Axis delivers network cameras to yet another U.S. school district

Axis Communications announced today that the Frisco Independent School District (FISD) in Texas, U.S. has chosen to install Axis network cameras in 25 education and administrative buildings. Axis' partner, Digital Technology & Surveillance (DTS), will install approximately 430 of the IP-based cameras, which will be operational by August 2004.

The FISD selected DTS' OmniOculus system, which is based on Axis network cameras, to proactively combat violence, theft and bullying on school grounds. The cameras will be installed in public areas such as hallways, parking lots, entrances and lunchrooms, and the system will enable school officials to utilize a secure password to access live and recorded video via any Internet-connected computer. In addition, the system complements the district's crisis management plan by allowing local police and rescue workers to access the system in case of an emergency situation. "Having a security and surveillance system based on IP standards has been a major benefit to the FISD," said Kevin Haller, director of security for the FISD. "Because the cameras operate over the computer network, we can utilize our existing infrastructure and save money in installation costs. Retrofitting our buildings with the cabling needed to operate an analog system would have been too cost prohibitive." Unlike analog systems, network video eliminates the need for a dedicated monitoring system, provides better image quality, delivers full-motion video (30 frames per second) via the computer network, and easily scales to accommodate more cameras as the district adds new buildings. Axis network cameras and video servers connect directly to IP-based networks and contain built-in Web servers and operating systems that enable the transmission of real-time images over the Internet. The OmniOculus system, which DTS designed specially for K-12 school environments, manages these live and archived images with a single solution, regardless of where the school is located. School security is one of the fastest growing markets for network video technology. According to the U.S. Department of Education 2002 "Indicators of School Crime and Safety" report, 15 percent of public schools reported using video surveillance to monitor students and their school.