At some point in their lives, most people have turned on their local news and seen surveillance camera footage of an armed robber holding up a gas station or convenience store. Often these criminals may kill or inflict serious injuries on the station/store employees and customers.
Gas stations and convenience stores can be easy targets for would-be thieves and vandals. The smaller buildings are easier for criminals to maneuver around. They are often staffed with a small number of employees, or just a single employee - making it more difficult for the clerk to monitor the cash register, the store, and the gas pumps all at the same time. Most gas stations and convenience stores offer late-night hours as a benefit to their customers, but that also makes them prey for robbers who know there will be less people around to witness robberies.
A CCTV surveillance system installed at your gas station or convenience store can:
Help to dramatically reduce any criminal activities at your station/store and assist in the apprehension and prosecution of criminals.
Reassure your employees and customers that your station/store is a safe environment, which could lead to an increase in business.
Locations Where You Should Install Security Cameras in Your Gas Station or Convenience Store
As you design your gas station/convenience store security plan, you should consider installing surveillance cameras in the following locations.
Entrances
Fixed, high resolution cameras should be placed at every entrance to record recognizable facial features of everyone walking into the premises. These video images need to be clear enough to identify robbers in order to facilitate their arrest and indictment.
Any cameras installed at entrances should be positioned to reduce any backlight conditions that may occur due to daylight coming in through the door or windows as the person enters the building.
Pumps
With the price of gasoline on the rise, the incidence of people driving off before they pay for their gasoline is increasing. By installing fixed, super-high resolution CCTV box cameras near your pumps, you can capture the license plates of each car entering and exiting your station/store - day or night. Plus, observable cameras may stop customers from driving off without paying.
Additionally, if you want a comprehensive view of all activities at your pumps, you can install weatherproof, vandal-resistant, outdoor dome cameras with nightvision above your pumps. These cameras can record any suspicious activity, vandalism, or stolen vehicles - providing the police with details about the criminal, their car, and their license plate number, enabling them to catch the criminal more quickly.
Around the Outside of the Building
If you are located in a high-crime neighborhood, you should install weatherproof, infrared bullet security cameras around the perimeters of your building. These cameras have wide-angle lenses that can see clearly for up to 75 feet (depending upon the camera) - even in the dark - helping you to catch any vandals, or people exhibiting suspicious behavior, in the act.
Cash Register
A prominently displayed high resolution, CCTV CCD box camera or a high resolution, vandal-proof, indoor dome camera installed near your cash register can help protect your employees and aid in identifying robbers. These cameras can also assist law enforcement personnel in determining the thief's movements in the store to help them gather additional evidence related to the crime, what type of weapon the thief used, and other key features about the thief, such as tattoos.
With security cameras, you can also monitor all cash and credit card transactions to ensure that your employees are not stealing money from you or using customer credit card numbers to enter fake sales in order to pocket the cash. Additionally, surveillance cameras allow you to observe all alcohol and cigarette sales to make sure your employees are not selling restricted merchandise to underage customers.
Throughout the Store
Video surveillance cameras installed throughout your store enable you to spot suspicious activity and stop customers and employees from stealing merchandise - reducing your store's losses. Plus, if customers and employees are aware that they are being monitored, they will be less likely to steal from you.
Security cameras can assist you in managing your employees by observing their productivity, so you can reward hard workers and/or reprimand slackers or rule breakers. Plus if your store has a kitchen area, you can track all food-handling operations to ensure all food safety and quality control procedures are being followed by your employees.
Capture All Operations at Your Gas Station or Convenience Store on Video
By installing a DVR with your surveillance system, you will have recorded video to assist law enforcement in the capture and prosecution of any criminals. Plus video allows you to learn from previous incidences and make the necessary corrections to ensure the safety of your employees and customers.
CCTV Dynamics offers a variety of complete surveillance packages or individual cameras, DVRs, or accessories for your gas station or convenience store installation. Visit our website today for more information.
Cctv Surveillance Systems: Those New Security Guys
Don't look now! Someone's staring at you from that far wall behind the artificial potted plants in this busy hotel lobby. But there's no need for that furtive glance like you have some lint on your shoulder. There's no need for those tiny furtive steps either. No one's stalking you. It's just the hotel's CCTV surveillance system. The hotel has recently been caught up in the wave of video surveillance. That someone staring at you from across the room is just the camera from the newly installed CCTV surveillance systems. In hotels and in places where there is high human traffic, state of the art CCTV surveillance systems have been mounted for purposes of safety and as crime deterrents.
