Page 24 - Security Today, May/June 2021

Jackson Hole Airport in Wyoming recently made a significant investment to increase their video system’s size and capabilities mainly to cover perimeter and exterior facilities, including the fuel farm, car wash and expanded parking facilities.
With the parking expansion alone, 48 new cameras were add- ed to monitor capacity and flow issues and secure the safety of employees and the public. Monitoring snow removal equipment is also accomplished, and recorded video has helped verify any accidents or damage caused by the plows.
Beginning last year, the airport started providing client air- lines access to video covering their respective areas so they can watch their own operations. The client airlines now access the air- port camera views via the Milestone XProtect VMS to monitor the de-icing stages of their planes.
RESPONDING TO A PANDEMIC
On top of all the many concerns airports already managed, they now must add the COVID layer. By their very nature, air- ports bring people together from all over the country, indeed, the world, to a central point and then spread them far and wide — the exact opposite of pandemic management.
Additionally, people spend multiple hours at airports, in and out of lines, seated in groups, moving through security checks and the many boarding processes.
A report from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) regarding the impact of COVID-19 states that to survive, airports now must reduce all variable costs where possible by closing por- tions of their infrastructure, furloughing staff, curtailing contract services and many other cost-cutting strategies.
This means that airports now need to do much more with much less, all in the face of a pandemic.
The TSA Coronavirus web page requires travelers to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) travel guidance, and all local and state advisories regarding COVID-19. Specifically, travelers are asked to:
• Maintain a social distance of six feet wherever possible while at
the checkpoint
• Wear a face mask throughout the travel experience
• Practice good hygiene, such as washing hands regularly, includ-
ing directly before and after completing the security screening
process
• Arrive at the airport early to allow adequate time for checking bags,
completing security screening and getting to the departure gate
A recent article in the Wall Street Journal states that airlines and airports are taking a range of additional steps and procedures to assure traveler safety, including modifying boarding procedures, queuing small groups of the plain, cleaning more thoroughly and
more often, and thoroughly wiping down all contact points.
How can airports, now with significantly reduced staff and budgets, help ensure travel compliance with social distancing and reduced physical contact recommendations? Video surveillance
technologies may offer some answers.
“From people counting to access control, video management
systems hold a wealth of hidden potential to assist airports in keep- ing staff and travelers as safe as possible,” said Jennifer Hones, man- ager, Key Account Team at Milestone Systems. “Airlines and air- ports face enormous challenges, and video can be a significant force multiplier — we’ve been in near-constant contact with partners, in- tegrators and end-users who are looking for critical solutions.”
The Milestone XProtect open platform VMS currently sup- ports more than 8,000 different security devices from more than 150 manufacturers. Technology partners include manufacturers
of network video cameras, encoders, DVRs and NVRs, storage equipment, access control, alarm, and detection systems, video an- alytics, GPS technology, laser scanners and emergency call boxes.
PEOPLE COUNTING AND SOCIAL DISTANCING
With an open VMS, airports can use digital tools to quickly pivot to create a solution within the framework of their existing security installation. An open platform enables the integration of compatible video management applications and devices needed for safely operat- ing transportation hubs, including people counting, access control, social distancing detection, queue management and one-way routes within the airport. Additionally, managers can also use these tech- nologies to gather actionable data to enhance the traveler experience.
Using video analytics driven by machine learning, airports can track the number of travelers in an airport. With real-time video analysis—which counts people—managers can be auto- matically notified when the maximum number of people has been reached. Appropriate thresholds can set up in advance, helping a store avoid overcrowding or excessive numbers of shoppers.
VMS can be set up with a “one in, one out” policy to control access. Waiting shoppers are notified when they are allowed to enter a store via a “traffic light” device, for example. With this technology, a retailer prevents overcrowding without having to place an employee at the entrance. This prevents both the em- ployee and the customer from being at a greater risk of infection.
Video technology can even detect when people overstep the prescribed safe distance, such as when browsing a newsstand and suddenly find themselves very close to another person. The video system can immediately set off an alarm, helping remind travel- ers to keep a safe distance either by automated recorded cues or personally by a friendly staff member.
Queue management. Active queue management is essential. Shorter wait times generally equate to a safer experience. Inte- grating with the VMS, video content analysis can track how long specific travelers have waited in line. Based on wait time policy, real-time alerts can be sent to management to deploy additional assistance quickly. By continuously monitoring checkpoints, managers can identify flow issues to address the busiest spots promptly. Having better information at hand reduces frustration for time-conscious travelers and enables airports to make better use of available resources.
Temperature scans. The coronavirus pandemic has brought great attention to the use of thermal cameras within a video sur- veillance system as a way to screen and possibly detect travelers with elevated body temperatures. Thermal cameras can detect minute differences in surface temperatures and highlight the tem- perature of objects (or faces) within a scene in precise detail, or even sound an alarm or trigger other actions of a temperature within the specified range is detected.
Into the cloud. The next horizon for video surveillance technol- ogy is to start moving components of the system as well as process- ing power to the cloud. Full or hybrid cloud solutions offer orga- nizations a quick way to enhance their video system capabilities without expensive capital equipment or infrastructure investments. And with cloud-based solutions, video can be ac-
cessed, monitored or shared in an almost infinite
number of ways, greatly expanding an airport’s
options for sharing the workload and seeking the
help of experts as needed.
Jake Cmarada is a key account manager, East, at Milestone.
24
MAY/JUNE 2021 | SECURITY TODAY
AIRPORT SECURITY