Five Tips for Installing the Best Video Security System
Are you looking for the right video security provider for your business? Video security is an important measure in protecting your business and assets, and you need to make sure that the video security provider you use is equipped for the job. To help you choose and install the best video surveillance system for your business, we’ve put together a quick list of tips:
- Consider the ideal visibility for your security cameras.
Depending on the location of your closed circuit video surveillance systems, you might benefit most from them being obvious, or discreet. If you own a retail space, you might prefer obvious security solutions, so your patrons are aware that they are on camera and are discouraged from shop lifting (this is why some establishments have signs up that say, “Smile, you’re on camera” or even install false camera domes).
On the other hand, perhaps you don’t want the closed-circuit television systems to be obvious. Perhaps your business is not client-facing, and you want to be able to discreetly monitor your inventory in a way that your staff can’t easily go to a gap in the cameras to do whatever unsavory actions they intended. In this case, you’d want a less obvious security system. There isn’t necessarily a right answer here; you just need to consider the best setup for your business needs. - Determine the environment your video security cameras will be in.
It’s likely that the ideal security system for you business is going to involve both indoor and outdoor cameras. However, you should consider the best mix of both to protect your assets, and determine the implications of that decision. For example, if you live in an extremely cold environment, your outdoor cameras will need to be able to start up and do their jobs, even when the temperatures dip below freezing.
If your security system is going to be attached to a vehicle, you’ll want to make sure that they can withstand the vibration that they’ll be subject to. If your security cameras are going to be used in an industrial environment, you might want to consider housing for them, so that dust and debris don’t get inside them. Thinking about the environment that your security cameras are in is an important part of creating a good security system setup. - Map out the area you want to cover before determining the number of cameras and their locations.
When you have are looking at a blueprint of the area that you want to capture with a security system, it’s easier to make decisions on how many cameras you need and where they should be, than if you just estimate while walking through the space.
If you have a large area that will be under surveillance, you might want to look into the range of view that each camera has, and whether or not it has zoom capabilities. Investing in good cameras that can cover a lot of area at once (but also narrow in on details, if need be) is a good way to keep operation costs down, by requiring fewer cameras in place.
If the area you are covering is rather small, you might only need a few static cameras to get the job done. This will also involve fewer network requirements for storing the data that is recorded by the security cameras. - Determine the level of image quality that you need.
If each camera has a large space that its responsible for monitoring, you will need to make sure that it captures images with high resolution. If it has a broad image area, you will likely need to zoom in considerably to achieve the image information you need. If the camera has a low resolution, you will not get anything other than a fuzzy image.
On the other hand, if the space that each camera is monitoring is fairly small, you might be able to save a little bit of money upfront by investing in lower resolution cameras. - Assess the lighting conditions in the area you want to record.
Consider the lighting conditions that your cameras will be working in, both during the day and the evening. If the area your cameras will be located have great daylight, but limited light in the evening, getting a camera with night vision is important.
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