Hikvision ensures all-round surveillance of the Rotonda building in Slovenia

The network cameras used at the Rotonda produce high-definition IP video and they feature PoE

Hikvision's two-megapixel network cameras have been installed at the Rotonda building in Ljubljana, a new-build office development in the Slovenian capital overlooking the Alps.

The five-storey 15,000 square metre tower block requires extensive CCTV monitoring and access control for tenants including international banks, software houses and law firms.

The building owners demanded IP-addressable cameras throughout the structure, with tender requirements specifying image quality that would allow developments such as the introduction of video analytics. While the extent of glass coverage in the block has energy consumption benefits, there are implications for CCTV operation from the architect's use of floor-to-ceiling windows.

The five-storey 15,000 square metre tower block requires extensive CCTV monitoring and access control for tenants

The Hikvision cameras are also used in the property's underground and outdoor parking lots across a range of lighting conditions. The need to capture highlight and shadow detail in the same scene required flexible optics within lobby areas, stairwells, lifts and communal spaces including a restaurant, with the motion detection capability of the cameras proving important outside office hours.

The 130-camera system from Hikvision was implemented by Slovenian integrator Sintal who realised that control room operatives needed the image quality provided by progressive scan technology cameras while also appreciating that facility managers required advanced vari-focal functionality if they were to secure the site.

Sintal specified Hikvision two-megapixel network cameras after testing detail levels and total resolution in high-contrast and back-lit situations. Colour rendering and optimal exposure across the range of lighting situations encountered were key considerations, with the client anxious to avoid pixel blooming and vertical smearing which was a possibility with other vendors.

The network cameras used at the Rotonda produce high-definition IP video and they feature PoE. Image capture is optimised across the camera's field of view and users benefit from real-time video and audio compression with no frame loss. The cameras allow Texas Instruments DaVinci hardware compression and offer H.264 dual-stream video compression.

The Rotonda office block has enormous political significance in that it is part of a development that will connect adjacent parts of the city which have been divided during two world wars and the city's history as part of Yugoslavia.

Mapping, scheduling and layout were all simplified by Hikvision's video management surveillance software

Bostjan Kurmansek of Sintal d.d. said: "Since the office block is brand-new our engineers benefited from the fact that the structured IT cabling already in place proved suitable for transmission of surveillance images. Mapping, scheduling and layout were all simplified by Hikvision's video management software."

He continued: "The solution exploits the efficiency of Hikvision's compression algorithms. The Rotonda's network has extensive storage, each NVR being allocated ten terabytes. The system uses 9 and 24-point switching from Cisco, with the network having been designed in-house by Sintal engineers. In the event of a problem with the Ethernet connection, these cameras support local storage via SD memory cards."

Sintal d.d. is a leading security integrator in Slovenia, employing 1,700 staff and turning over $70m in 2009. The company secures more than 15,000 properties, and has additional offices on the Slovenian border with Italy.

Mr Polo Cai, Vice President of Hikvision, said: "Hikvision is aware that camera ‘noise' not only compromises image quality but is wasteful of RAID/recording capacity. Every aspect of this application was based on the client's unusual imaging needs. While Hikvision is adept at integrating legacy analogue units into hybrid solutions, this location - being a new-build project - is distinctive for using IP-addressable technology throughout."