Democratizing Access

Democratizing Access

Dover International Speedway implements safety and security for NASCAR races and Firefly Music Festival

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.

Featured

  • Freedom of Choice

    In today's security landscape, we are witnessing a fundamental transformation in how organizations manage digital evidence. Law enforcement agencies, campus security teams, and large facility operators face increasingly complex challenges with expanding video data, tightening budget constraints and inflexible systems that limit innovation. Read Now

  • Accelerating a Pathway

    There is a new trend touting the transformational qualities of AI’s ability to deliver actionable data and predictive analysis that in many instances, seems to be a bit of an overpromise. The reality is that very few solutions in the cyber-physical security (CPS) space live up to this high expectation with the one exception being the new generation of Physical Identity and Access Management (PIAM) software – herein recategorized as PIAM+. Read Now

  • Protecting Your Zones

    It is game day. You can feel the crowd’s energy. In the parking lot. At the gate. In the stadium. On the concourse. Fans are eager to party. Food and merchandise vendors ready themselves for the rush. Read Now

  • Street Smarts

    The ongoing acceptance of AI and advanced data analytics has allowed surveillance camera technology to shift from being a tactical tool to a strategic business solution. Combining traditional surveillance technology with AI-based data-driven insights can streamline transportation systems, enhance traffic management, improve situational awareness, optimize resource allocation and streamline emergency response procedures. Read Now

  • The Progress of Biometrics

New Products

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”

  • QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    The latest Qualcomm® Vision Intelligence Platform offers next-generation smart camera IoT solutions to improve safety and security across enterprises, cities and spaces. The Vision Intelligence Platform was expanded in March 2022 with the introduction of the QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC), which delivers superior artificial intelligence (AI) inferencing at the edge.

  • ResponderLink

    ResponderLink

    Shooter Detection Systems (SDS), an Alarm.com company and a global leader in gunshot detection solutions, has introduced ResponderLink, a groundbreaking new 911 notification service for gunshot events. ResponderLink completes the circle from detection to 911 notification to first responder awareness, giving law enforcement enhanced situational intelligence they urgently need to save lives. Integrating SDS’s proven gunshot detection system with Noonlight’s SendPolice platform, ResponderLink is the first solution to automatically deliver real-time gunshot detection data to 911 call centers and first responders. When shots are detected, the 911 dispatching center, also known as the Public Safety Answering Point or PSAP, is contacted based on the gunfire location, enabling faster initiation of life-saving emergency protocols.