Broadband Communities

JAN-FEB 2014

BROADBAND COMMUNITIES is the leading source of information on digital and broadband technologies for buildings and communities. Our editorial aims to accelerate the deployment of Fiber-To-The-Home and Fiber-To-The-Premises.

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38 | BROADBAND COMMUNITIES | www.broadbandcommunities.com | JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2014 BROADBAND APPS event that the local administrator is away from the monitoring station. All teachers, staf and district personnel carry electronic key fobs with which to activate the locks to gain access. Each fob contains unique identifcation credentials that are logged with every access. Te system also enables the administration to control the days and times any individual is authorized to enter any particular building or facility. District or school personnel can establish rules within the system to trigger automated notifcations and actions. For example, if a door is opened outside normal parameters, a text message or email that includes a snapshot from the appropriate camera and information from the access log can be sent to any number of destinations. Tis not only provides nearly instantaneous notice of an unusual situation but also gives administrators the ability to take immediate action if necessary. Providing immediate access for frefghters or other frst responders without physically being on site can speed response times and avoid the potential for property damage if a door must be opened forcibly. Mobile and remote access provide administrators and district ofcials with an unprecedented ability to monitor and control what is happening on each campus from any location. "We continue to work closely with the school and district administrators to best understand how this solution can continue to evolve to meet the immediate needs of each campus," notes Tom Grifn, general manager for Franklin Telephone. "It is exciting to see a solution have such a profound and immediate impact and also to hear about the other ideas that these educational professionals have regarding what else might be accomplished with this versatile technology platform. Tis is truly a case where the sky is the limit – and our kids are certainly worth the investment." FRANKLIN COUNTY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL On its surface, the operation of a hospital is quite diferent from that of a school, but their security needs have many similarities. Both are concerned with maintaining secure and safe environments for their stakeholders, both are accessible to the public and both have regulatory oversight regarding privacy. Because of the fexibility of the VCAS platform, Franklin Telephone was able to customize a surveillance and access control solution that met the needs of the hospital in an unobtrusive manner and adhere to the stringent privacy regulations governing medical service providers. Franklin County Memorial Hospital is a 25-bed facility that provides family-practice and primary-care medical services as well as inpatient and emergency room services. With varying levels of activity 24 hours a day, maintaining security and privacy was a challenge for the hospital administration. Te hospital used a combination of keys issued to management personnel and security personnel on site, but the administration felt an automated system that incorporated video surveillance would add operational efciency and augment the ability to deliver top-drawer services while maintaining a safe, secure environment. As a part of the system FTC implemented, 16 surveillance cameras were placed inside and outside the hospital building. All video is recorded on a local digital video recorder (DVR), but playback is accessible via secure access from an authenticated device connected through the Internet. Te solution enables rate adjustment of the video stream to make it viewable on a mobile device that may have limited bandwidth, or the stream may be viewed at full quality over a broadband connection. Cameras are also in place at the building entrances, the pharmacy, and the medical records department. "Broadband access is a critical enabling feature for this advanced security system," says Grifn. "Te broadband connection enables video playback and access from remote computers and mobile devices as well as seamless connectivity for alerts and messages generated in response to unusual access activity or other rules established by the hospital administration." CONCLUSION Te smart premises–based security systems implemented by Franklin Telephone met the fundamental goals of both school ofcials and hospital administrators and serve as solid foundations for delivering advanced surveillance and safety solutions as such solutions continue to enter the market. Te ability to provide real-time video and access control to desktop and mobile devices improves the overall security environment and helps facility administrators and managers reduce overhead, improve efciency and maximize and extend their technology investments. v Craig Steen is president and CEO of Clear2there, a provider of machine-to- machine solutions, video surveillance equipment and devices, sensors and applications for enterprise, government, health care and other markets. Learn more at www.clear2there.com. Broadband access is a critical enabling feature for the advanced security system used at Franklin County Memorial Hospital, both for remote video playback and for alerts generated in response to unusual access activity. BBC_Jan14.indd 38 1/27/14 1:45 PM

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