Sea-Tac Airport Selects Genetec’s Omnicast For Major System Upgrade

Genetec announced recently that the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport has selected and has recently completed installation of Genetec’s Omnicast IP video surveillance as part of a major video system upgrade.

With more than 30 million passengers traveling through the airport each year, Sea-Tac, a division of the Port of Seattle, was looking to upgrade its six disparate and analog-based video surveillance systems with one fully merged IP-based solution.

Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies, an Indiana-based security and IT integrator, suggested Omnicast for its open-architecture so Sea-Tac could leverage existing hardware and infrastructure investments, its user-friendliness to reduce the operator learning curve, and its advanced features that have helped Sea-Tac be more pro-active, efficient and environmentally friendly.

The entire system to date consists of hundreds of existing analog cameras from vendors including Bosch, Panasonic and Pelco that are IP-enabled with encoders. Sea-Tac Airport also opted for Pivot3 Serverless Computing  storage, archiving recorded video on 11 virtual servers as well as an additional nine physical servers which support Omnicast’s directory and failover archiving.

With the ability in Omnicast to pre-set recording resolutions of all cameras, and Pivot3’s cloud computing servers, Sea-Tac quickly noticed huge storage-space savings, and a reduction in their energy consumption, which was a primary concern for senior management at the airport.

“The Port of Seattle has an initiative to be the greenest port authority in the country,” said Chris Evans, Electronic Systems Foreman with System Administrator responsibilities for the Physical Security Systems at Sea-Tac Airport. “With the Genetec-Pivot3 solution, we have been able to reduce the amount of equipment in our main equipment room by 80 percent It’s been pretty amazing”

Other features of Omnicast, such as its user-friendliness and support for virtual matrix functionality have been true advantages to Sea-Tac. Operators have warmed to the system easily and this has allowed administrators to focus on implementing more back-end processes that will streamline operations. Similarly, moving from a hardware matrix to virtual matrix allows Omnicast’s Live Viewer to drive the video wall display where operators can monitor pre-programmed event-alarms for more efficient decision-making.

The open architecture and advanced software development kit of the Omnicast system also helped Sea-Tac fully integrate the IP video surveillance system to a third-party access control solution, as well as to an internal application that provides situational awareness to key managers at the airport.

“From the integrator perspective, working with Genetec was a true partnership which offered us a full turn-key approach,” said Eric Paffenroth, branch manager at Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies. “Genetec fits very well in enterprise-type projects like these, and looking at risk analysis, we felt very comfortable going ahead with the Genetec solution at Sea-Tac.”

“Working with Ingersoll Rand and our partners on the Sea-Tac Airport project was truly a collaborative effort with long-lasting benefits for the end user,” says Danny Peleg, director of transportation market for Genetec. “I also commend Sea-Tac Airport for not only looking at the efficiency gains they can experience with Omnicast, but for truly leveraging its capabilities to be more green.”

Featured

  • From Surveillance to Intelligence

    Years ago, it would have been significantly more expensive to run an analytic like that — requiring a custom-built solution with burdensome infrastructure demands — but modern edge devices have made it accessible to everyone. It also saves time, which is a critical factor if a missing child is involved. Video compression technology has played a critical role as well. Over the years, significant advancements have been made in video coding standards — including H.263, MPEG formats, and H.264—alongside compression optimization technologies developed by IP video manufacturers to improve efficiency without sacrificing quality. The open-source AV1 codec developed by the Alliance for Open Media—a consortium including Google, Netflix, Microsoft, Amazon and others — is already the preferred decoder for cloud-based applications, and is quickly becoming the standard for video compression of all types. Read Now

  • Cost: Reactive vs. Proactive Security

    Security breaches often happen despite the availability of tools to prevent them. To combat this problem, the industry is shifting from reactive correction to proactive protection. This article will examine why so many security leaders have realized they must “lead before the breach” – not after. Read Now

  • Achieving Clear Audio

    In today’s ever-changing world of security and risk management, effective communication via an intercom and door entry communication system is a critical communication tool to keep a facility’s staff, visitors and vendors safe. Read Now

  • Beyond Apps: Access Control for Today’s Residents

    The modern resident lives in an app-saturated world. From banking to grocery delivery, fitness tracking to ridesharing, nearly every service demands another download. But when it comes to accessing the place you live, most people do not want to clutter their phone with yet another app, especially if its only purpose is to open a door. Read Now

  • Survey: 48 Percent of Worshippers Feel Less Safe Attending In-Person Services

    Almost half (48%) of those who attend religious services say they feel less safe attending in-person due to rising acts of violence at places of worship. In fact, 39% report these safety concerns have led them to change how often they attend in-person services, according to new research from Verkada conducted online by The Harris Poll among 1,123 U.S. adults who attend a religious service or event at least once a month. Read Now

New Products

  • Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden Door Controls is pleased to announce that, in response to soaring customer demand, it has expanded its range of ValueWave™ no-touch switches to include a narrow (slimline) version with manual override. This override button is designed to provide additional assurance that the request to exit switch will open a door, even if the no-touch sensor fails to operate. This new slimline switch also features a heavy gauge stainless steel faceplate, a red/green illuminated light ring, and is IP65 rated, making it ideal for indoor or outdoor use as part of an automatic door or access control system. ValueWave™ no-touch switches are designed for easy installation and trouble-free service in high traffic applications. In addition to this narrow version, the CM-221 & CM-222 Series switches are available in a range of other models with single and double gang heavy-gauge stainless steel faceplates and include illuminated light rings.

  • 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.”

  • Unified VMS

    AxxonSoft introduces version 2.0 of the Axxon One VMS. The new release features integrations with various physical security systems, making Axxon One a unified VMS. Other enhancements include new AI video analytics and intelligent search functions, hardened cybersecurity, usability and performance improvements, and expanded cloud capabilities