Latin America. In the framework of World Cities Day, to be celebrated on October 31, Hanwha Techwin analyzes the way in which the implementation of video surveillance systems strengthens the development of smart cities, as it accelerates the response times of emergency services, improves roads, contributes to the protection of the health of the population and the reduction of the effects of greenhouse gases.
"Smart cities have as their main objective to use technology to improve the quality of life of their inhabitants. In this sense, the implementation of video surveillance systems have proven to be key, not only to safeguard security, but also to identify mobility habits and, in the context of the pandemic, compliance with the recommended sanitary measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19, as well as to improve preventive measures against the virus", says Ian Juárez, director of Hanwha Techwin Mexico.
According to Sidarel Engie's Understanding Reliency: What it means to be Resielient City and tools to suppor study, there is a constant migration of people to the world's cities, so that by 2050 66% of the world's population will live in cities.
In recent years, more and more urban developments in Latin America are adding to this trend. According to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), localities in Mexico such as Ciudad Creativa Digital and Tequila Inteligente in Jalisco, Maderas in Querétaro and Smart City in Puebla are considered smart cities.
On the other hand, Mexico City, Monterrey and León are beginning to emerge towards this urban digitalization due to their infrastructure and ability to implement intelligent solutions such as public Wi-Fi points, intelligent lighting systems and complex video surveillance systems.
According to the company specialized in CCTV solutions, video surveillance allows to streamline roads, territorial distribution, strengthen health measures (by applying monitoring protocols that allow compliance with hygiene standards such as healthy distance or the use of masks) and improve the management of government programs, as well as increase urban resilience, which can be improved with data monitoring and analysis systems; which favors to improve the quality of life of the inhabitants.
On the other hand, the linking and interpretation of information is one of the most important aspects when talking about smart cities. It is for this reason that security systems, together with sensors of different types, become of vital importance for the development of these cities, because by collecting all kinds of data and using analytical systems, it is possible to measure environmental conditions, monitor road spaces and optimize the response of emergency services.
"A vital aspect for the operation of such systems would be to keep them connected to make the link more efficient and generate more accurate information to guarantee the protection and well-being of the population; this is easier and more accurate now with Artificial Intelligence," says Juárez.
Some points to highlight, according to the World Economic Forum, are the protection of personal data, privacy and cybersecurity, so it has undertaken an alliance in which it has recruited a group of 36 "pioneer cities" that will collaborate with global experts to improve policies on these aspects, in addition to better services for people with disabilities and better broadband coverage.
Against this background, a report by the research firm Guidehouse Insights, predicts that the annual global cybersecurity revenues of smart cities will amount to the figure of 7.6 billion dollars in 2021, while this amount could reach 26 billion dollars by 2030.
And it is that in addition to guaranteeing the safety of the population, other uses that can be granted to video surveillance systems within these digital cities are:
• Optimization of public services: Network cameras improve incident response and streamline the management of people in public spaces. In addition, they can prevent accidents, detect potential hazards and monitor aspects of citizen safety.
• Mobility and mobility: Monitoring systems placed on smart city roads optimize traffic and urban mobility. In addition, they provide information necessary to make the response times of the emergency services more efficient.
• Reduce the carbon footprint: With the use of sensors and analytics in surveillance cameras it is possible to improve the flow of traffic, optimize electrical resources and aquifers and, therefore, considerably reduce the levels of environmental pollution.
"Therefore, over the years video surveillance systems have adapted to market trends, with the aim of promoting interest in digitalization and facing the challenges posed by urbanism, as well as promoting the sustainable development of cities," concludes the director.
