Dallmeier electronic: new video management system for Infraserv Höchst. Infraserv Höchst is a leading site operator and service provider for the chemical, pharmaceutical and related process industries and operates one of Europe’s largest production and research sites: Industriepark Höchst in Frankfurt/Main. With solutions provided by the CCTV specialist Dallmeier from Regensburg and the system integrator PSS from Mörfelden-Walldorf, a video surveillance and security management system was implemented that provides for the reliable protection of the whole area and still allows the integration of different sub-systems.

The Industriepark Höchst is a state-of-the-art chemical and pharmaceutical business park with 22,000 employees, boasting an optimum infrastructure for more than 80 companies – from multinational corporations to innovative service providers. It was built on the foundations of the Hoechst parent plant: Infraserv. Hoechst KG was established in 1998, when Hoechst AG’s individual operations were transferred to independent companies.

Infraserv Höchst Group employs about 3,000 people and had a turnover of 812 million in 2005. As a leading site operator, the company offers its customers everything they need to make their business successful: from fitting laboratories to providing extensive logistics services to disposing of waste – and, of course, the corresponding security system.

Central Control Station

At a specially created control station with five workstations that are staffed 24/7, alarms come in from the whole area. An analogue system has been used there for years but is now out of date. Therefore it was decided to update the system as necessary and migrate step by step to a fully digital solution.

Complex Requirements

The demands on the surveillance system at the Industriepark Höchst are very complex and can be compared with conditions in a city where many different areas overlap. As well as the outer limits, access areas, and individual manufacturing and storage buildings, traffic and parking areas are also controlled. Additionally, the site is separated by the river Main and therefore the waterside has to be controlled accordingly.

As the interesting location attracts new companies the system has to be flexible for future extensions. Furthermore, the effortless integration of existing systems must be possible. During a visit to Dallmeier’s manufacturing plant in Regensburg the final choice was made. Central to the decision, according to Thomas Krüger from Infraserv Höchst, head of the industrial park’s control station, was not only Dallmeier’s technology but also the open system concept of the solution.

Although the company can deliver all the components for a perfectly coordinated surveillance system, communication with other suppliers’ products as well as the integration in superior management systems or external systems, e.g. fire detection system, intrusion detection system or access control system, is possible without any problems.

System Design

For the Industriepark Höchst the Digital Matrix with decentralised recording is the best solution. It includes a built-in full frame resolution matrix with real-time storage for each channel. All channels are modular so that each can process a video and an audio signal as input (camera, microphone) and/or output (monitor, loudspeaker). Each camera that is linked to the system can be recorded and simultaneously switched to any linked monitor (composite or Y/C) via the integrated and preinstalled management system SeMSy.

Switching can be in live and playback mode. Recording continues uninterrupted while a recording is being replayed. The operator station can be completed by an external keyboard that can switch the matrix, control PTZ cameras or call up special functions. The jog shuttle integrated is ideal for playback control since this reduces the search time to a few seconds.

The decentralised recording achieves the best data security and availability as well as cost effectiveness. For the encoder the system uses 115 DIS-2/M (1-channel MPEG-2/-4 real-time streamer and recorder) and 32 DIS-1 (1-channel MPEG-2 video streaming server) are used as decoders. The DIS-1 is specially designed for use with security transmission, video and audio recording systems.

Compressed to MPEG-2 standard, the data can be transmitted over the built-in network interface and simultaneously recorded on an internal hard disk. In parallel at the same time, another data stream can be received from the network and displayed on a locally connected monitor. The picture and sound quality meets the highest requirements, and depending on the configuration, can match DVD quality.

Network transmission complies with international standards and supports unicasting as well as multicasting. The DIS-2/M is a modular audio/video recording and transmission system in a 19“ rack construction with slide-in units. Its flexible construction makes it the ideal solution for monitoring critical areas where compact high-quality recording and real-time transmission are required (broadcast quality). The system consists of up to 10 modules, each based on the Linux secure operating system. In each module the connection to one video and one audio signal is possible.

The systems record directly to the integrated memory and thus ensure maximum availability of the recorded data, even in cases where the network experiences problems or fails. Furthermore, the requirements to the network (e.g. the bandwidth) are minimised through this decentralised memory concept. It is possible to simultaneously record, transmit live video signals and replay recorded sequences in an unrestricted manner.

Automatic Alarm Management

When important messages are sent via the network an alarm is created automatically and the images brought up on a large monitor wall with 16 monitors. The operator responding to the alarm receives all the information automatically pre-processed. At the workstation there are three analogue monitors for viewing the alarm picture, including the live picture and the automatic playback of the recording that begins 30 seconds before the alarm is activated. In this way a quick overview of the situation is provided without having to search for the recorded sequences.

Positive Balance

According to Thomas Krüger, Head of the control station, Infraserv Höchst is very pleased with the system: “The picture quality is significantly better and the processing was smooth. We were consulted perfectly right from the start.“ Based on this positive experience, further extensions and connections to the management system are planned.

Contact:

Dallmeier electronic,
Regensburg, Germany
Tel.: +49 941 8700 0
Fax: +49 941 8700 180
info@dallmeier-electronic.com
www.dallmeier-electronic.com