Dallas Police Department Selects ChristeR for Technology Upgrade

  • Jul 26, 2012

ChristieR, a visual display solutions company, recently gave new life to the Dallas Police Department's 24/7 Fusion Center, with a 6 units high by 12 units wide digital video wall.

The 72-unit ChristieR MicroTilesR display is part of the Center's comprehensive technology upgrade to fight crime in the City of Dallas and to gather and share intelligence information with state-level and Federal
Homeland Security.

In 2010, the Dallas Police Department, with major funding from Homeland Security, upgraded its training and special event operations room into a new state-of-the-art Fusion Center, merging information from separate 911
Center, city wide surveillance cameras, tracking systems and investigative analytical databases to improve functionality and response times within the new intelligence operations center. Equipped with new consoles, a SMART
BoardR, intelligent switching capability, and visualizing data from more than 25 sources, the Dallas Police Department, through AV solutions provider, Whitlock, turned to Christie for its visual technology.  "We recommended Christie MicroTiles for their exceptional image quality in brightness, contrast and color reproduction," explained Scott Creevy, senior
account executive with Whitlock. "The MicroTiles also offer a low cost of operation and a long track record of reliability, which made them the perfect choice for the Fusion Center."

As a result of the technology integration, up to 27  Fusion analysis detectives per day work more effectively with the added ability to monitor a comprehensive common operating picture displayed on the MicroTiles wall in real-time.  "The facility operates 24/7 so we needed a  video wall that was high resolution, durable and low maintenance," said Paul Schuster, senior corporal and special projects coordinator of the Dallas Police Department.

"Our detectives monitor close to 100 cameras all around the city, including officer locations, calls and national live events, so the Dallas Police Department needed a video wall that could help us maintain our 24-hour operation," Schuster said. "Christie MicroTiles do just that, while lowering the cost of operations."

Dallas Police Chief David O. Brown credits the Fusion Center, its technology and other new initiatives for reducing crime in Dallas for the eighth consecutive year. States Chief Brown, "It's about policing smarter, using the information and technology that is available to outsmart the criminal element."

"Christie MicroTiles self-calibrate and are designed for maximum image quality in high ambient light environments, such as the Dallas Fusion Center," Creevy said.

"With the Fusion Center's advanced technology, we are fighting crime more intelligently in the City of Dallas,"Fusion Center Commander Lt. Thomasson said. "Our detectives  have quicker access to information that can be shared responsibly with one another, with other departments and with the patrol officers working the streets."   

"Today's control rooms go beyond traditional displaying and monitoring. Integrated technology allows information to be shared anywhere; quickly, accurately, and effortlessly," said John Stark, senior director, Collaborative Visual Solutions at Christie. "The Dallas Police Department had the foresight to see the benefit of using Christie MicroTiles as the visual element of their newly integrated environment, advancing the efficiency and accuracy of their intelligence operations."  

Christie MicroTiles have built-in sensors monitoring each LED's performance, automatically adjusting brightness and color continuously for the life of the display. Built with reliable solid-state components, including LEDs rated at 65,000 hours to half brightness, no lamps or consumables need to be replaced for more than seven years. Using the strengths of both DLPR projection and LED technology, Christie MicroTiles offer substantially brighter images and a much wider color palette than conventional flat panel LCD and plasma displays. With no practical limit to the number of tiles in a display, Christie MicroTiles produce a virtually seamless canvas with an unlimited number of super-fine pixels.

 

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