Sometimes when specifying a CCTV system, it seems that the proprietary systems have advantages – ease of installation, and the warm cosy feeling that it will all just work together being two of them. And when it is a new installation and the hardware is therefore homogenous, it is hard to justify an open platform.

But our client who had just such a homogenous system installed by us a couple of years ago using Milestone XProtect Enterprise came to us with a problem – the owners of the business park they were on provided a CCTV camera on the main gates and sent a video feed and control to each building’s reception. They had invested in a smart and modern reception desk that included our original camera feeds displayed on an LCD screen, and now had a square CCTV dedicated CRT plonked on the desk.

Because they had chosen an open platform, it was childsplay to add the camera feed and the controls the Milestone interface, removing the CRT and returning some style to their reception desk! And it just goes to show that you may not be in control of what make of camera is added to the system at the later date - if you chose to buy a different brand for cost or quality reasons then your investment in the proprietary system may start to look like a costly mistake.

By the way, whenever you are sending a CCTV video signal through buildings as the business park owners did, remember that you significantly increase the risk of ground loops, mains interference and cable crosstalk. Tell-tale signs your cable is suffering are horizontal bands of distortion travelling down the picture, or diagonal lines across the image. Eliminate these problems with a ground loop isolator, placed on your cable as it enters your building. Tecton’s “Humbug” is an easy to install and reliable unit to help with this issue.