Security management made easy

February 2004 Products & Solutions

All the facts. On tap. Your security and access control system contains a wealth of data regarding the movement of people and assets within your premises. So much data, in fact, that it can become too overwhelming to use it for any strategic purpose. The solution? Siemens Integrated Security Management Information System (ISMIS).

ISMIS is a powerful analysis and reporting tool that makes use of data gathered by Babylon (Siemens' access and building management system), as well as the CCTV system. This data is then used to monitor and identify trends, whilst producing accurate and well-formatted reports and graphs.

Report data is available in realtime, and can be accessed through a user-friendly intranet interface. Anyone connected to the intranet may have access to these reports, as long as they have been given a password.

Tailored around your needs

Every organisation has its own unique information needs. One company may wish to know which employees are sneaking off early every day. Another may want to identify vulnerable points, where large amounts of stock are leaving the building. ISMIS has been designed to ensure that you need only pay for the modules you require. Better yet, the modular design allows for easy inclusion of new functionality, should you have a specific new requirement.

Logbook query and reporting

The Logbook Query tool has been designed to allow users to search the logs of recorded events, based on their own criteria, as well as produce formatted reports and charts as required.

How does it work?

'Logbooks' are the data stores used to contain information about activities involving your integrated security management system. What did the camera see? Who was on duty at 17:00 on Thursday? At what time did each employee leave your building today? How are the surveillance staff doing? Are they monitoring all cameras as they should? The answers to all these questions (and many more) are contained within the logbooks.

The logbook query module allows users to access and make use of this data via an easy to use, intranet-based query screen. (Four of these interfaces are provided - one for each of the most commonly used logbooks). Management can interrogate the logbooks for information and statistics, based on any combination of criteria that they may wish to define. (This includes a date/time facility, so as to allow the user to search within a given timeframe.)

To make matters even easier, criteria associated with the most popular data analysis needs are pre-populated into ready to use list boxes: the user simply chooses from a list, and the necessary reports and graphs are instantly generated.

Reports and graphs

Once users have input their queries, the report itself is presented in spreadsheet format, allowing them to sort the report by any combination of columns. A variety of formats are available for saving/exporting spreadsheet data.

The graphing tool is particularly flexible, offering the choice of various chart types, whilst allowing the user to manipulate headings, footers, legends and so on.

Benchmarking

Are the systems and personnel associated with your security installation performing to expectations? Are cameras performing optimally, in the most sensitive areas of the premises? The ISMIS benchmarking tool helps provide the answer to this question by allowing you to set benchmarks on items such as personnel and visitor access, alarms, camera positioning and surveillance staff activity, and then to view reports based on progress against these benchmarks.

Personnel movement tracker

Your staff MAY be at work from 07:00 until 18:00, but it does not make much difference if five of these hours are spent in the canteen. Know what your people are up to. The Personnel Movement Tracker is more than just a time and attendance tool. It allows managers and supervisors to view the attendance and movements of their personnel throughout the office environment - effectively, to monitor what they are doing and deduce their approximate productivity. It also provides a highly accurate means of identifying the early leavers and latecomers within the office environment.

Personnel locator

Track them down. Anywhere. The Personnel Locator is an extremely useful, intranet-based application, which allows the user to track down the exact location of any employee inside the office building, and to find a number for the nearest convenient telephone.

Departmental profiles

This facility is purely informational, allowing internal departmental to publish procedures and information that may be of value to other system users.

TAPS - Target Analysis Profiling System

Crime is an unfortunate fact of life. TAPS allows administrators to essentially profile each person who has been granted access to the building. Factors such as age, financial situation, level of education and even prior history within the company may be recorded within this profile. Thereafter, you have the ability to set up rules governing the use of profile information: you might, for example, want to receive notification if anyone within a certain risk profile has entered a specific high sensitivity area within a specific number of days.

For more information contact Siemens Building Technologies Electronic Security Solutions, 011 652 2413.





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