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Vista provides train manufacturer with affordable high resolution CCTV

High resolution Vista CCTV equipment from Norbain SD has been installed at the Birmingham Depot of Alstom Transport, manufacturer of the new 120 mph Virgin Tilting Train - by EDS in Birmingham as part of the overall security upgrade of the site.

The old security system installed at the 58 acre site, which consisted of various manufacturers' equipment installed by different CCTV companies over the years, was not Y2K compliant and parts of the system were failing.

Following several site visits, the specification for the CCTV system was drawn up by Mark Darlaston of EDS using Vista products, whilst retaining some of the existing equipment to keep the costs down - something that other installers had not done.

Vista VPM6130 high resolution Protos cameras were used in this installation to enable Alstom to clearly see the site without the use of costly, and often ineffective, patrols. Ideal for large sites such as this, the Vista Protos cameras come with phase adjustment to allow for varying mains phases across the site and a wide range of easy fit lens options for the different location requirements.

Although the site itself is large, the control room is not, so EDS replaced the two existing multiplexers and one telemetry keyboard and main controller with a single Vista NPX16UT Generation 3 Ultra multiplexer. Compact and versatile, Generation 3 Ultra combines these functions in the one unit, along with high resolution S-VHS record and playback. The latter two functions can be carried out at the same time, along with viewing live images in multiscreen format, using the Triplex feature, for real flexibility.

Once fed through the Generation 3 Ultra multiplexer, the pictures are viewed on a Vista NVM20B high resolution 20" monitor and recorded onto a Vista SVHS VCR. The 480 h Vista VCR comes with a number of useful features, including a BST/GMT setting and holiday time codes which allow for automatic adjustment of the VCR for bank holidays and other such events.

Such a system design provides Alstom with a cost-effective, yet high-resolution CCTV system to enable the company to clearly see pictures from around the site and prevent unwanted intruders. In fact, the Vista CCTV system has already proved its worth as, on the first night of installation, an intruder was spotted by personnel monitoring the cameras which overlook the computer bay for the Virgin Tilting Train, and the security guards alerted.

Mark Darlaston, Director of EDS, commented that "the Alstom contract was a challenge, maintaining the old system right up until the last minute to ensure that security on the site was not compromised whatsoever".

"Over 6,5 miles of cable were installed on this site and the technical abilities of all members of staff were put to the test to ensure that the system operated correctly first time, without failure," commented the onsite project engineer Mark Booker.

Alstom was so impressed with the quality and technical expertise of EDS that it also won the intruder alarm, two-way mobile communications and the automatic barrier system contracts.

Vista Products is represented in South Africa by Reditron.

For details, contact Reditron

tel: (011) 887 1546

fax (011) 887 1548.

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