That Constant Fear
The world, it seems, is gripped by fear of terrorist attacks. In fact, after 9/11, it seems to be a Herculean effort to make life go on - do business, travel, interact with others in densely populated places. After all, if there's anything 9/11 has shown us, it is that a bomb could go off in a sidewalk while you are having an al fresco lunch with a colleague, or blow up the trans-continental plane you are in while it's in in the air, cruising at 125,000 feet.
The security guys you see milling about do not reassurance you. You have always felt that security guys patrolling public places have a very limited capacity for preventing crime. They only act when something happens in their line of sight. By then, however, you'd be beyond help.
You're Safe Now
Installed in a strategic spot and equipped with cutting edge technology in surveillance cameras, CCTV surveillance systems can record everything that goes on in its line of focus. These recordings can later be retrieved and analyzed to recreate scenes.
Software developers now see the potential of CCTV surveillance systems in preventing a repeat of large-scale terrorism after the 9/11 attack at the World Trade Center. These developers are working hard to develop programs for surveillance systems, among them an important feature known as face recognition.
With face recognition installed in CCTV surveillance systems, it is now easy to recognize certain key features in the face of an individual. This face will be compared to a host of faces from a database of mug shots and photographs. A person flagged as dangerous can then be prevented from gaining access to buildings or public transportations, thus thwarting any planned attack or escape.
Big Investment That Pays Off
CCTV surveillance systems today now boast of functionalities not seen in the video surveillance systems of the past. This time, CCTV surveillance systems have
1. motion detection. This means that the surveillance system only records footage when movement triggers the surveillance system.
2. resolution as clear as day. Grainy footage is not a problem anymore with some video surveillance cameras featuring 1600 x 1200 dpi, or even more, resolution.
3. night and infrared vision. Even with low or minimal lighting, these new surveillance systems can record images with infrared technology.
Government administrators are seeing the positive side of surveillance systems. In fact, after 9/11, federal budget is flowing in for these new security measures. There are states which require the installation of surveillance systems in business establishments before these businesses can operate.
So, there is really no need to be afraid. CCTV surveillance systems, those new security guys, have your back. They are always watching.
Stay Safe - How to Choose a CCTV Security Surveillance System
Security surveillance systems are becoming more commonly used in businesses than ever before. CCTV systems can help protect the safety of employees by monitoring their movements and interactions with customers, and act as a deterrent for burglary, vandalism and other crimes. CCTV keeps a record of all activity that takes place, and this can aid in the resolution of disputes and legal investigations. To choose a CCTV security surveillance system that's right for your business's needs, you need to take into account factors including camera types, lens types, zoom and monitoring options, remote access and image quality. Here are some things to take into account when you're thinking about purchasing a CCTV security surveillance system:
1. Compare camera types. CCTV cameras are available in many types, and each has a different appearance. Some cameras resemble hand-held camcorders and are mounted to a ceiling or wall. Dome-shaped camera models have a more streamlined appearance and may be less intrusive. There are hidden cameras, and cameras for basically any application. The important thing to remember is that not all cameras fit all applications.
2. Establish where and when the system will be used. If the CCTV camera is only going to be used in an indoor well-lit area, then a standard camera with a manual iris is probably sufficient. However, if the camera is going to be outdoors at night and in a variety of lighting conditions, an infrared or "True Day/Night Camera" with an automatic iris is preferable.
3. High Resolution or Standard Resolution? Consider whether you will need a high resolution system which will require a more sophisticated Digital Video recorder and more hard drive space or lower resolution cameras would be sufficient.
4. Choose a monitor. Find out whether the CCTV system allows you to monitor activity via a television or computer screen. Some specialized systems require specific monitors. It's usually easiest and most cost efficient if you can find a system that's compatible with your existing television or computer. However a camera CCTV monitor is geared to be running 24/7.
5. Ask about remote access. All Digital Video Recorders are remote accessible via internet today. You will need to make sure that you have a high speed connection at the place of viewing and the place of the recorder. Additionally, not all recorders are created equal, some will allow remote monitoring at higher resolution and faster speeds and still use less bandwith.
6. Choose an operation type. CCTV security surveillance systems can operate on a continuous basis, or they can be activated with based on motion. Home owners generally opt for CCTV systems that record only moving activity, whereas it may make sense for businesses to record on a continuous basis.
7. Check available storage space. The built-in storage space of CCTV systems is determined by the hard drive built in and by the recording size and frame rates etc. It is important to know that not all systems are created equal, and many factors will affect the actual quality and amount of time of the recorded footage.
Remember, CCTV security surveillance cameras are not able to capture every square inch of a property, and even when cameras are positioned correctly, there's no guarantee they will capture a crime or other incident. But, even so, CCTV security surveillance provides effective protection - and is often cheaper and easier than hiring a security officer to safeguard your property.
0 comments:
Post a Comment