United States. 3xLOGIC, Inc., along with Sonitrol of Fort Lauderdale, completed a security system upgrade for Junior Achievement of South Florida (JASF), located at Broward College North Campus in Coconut Creek, Florida.
With over 60,000 square feet of learning areas, cost-effective meeting rooms and the Huizenga Catering Kitchen, JA World is the largest Junior Achievement facility in the world. Each year, more than 21,000 5th graders and 20,000 8th graders from Broward and South Palm Beach counties visit the facility.
"Every day, 450 students participate in the JA BizTown and JA Finance Park simulations at JA World. Their safety and the safety of our volunteers, staff and guests is what concerns us the most," said Laurie Sallarulo, President and CEO of JASF. Sonitrol Fort Lauderdale, began working with JASF in 2008, in the initial design/construction phase of the facility, and until its completion in 2009. The initial security system included remotely managed access control, verified audio intrusion detection, and analog cameras. At the time, IP cameras were considered too expensive.
"Previously, we had 18 analog cameras in the system," explained Leni Smith, JASF's Chief Operating Officer. "As time went on, it became clear that we needed to put more areas inside and outside the building under surveillance, we wanted access to more state-of-the-art IP camera technology, and we wanted to have all of our surveillance under a Video Management System (VMS)."
Working together, Sonitrol of Fort Lauderdale and 3xLOGIC designed a system upgrade that, through a combination of discounts and donations, JASF could afford. It also helped that John Ray, president of Sonitrol Fort Lauderdale, has been an active member of the JASF Board for a long time. To fit JASF's budget, Sonitrol of Fort Lauderdale installed a 3xLOGIC hybrid NVR, allowing JASF to protect its investment in analog cameras, while adding higher-resolution IP cameras for greater coverage. The hybrid solution also creates a migration path, allowing JASF to continue to improve visibility with new IP cameras over time, as its budget allows.
"As part of the ongoing safety improvements, our staff participates in an annual active shooter training," explained Monica McNerney, Vice President of Operations, "and during those trainings, two things became clear." We need to cover more areas with surveillance, and we need to partner more closely with local authorities to give them real-time access to our system in the event of an emergency."
JASF has a number of discrete areas under surveillance and manages their display by using the 3xLOGIC VIGIL server software. These include the reception area, two loading dock areas, other exterior gates, its large meeting rooms and the student areas, known as JA BizTown and JA Finance Park, where 450 young people spend most of their time each day at JA World. The receptionist controls public access to the building by seeing who is applying for entry and by buzzing that person. The receptionist also monitors the loading dock area and notifies the appropriate staff member when a delivery arrives.
Leni Smith, who handles day-to-day security matters, reviews the video after she is informed of an incident. "I really like how with the updated system I can use motion detection alarms to perfect exactly the video I need to review; I bet we've cut the time to easily check in half, if not more. "I also really appreciate how I can draw a picture in a camera view and zoom in on that area easily and quickly to find out exactly what happened."
Monica McNerney expanded on how the updated system is positively impacting another aspect of the JASF security program. "We work very closely with our community partners, such as Broward College security and local law enforcement, to help them understand and access our facilities and security system. We also routinely ask for your expert feedback on whether we are managing our security effectively. So far, we've been told we're doing exactly what we need to do, and they're excited about the expanded access they have to our camera views, though we hope no event will guarantee that need."
Jennifer Thomas, vice president of operations for Fort Lauderdale's Sonitrol, also spoke about the ongoing improvements being planned for JA World. "We are actively designing phase II of the camera upgrade, which will include better coverage and image clarity for camera views outside the front doors. We are also ready to implement our latest technology for the main lobby area: TotalGuard. "TotalGuard is a great solution for emergency situations, allowing JASF personnel to alert Sonitrol Central Station and transmit real-time audio and video to the monitoring center, for a prioritized verified police response."
