Axis partner Check Your Security has installed network cameras from Axis Communications, the global leader in the network video market, at the University of East Anglia based in Norwich.
The University of East Anglia (UEA) has nearly 15,000 students and employs around 3,000 staff. The campus is set in 320 acres of parkland and located just two miles west of Norwich city centre. It was founded in 1963 as part of the ‘New Universities' government initiative, and has seen significant expansion and development including the building of the prestigious Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts in 1978 and more recently the Sportspark and new halls of residence.
Crime levels are at present low on campus; security requirements on the site centre around the need to provide a safe environment for the students who live and study at UEA and at the university's staged events where national and international groups and acts perform. In 2005, UEA's estate management team, who are responsible for managing 
campus security, took a decision to move towards IP-surveillance to take advantage of the campus's excellent high speed fibre network and to begin to integrate or replace a host of disparate proprietary systems.
To kick-start the shift towards IP, Trevor Smith, CCTV Project Manager for UEA, contacted Carl Pace, managing director at Check Your Security. Carl understood UEA's vision and over the past two years, Check Your Security has helped the university to develop and upgrade its surveillance systems.
One of the first areas to receive new network cameras was ‘The Street', the campus area of banks and shops along with ‘The Square' which acts as a central outdoor meeting place. Check Your Security has installed AXIS 232D and AXIS 233D Network Dome cameras & Axis 243Q Video Servers; the AXIS 233D offers 35x optical zoom and has the ability to quickly focus on specific detail, making it ideal for surveillance in open areas. Axis 241Q video servers are used to digitise video signals from UEA's existing analogue cameras.
Check Your Security has also completely refitted UEA's security control room. The previous room incorporated some 60+ analogue TV displays, plus proprietary multiplexers and video recorders; even with extensive air conditioning the temperature in the control room during the summer typically reached 38 degrees Centigrade, with the heat causing equipment to fail. All camera feeds are now accessible using a Milestone Enterprise video management system recorded at a minimum of 8 frames per second onto three 16 terabyte HP servers.
The UEA is committed to using IP for surveillance throughout the campus and to integrate systems together, for areas as diverse as access control and payments for car parks. Immediate projects for Check Your Security include UEA's new £35 million International Centre, housing 1,000 overseas students.
Michael McCormack, campus services manager, University of East Anglia, commented: "We are truly convinced that integration using IP for a range of systems including surveillance is the right route for us. We are lucky to have a locally-based partner such as Check Your Security who understand our vision and keep inspiring us to think bigger, such as integrating IP-surveillance with access control. Also, its ‘best of breed' approach when specifying for projects ensures we get the best products on the market, such as network cameras from Axis."
Carl Pace, managing director, Check Your Security added: "We work with UEA first as a consultant, then as an integrator; we work very hard to establish their requirements and then always think about the future - how can the system we are installing be integrated further. UEA is a great client, we share the same view on technology and understand the direction we need to go and we look forward to working with UEA on more projects in the future."
Phil Doyle, managing director, Axis Communications (UK) Ltd commented: "Check Your Security is a company which from its inception understood that IP-surveillance and wider IP integration is a lead technology. Its knowledge and confidence in leading IP-surveillance projects inspires its clients and we are very pleased that Check Your Security is an Axis partner."
