Case Study: 2N Telekomunikace
Hudson Falls School District Improves
Security for Students and Faculty
Video surveillance increases safety, decreases vandalism
Business Challenge
School districts have an ongoing commitment to maintain safe and secure learning
environments. When the Hudson Falls School District wanted to upgrade its
lockdown and security system, it called on Cisco Development Network partner 2N
Telekomunikace to help proactively and cost-effectively assure student and faculty
safety while reducing vandalism across the district.
Hudson Falls, located in Washington County, New York, is comprised of five schools
and two office buildings. Like many school districts, Hudson Falls relied on an
analog intercom-based security system together with staff members stationed at
entrances to check visitors’ ID and let them in and out of the building.
Day Automation Systems, a Cisco Advanced Technology partner for physical
security that specializes in integrated building access and video surveillance,
designed the original analog system in 2000,. In 2012 when the district was ready to
upgrade, Hudson Falls once again selected Day Automation Systems as its primary
vendor.
For the new system, Hudson Falls wanted to add a video component, a panic button,
enhanced communication and the ability to have the intercom dial the desk phone
directly. Day Automation Systems looked at a number of products before it found 2N
Telekomunikace. 2N IP Intercoms and IP Paging Systems offer voice and video with
access control for door entry systems, secure areas, parking lots or information and
emergency help points. These systems complement Cisco Unified Communications
and Collaboration Systems with one simple managed solution. After watching a
demo of 2N’s lockdown and door release running over a Cisco IP phone, everyone
immediately understood the value of collaborating on an upgrade for Hudson Falls.
That’s because 2N products are interoperable with a variety of Cisco solutions.
According to Robin Niubo Vasko, 2N's Global Channel Manager, “2N is a Cisco
Developer Network Preferred Solution partner. That’s the highest level of Cisco
partnership. We are closely aligned with Cisco product developments, and our
solutions are designed to work well with them. Our 2N Helios IP Force supports
voice, video camera and RFID technology.”
“The infrastructure could have been a hurdle, but it wasn’t for us,” says Greg Partch,
Hudson Falls’ Director of Educational Technologies. “We started to build out a Cisco
fiber network in 2000. Our original investment in Cisco paid off, because we were
able to upgrade and expand the existing backbone and infrastructure to meet our
security requirments.”
Solution
The infrastructure includes Cisco Video Surveillance Manager (VSM), a
comprehensive surveillance system that enables network and security teams to
collaborate effectively in a highly scalable environment. The system’s IP telephony
uses Cisco Call Manager, which allows users to manage access points such as gates
and doors – even allowing building-wide lockdowns – through Cisco 9971
telephones.
When a visitor arrives at any door in the district and rings the bell, office staff (or
anyone else with a designated Cisco phone) can see them on their phone’s video
screen, and by pressing a button either allow them in, initiate a lockdown and/or
contact 911 – all while watching the person at the door through a tamper-proof,
weather-resistant, virtually indestructible video camera. In addition, about 15
district personnel carry Cisco mobile IP phones, and are able to perform the same
functions remotely.
The configuration is built on the Cisco Unified Communications Manager, a
communications call control platform. Each school-entrance camera is associated
with a 2N Helios IP Force Intercom that provides video, voice and access control in a
one-box solution with high quality audio and advanced features. In addition to the
camera and intercom, an integrated RFID reader allows visitors to push a button to
talk or to enter the building using a key card. The system also includes software that
ties into the cameras and key locks, enabling school staff to communicate through
their Cisco phones to email addresses, cell phones or landlines. They can even
broadcast directly into a building’s Public Address system.
Results
The Washington County 911 center maintains an active feed and can connect to the
school district through a VPN. This provides local law enforcement with real-time,
wide-angle views from every camera in the district. Consequently, acts of vandalism
have been reduced thanks to the large deployment of cameras. What’s more, says
Partch, the district now requires fewer staff monitors.
Recently, the state police and local sheriff’s department staged a mock school
invasion. An actor was brought in to simulate an intruder during school hours. The
staff used cameras, phones and access control to identify the “intruder,” hit the
panic button, execute a lockdown, communicate district-wide and notify law
enforcement. All systems were brought into play. The drill went smoothly and all
the components of the security system worked together flawlessly.
About
2N Telekomunikace is a leader in developing and manufacturing telecommunication
solutions that are exported to more than 125 countries around the world. Its
product portfolio includes door and security intercoms, IP public address systems,
M2M solutions and a wide range of GSM/UMTS gateways, LTE/UMTS routers and
PBXs, focusing on SME, LME, system integrators and operators.
Products
 Cisco Video Surveillance Operations Manager 6.3.3
 Cisco Physical Access Manager 1.41
 Cisco 9971 telephones
 Cisco Unified Communications Manager v. 8.6
 2N Helios IP Force anti-vandal intercoms
Pull Quote
“Our goal for Hudson Falls school district was to make the schools as safe and secure
as possible. Now there are cameras at every entranceway in the district operated
remotely by 2N Helios IP Force and Cisco IP phones. With this state-of-the-art Cisco
and2N Telekomunikace security solution installed, we are able to notify students,
faculty and law enforcement personnel when there is an emergency.”
- Greg Partch, Director of Educational Technologies, Hudson Falls School District