Inside Asian Gaming

39 The system has enabled Sandia’s surveillance person- nel to make a seamless tran- sition from a paper-based incident tracking and re- porting system to one that’s completely automated.“The multipleapplicationsenable us to share, communicate and retrieve information from across several depart- ments,”the casino said. I want my CCTV The demanding closed-cir- cuit television requirements of casino operations, which include high resolution video images and fast analysis of recorded footage, are fueling demand for IP Video and its benefits of scalability, real-time camera- based analytics and fault tolerant configu- rations. The Casino del Sol and Casino of the Sun, operated by the Pascua Yaqui Tribe in Arizona, are having their current analog sys- tems completely upgraded. The tribe recent- ly awarded a multimillion-dollar contract to IndigoVision to upgrade the casinos to a fully digital CCTV operation. IndigoVision claims this is among the first casino operations in the United States to go fully digital. The two systems, totaling over 1,100 cameras, are being installed by a local In- digoVision integration partner. The migra- tion to digital is being phased so the casi- nos can remain open and any downtime is kept to a minimum.All of the original cam- eras will be reused, but the analog matrix, VCRs, and video cabling will be replaced. The overall footprint of the CCTV system in the equipment room will be reduced by 70%, thereby releasing valuable space for future system expansion. The two casinos, which are located ap- proximately onemile apart,will be connected via a fiber link that allows monitoring of both casinos from one location. However, each ca- sino will have its own security control room, where operators will use IndigoVision’s video and alarmmanagement software to view live and recorded video from any of the cameras in the system. The aging VCR system will be replaced with IndigoVision’s network video recorders (NVRs), which provide fast access to recorded footage—vitally important to resolve gaming disputes quickly. IndigoVision’s technology “was chosen following extensive trials of competing sys- temsandvisitstoexistingcasinoinstallations,” The Intelligent Video Motion Detection device produced by Bosch Security Systems uses digital and IP technology to enhance the analytical capabilities of surveillance cameras and systems said M a - teo Flores, director of sur- veillance for the Pas- cuaYaqui Gaming Enterprise Division. “We were particularly impressed with the video quality, the functionality of the control center software and the efficient use of NVR storage.” As the industry migrates to digital surveil- lance, c a s i n o o p e r a t o r s would do well to ex- plore the many options available in this fast developing technology. By Steve Marlin. Reprinted with permission from International Gaming and Wagering Business (IGWB) magazine.