile”. It hosts six thrilling NASCAR races
a year at the complex that covers more than 800
square acres in Kent County, Delaware. In the summer,
the speedway grounds are also home to the four-day Firefly
Festival with more than 100 bands playing across six stages — the
East Coast’s leading outdoor music event.
Jim Hosfelt, director of Public Safety and Track Operations at
Dover International Speedway Inc., explained that with nearly 50,000
spectators on race days, and more than 70,000 attending the Firefly
festival, the Speedway’s video surveillance system is a critical tool
enabling their team to provide efficiency, safety and security for the
complex.
PROACTIVE MANAGEMENT FOR
SMOOTH OPERATIONS
“During non-event times, our Public Safety Office uses the
system around the clock to monitor activity,” Hosfelt said. “We
use our cameras as proactively as possible, looking for issues before
they occur. I’ve always been a firm believer in having a solid
video system, I’ve worked with Advantech for many years, and
the system fits our needs very well.”
The team currently covers the Speedway with a mix of 25 Axis
Communications IP network cameras, including PTZ and 360°
multi-image panoramic models. They routinely use additional video
feeds from smartphones and mobile devices pushed to the system
via the Milestone XProtect mobile app. All video is monitored
live then archived to a set of Milestone Husky NVRs.
“We have 360° cameras covering the entrance gates, so we have
a full view of patrons coming in, going to their checkpoint, scanning
tickets and monitoring traffic flow,” Hosfelt said. “There are
so many people, we can actually see a wave of them coming in real
time and decide if we need to open more gates. From just a resource
deployment standpoint, the video system is very beneficial to make
sure everyone is moving through as efficiently and safely as possible.”
THE MOBILE VIDEO ADVANTAGE: TOTAL OVERVIEW
AND ALERTS
The XProtect Mobile client is a free app for all Milestone
VMS. With the app, users securely view, play back and export
video, listen to audio and speak through the camera using the
Push-to-Talk button. They can also respond to integrated access
control requests and receive push notifications from triggered
alarms sent directly to their mobile devices. The XProtect Mobile
app enables fast response to incidents by controlling outputs
remotely and pushing live GPS-enabled video from a mobile device’s
camera back to the XProtect system — from anywhere.
“Being able to walk around the entire complex with a device
streaming video back and forth is a huge benefit for us,” Hosfelt
said. “I spend much of my time in the Operations Center, but if
I’m out in the field, or if I’m backstage meeting with the security
group for the entertainers, I can still see what’s going on all
around the speedway through my phone. It allows us to make
timely and informed decisions.”
TEAMWORK IN JOINT OPERATIONS ACROSS LAW
ENFORCEMENT, MEDICAL AND TRANSPORTATION
Ryan Kelly, PSP, Advantech, explained that a multi-monitor
workstation has been set up at the Joint Operations Center where
all camera feeds are constantly monitored live, as well as remote
stations in Hosfelt’s and his assistant’s offices. On event days, the
Joint Operations Center comprises people from all law enforcement
agencies, including the FBI, Homeland Security, the Dover
Police Department, the Delaware State Police, as well as medical
teams and the Delaware Division of Transportation.
“For the day-to-day routine operations, we have three full-time people.
If it’s a race weekend, our combined agency numbers swell to more
than 800 people. During the music festival, our numbers grow to more
than 1,200 people per day. This includes security, law enforcement,
EMS, paramedics, doctors, nurses, all the partners that work the festival,
and we consider them all part of our team here at the speedway.”
The Joint Operation Center is designed to share video feeds
with the Delaware Department of Transportation, other relevant
agencies and partners.
“We can get access to local, surrounding DOT cameras to
monitor traffic, and often the music festival managers may set
up another, temporary video system as well. Thanks to the open
platform Milestone VMS, we can bring all this together,” Kelly
said. “So, with any cameras that we have, everyone can collaborate
within our Joint Operations Center, helping to ensure we deliver
an enjoyable and safe event for our fans.”
OPEN PLATFORM VIDEO INTEGRATION
FOR BETTER RESPONSE AND ANALYSES
The open platform VMS supports more than 8,500 different security
devices from more than 150 manufacturers. Technology partners
provide network video cameras, NVRs, storage, access control,
alarm and detection, video analytics, GPS, laser scanners and
emergency call boxes. Systems integration shares the data between
systems, devices and components for an efficient, unified solution.
“We had an incident during our last race where a spectator
went into cardiac arrest. We were able to monitor the situation
and respond optimally, as well as direct the emergency team
directly to the location,” Hosfelt said. “Because of the size and
slope of the stands, the live video was a huge benefit in getting
the right people to the right spot as quickly as possible; much
faster and more effectively than radio patrol trying to verbally
communicate the situation.”
Additionally, the team reviews video information post-event
as a way to evaluate performance and improve operations. Hosfelt
said they look at everything from security improvements to
marketing and sales, vendor and concession stand positioning,
parking and crowd control. The system is used to monitor and
evaluate the infield as well, ensuring the safety of speedway workers,
vendors and drivers in their areas.
CROSSING THE FINISH LINE
“After a race or festival, the tens of thousands of people all
want to get home, and we need to see how many people are waiting,
and where, for transportation to different checkpoints,” Hosfelt
said. “With the video system, we can monitor area capacity
and see any over-crowded spots or bottlenecks, make real-time
adjustments, and share the information with our neighboring
businesses to transition to alternate plans.”
From the beginning, the team wanted to build on an open
platform VMS to ensure that the system will always have the ability
to upgrade, adjust, and expand as more events occur at the
speedway grounds.
“Flexibility and reliability are our primary concerns,” Hosfelt
said. “With events of the size and complexity we deal with, if a
camera were to go down or if there were other
system issues, we would have a big blind spot.
The system we have performs at 100% at all
times.”
This article originally appeared in the October 2020 issue of Security Today.