Gümüşdoğa Aquaculture, a prominent fish farming enterprise located along Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, operates multiple offshore cage farming facilities approximately five kilometres from the shore.
These sites are crucial for the company's fish production activities but faced operational difficulties due to their offshore location.
To enhance efficiency and security, the company implemented a comprehensive smart surveillance and monitoring system developed by Dahua.
Challenges in offshore fish farming
The offshore environment posed several challenges, including the risk of nighttime theft where unauthorized individuals in small boats targeted the cages under cover of darkness. This was exacerbated by limited visibility and response delays, along with insufficient real-time communication between offshore facilities and the onshore control centre.
Additionally, the unreliable power supply offshore made continuous operation of conventional CCTV systems difficult. Furthermore, the absence of underwater monitoring made it hard to effectively manage fish feeding, leading to feed wastage and increased costs.
Introducing an intelligent monitoring solution
To tackle these issues, Dahua introduced an integrated surveillance and monitoring solution tailored for offshore aquaculture. Key components include:
- Thermal Imaging for Night Security: PTZ cameras with thermal imaging were installed to detect unauthorized activities during nighttime, enhancing security and responsiveness.
- Wireless Data Transmission: The use of wireless transmission technology ensured stable long-distance communication between offshore cameras and the onshore monitoring facility.
- Solar-Powered Camera Systems: Solar-powered solutions provided a reliable energy source, enabling 24/7 camera operation even in areas with limited power supply.
- Underwater Monitoring for Feeding Control: Cameras featuring waterproof housings allowed real-time underwater observation, enabling operators to optimise feeding practices by observing fish behaviour directly.
Sustainable management of fish farms
Solar-powered cameras enabled 24/7 offshore monitoring, cutting feed costs by over 30% and improving efficiencyThe implementation of Dahua's smart surveillance system brought considerable improvements to the fish farm operations. Nighttime theft incidents were effectively curtailed, saving the company over USD 10,000 annually.
The onshore monitoring centre now enjoys consistent and uninterrupted video transmission, enhancing operational visibility without data loss due to network issues. Solar-powered camera systems ensure continuous operation, while real-time underwater monitoring has reduced feed costs by more than 30% through better feeding management.
“This is something we can do entirely thanks to Dahua. It allows us to stay connected with offshore units. Normally, this kind of setup can only be done on land. Achieving this at sea when there’s constant movement is very difficult. We believe we’ve succeeded with Dahua,” commented Mert Deveci, Security Camera Maintenance and Management Supervisor at Gümüşdoğa Aquaculture.
Project impact
By integrating advanced surveillance, wireless communication, solar energy, and underwater monitoring technologies, Gümüşdoğa Aquaculture effectively addressed the challenges of offshore fish farming.
This initiative not only boosted security and operational transparency but also resulted in substantial cost savings and efficiency gains, paving the way for sustainable fish farming operations in offshore environments.
Gümüşdoğa Aquaculture is a professional fish farming company based along Turkey’s Mediterranean coastline, managing several large-scale offshore cage farming sites. Located approximately five kilometers from shore, these sites are essential to the company’s core fish production activities.
Operating in an offshore environment created the need for a dependable system to support feeding management, real-time monitoring, theft prevention, and stable communication between offshore facilities and the onshore control center.
To meet these requirements and enhance overall operational efficiency, a comprehensive smart surveillance and monitoring solution developed by Dahua was implemented.
Key challenges in offshore fish farm operations
The offshore fish farming environment presented several operational challenges, including frequent nighttime theft by unauthorized individuals using small boats, which was difficult to detect due to poor visibility and delayed response capabilities.
At the same time, the onshore monitoring center lacked real-time visibility of offshore cages and could not rely on stable backup communication links. These issues were compounded by inconsistent offshore power supply, which made continuous operation of traditional CCTV systems impractical.
In addition, the absence of underwater monitoring limited visibility into fish feeding behavior, resulting in inefficient feeding practices, increased feed waste, and higher operating costs.
Implementing an intelligent monitoring solution
To address these challenges, Dahua developed an integrated surveillance and monitoring solution specifically designed for offshore aquaculture operations. It comprises:
- Thermal Imaging for Night Security: Thermal imaging PTZ cameras were deployed to enable reliable detection of unauthorized activity at night, significantly improving security and response efficiency.
- Wireless Data Transmission: Wireless transmission technology greatly ensures stable, long-distance communication between offshore cameras and the onshore monitoring center.
- Solar-Powered Camera Systems: Solar-powered solutions provide a dependable energy source, enabling uninterrupted 24/7 camera operation in offshore areas with limited power supply.
- Underwater Monitoring for Feeding Control: Cameras integrated with professional waterproof housings enable real-time underwater observation of fish behavior, allowing operators to stop feeding when fish were no longer actively eating.
A sustainable fish farm management
The deployment of the smart surveillance system delivered clear and lasting improvements to fish farm operations. Nighttime theft was effectively eliminated, reducing annual financial losses by at least USD 10,000. The onshore monitoring center now benefits from stable, continuous video transmission, ensuring reliable visibility without data loss caused by network disruptions.
Solar-powered camera systems enabled uninterrupted 24/7 operation in the offshore environment, while real-time underwater monitoring optimized feeding management, reducing feed costs by more than 30% and significantly improving overall operational efficiency.
“This is something we can do entirely thanks to Dahua. It allows us to stay connected with offshore units. Normally, this kind of setup can only be done on land. Achieving this at sea when there’s constant movement is very difficult. We believe we’ve succeeded with Dahua,” says Mert Deveci, Security Camera Maintenance and Management Supervisor at Gümüşdoğa Aquaculture.
Takeways
By combining intelligent surveillance, wireless communication, solar energy, and underwater monitoring technologies, Gümüşdoğa Aquaculture successfully overcame the challenges of offshore fish farming management.
The project not only enhanced security and operational visibility but also delivered significant cost savings and efficiency improvements, setting a strong foundation for sustainable offshore fish farming operations.
