Latin America. Milestone Systems' open platform IP video management (VMS) software is a fundamental technology for the mobile event command unit developed by the company Unified Command, allowing them to unify all critical points in complex events, from the same centralized command.
The company hires local staff to be responsible for enforcing legislation, managing the resource dispatch center and emergency services for 40 to 50 major events in the U.S. each year, such as the Hard Summer, Outside Lands, Coachella and Stagecoach music festivals.
"This coordination allows us to respond more effectively to emergencies. So we can quickly send the right people to the right places, making events safer for everyone," said Chris Gandy, chief technology officer, Unified Command.
In Latin America, on the other hand, outstanding music festivals are also held every year, such as Vive Latino that takes place in Mexico, the Viña del Mar Song Festival in Chile or Rock al Parque in Colombia, events that bring together between 7,000 and 340,000 people in open spaces where usually the only way to have a complete monitoring of the area is using video surveillance systems.
The list of prerequisites that, according to Gandy's criteria, a VMS solution had to meet was extensive: from overall stability of video streaming to ease of use and robust mapping functions, all based on a truly open platform. Finally this expert selected XProtect® from Milestone, this being the solution that met all the requirements and surpassed most similar products on the market.
In addition, Gandy reports that Milestone's easy and quick installation make it an attractive solution, especially in an industry where speed is an important factor. "We go to a land located in the middle of nowhere, we install cameras and in a jiffy we already have eyes that monitor an area of more than 400 thousand square meters," he adds.
The fundamental benefit is that a better global response to incidents that happen at events is achieved: overflowing trash cans, lost objects, obstructed entry and exit points, turbulent and potentially dangerous crowds, and serious medical emergencies.
For example, when a call is received warning that someone has fainted, the command center dispatcher uses the point of origin of the call to identify the nearest camera and directs it to examine the crowd to the person who needs attention. Subsequently, the dispatcher supplies the exact location to the doctors, something fundamental in outdoor spaces with low lighting and where in addition the strobe lights are working and there are no street crossings that can be used as reference points. Thanks to this, doctors can quickly provide assistance to people who need it, without wasting valuable time searching through a crowd of thousands of people.
Interactive, efficient and easy-to-use maps, allow millimeter accuracy
The complexity that is inherent in managing incident responses in changing event scenarios allows very little – if any – time to train staff. In this regard, the expert says: "We can incorporate several custom visualizations to see on computers, mobile devices and Smart Walls of XProtect. A problem that occurs with a large number of security systems is that it is not always easy to know where the cameras are located to get a live view quickly. However, with Milestone's interactive map, operators simply click on an icon to open a separate window with the images corresponding to the visualization they need."
All the features of Milestone mentioned are a powerful tool to strengthen safety in any facility, especially in mass events where attendees are prone to accidents due to the large number of people, so this system should be an integral part of all the logistics and organization of any event.
