IKEA France has invested in IndigoVision's complete IP Video solution for CCTV surveillance in its new 20,000 m2 flagship store in Grenoble. Swedish-based IKEA is one of the largest and best-known home furnishing retail groups in the world, with stores in 36 countries. IKEA invests heavily in CCTV technology in their stores to ensure their customers and staff are safe and secure at all times. The new store, which opened in October 2007, is seen as a test site for the adoption of IP-CCTV for other new IKEA stores in France.
The 36-camera system was installed by IndigoVision's local partner Concept Maintenance and is an ideal solution for stores such as IKEA where network density is very high. IndigoVision's advanced compression technology allows the entire IP Video system to operate on the store's existing LAN with minimal impact on network bandwidth. The IKEA network supports Power-over-Ethernet (PoE), which allows any new IP cameras to be connected directly to the network via a single CAT-5 cable. This provides a very scalable and cost-effective solution for future expansion.
Image quality and ease of use of ‘Control Center', IndigoVision's IP Video and alarm management software, were just two of the reasons the IndigoVision solution was chosen. The security operators required no more than 2-hours of training to fully operate the system. A single ‘Control Center' workstation is located in the security control room where the operators view live video only. A second ‘Control Center' workstation is located in the IT room where the Security Manager can view both live and recorded video, as only management is allowed to view recorded footage. Three IndigoVision standalone Network Video Recorders (NVRs) provide 15 days of continuous recordings from all cameras.
Commenting on the operation of the new system, Sylvie Weber, IKEA's Country Security Manager, said of the IndigoVision system, "We are very pleased with the system and in particular with the superb image quality and the ‘Control Center' user interface. It's very easy to find and analyse a particular video clip, which can then be exported in a tamper-proof form for police evidence if required."
The safe and speedy evacuation of staff and customers during a fire or incident is paramount to IKEA's operational planning and they run many practice simulations. The CCTV system has been configured to help in situations like these. For example when an emergency exit is opened a ‘Control Center' alarm is triggered which automatically pans the nearest camera to display the exit so operators can ensure a smooth and orderly evacuation.
IndigoVision's IP Video solution can also be used to provide benefits beyond store security. Many retailers are accessing in-store footage to help analyse merchandising, in-store promotions and footfall trends. This can be achieved locally and nationally, with central marketing teams accessing live and recorded video from any store at any location across their corporate networks.
