Nothing To Mess With
Rebuilding security for Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission after Hurricane Sandy devastation
- By Viktoriya Vudmaska
- Oct 03, 2016
In October 2012, Hurricane Sandy struck the east coast of the United States,
taking several hundred lives and causing $75 billion in damage. Among the
destruction was the security system of the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission
(PVSC). One of the largest wastewater treatment plants in the United
States. PVSC is responsible for processing 25 percent of the wastewater and
sludge in New Jersey and 17 percent in New York.
PVSC has a stated mission of enhancing the viability and environmental health
and security of 1.4 million residents in 48 municipalities, an important task that
requires maximum security and the ability to surveil operations at all times.
MISSION: REBUILD SECURITY SYSTEM DESTROYED BY HURRICANE
PVSC operates and maintains an infrastructure, which includes the Newark Bay
Treatment Plant and its 22-mile interceptor sewer line, to enable processing of
more than 300 million gallons of wastewater every day. They also administer and
operate monitoring and compliance programs to identify organic and inorganic
pollutants and prevent them from entering the waterways of the Passaic River and
its tributaries. PVSC improves the recreational and economic uses of Newark Bay,
the Passaic River, and its tributaries by removing debris and other pollutants from
shorelines and waterways through in-house and community-based river restoration
programs.
With significant responsibility for such a vast area, it is essential to have a security
system that provides a complete solution including video surveillance, visitor
management, access control and alarm management. Prior to the devastation
caused by Hurricane Sandy, PVSC relied upon a pieced-together system of analog
cameras for video surveillance. It provided the security they needed, but Christopher
O’Shea, PVSC director of security & safety, believed the ability to rebuild
after the hurricane was an opportunity to implement one interactive, state-of-theart
system.
PVSC called upon New York-based Total Recall Corp., a Convergint Technologies
company, to rebuild their security system. A provider of video-centric
security and technology surveillance solutions including command and control
centers, wireless connectivity, and video network design and management, Total
Recall was also called upon at this time to rebuild security for another hurricane
casualty: the Statue of Liberty.
FIBER-OPTIC SECURITY SYSTEM
Beginning in April of 2013, just a few months after Hurricane Sandy, Total Recall
designed and installed a singular interactive security system for PVSC that
upgraded to digital IP and streamlined all processes including video surveillance,
access control, alarm management and visitor management.
Total Recall developed a fiber-optic system for PVSC that is separate from all
other networks. More than 50 Samsung video surveillance cameras are managed
by the Omnicast video surveillance system of Security Center, the unified security
platform offered by Genetec. At PVSC, the Synergis access control system
of Security Center is used to manage more than 20 doors and 20 vehicle gates on
the property. Because PVSC includes a
lot of land acreage, they had a specific
need for vehicle gate access. Employee
vehicles equipped with hands-free bar
code scanners on car windows allow
employees convenient access through
gates. If an employee is not in a company
vehicle, they can open the gate with
their own access card or by contacting
the command center for entry.
Working from a unified security platform,
PVSC security operators are able
to streamline processes, save time, and
easily respond to events from multiple
systems within one intuitive solution.
PVSC manages security from an inhouse
monitoring station that oversees
all operations. The security building control
room is equipped with six 55-inch
monitors across one wall and an additional
six 26-inch monitors on a console
where team members assess door and
gate activities, video surveillance, ID
badging, and more. The Genetec Security
Center platform has also been integrated
with motion detection analytics,
alerting operators to events throughout
the vast complex and perimeter.
“One of the real benefits is that Total
Recall has developed a system that
is sophisticated, but is very easy to use
and manage,” O’Shea said. ”I can have
limited staff in to monitor it without
impacting the level of service, which is
the very best use of our resources.”
Total Recall’s team has developed
customized training solutions for
PVSC security employees that typically
include groups of five.
“We like to provide training in phases
to smaller groups so that we can give
them more detailed instruction,” president
of Total Recall, Jordan Heilweil
said. “We use training to help them learn
all aspects so they can maximize their
usage and take full advantage of the advanced
technical security it provides.”
200 ACRES OF 24/7
VIDEO COVERAGE
O’Shea said they have been very impressed
by the comprehensive system
that Total Recall has put in place.
“Because we have more than 200
acres that back up to the Newark Bay,
it’s a broad area to cover,” O’Shea said.
“Our facilities and our security system
were devastated by Hurricane Sandy,
but with Total Recall’s vision and execution
we were able to achieve a superior
security system as a result.”
“Although they lost their previous
system under unfortunate and disastrous
circumstances, we were happy
to help PVSC take the opportunity to
maximize the ability to have a technologically
advanced, unified security
solution,” Heilweil said. He added that
PVSC continues to expand the system
with the addition of Axis Communications
IP-video cameras and upgrades
to increase coverage of the 22-miles of
pipeline.
This article originally appeared in the October 2016 issue of Security Today.