Degrees of surveillance

The restaurant trade has always been in Nick Desai’s blood. Desai’s father Harshad worked in a joint venture with high profile restaurant financier Hugh Osmond and Luke Johnson to build up the Pizza Express chain from the mid-1990s. When Harshad moved to California to extend the Pizza Express brand over there, Nick took over the management of the London franchise.

It did not take long before he was setting up his own outlets. Business partner Dipam Patel began managing two bars in 1989 in South East London and, by 1997, he had also bought a nightclub in Beckenham and a restaurant in Bexleyheath. In 1998, Patel and Desai joined forces and began working on a new concept under the brand Zerodegrees.

The Zerodegrees concept would offer a microbrewery and restaurant under one roof, the name ‘Zerodegrees’ stemming from the location of the group’s base in Blackheath to the east of Greenwich on the Meridian line at zero degrees.

There was to be a focus on natural ingredients such that the brewing process would contain no artificial chemicals or colourings. No expense was to be spared in creating slick, modern and stylish interiors to accentuate the novelty of the concept.

Concept with immediate appeal

The Zerodegrees concept had immediate appeal. The first site – bought in August 1999 and located on Montpelier Vale in Blackheath – was an ex-flower shop and conservatory offering 6,500 sq ft of space. On completion in August 2000, it offered 130 covers with space for a further 150 in the bar.

In July 2002, a second 12,500 sq ft site was bought at a disused tram works close to the heart of Bristol. This site would allow space for 180 covers inside, with an outdoor terrace space for an additional 50. It was opened in July 2004, and was an immediate success. Today, four to five thousand litres of beer are consumed on the premises every week.

A third outlet, positioned close to Reading’s new Oracle Shopping Centre, opened in the latter stages of last year, while another is due to open in Cardiff in late 2007. Today, the group has six sites trading and employs some 240 people with 50 employed at the Bristol Zerodegrees site alone. Restaurant microbreweries in Reading and Cardiff will create a total of eight outlets altogether. Plans are afoot to extend the concept to at least ten sites by 2010.

Desai always considered that discrete deployment of surveillance cameras would act as an important deterrent against anti-social behaviour and criminality in his nightclubs and bars. He wanted to cut out theft of customer belongings and loss of earnings through stealing of takings, and was equally determined to stamp out drug abuse in the toilets. “Many nightclubs employ strong arm tactics at the door to keep undesirables out,” states Desai, “but we chose to go down the technology route to deter bad behaviour because we wanted to be welcoming to everyone.”

Initially, the Zerobar and OHM bar in Bexleyheath used analogue-based CCTV cameras and Leviathan Pro 16 alongside rack-mounted digital video recorders (DVRs). Desai elected not to rip out the existing CCTV cameras and DVRs, but did find the systems restrictive.

“DVR and analogue-based dome cameras lacked the flexibility that we wanted,” continues Desai. “Any new DVR systems that were needed as we expanded were expensive, and limited the number of cameras that could be hung off each of them. By contrast, I could see that each network camera had an individual network address attached to it and, as such, I could literally pick one specific camera, access it through a normal web browser via my laptop or PDA, and once through an authentication layer, I could view specific locations in specific bars and restaurants wherever I am in the world.”

Networks on trial in Bristol

So convinced was Desai about the value of this approach that he procured 2110 Series network cameras from Axis Communications (UK), installing one at the main entrance to the building site and a second covering a walkway that runs over the top of the venue. Once both were installed in February 2004, Desai found them invaluable for dealing with progress in the building phase at Bristol where his view was needed on a specific aspect of the build before construction work could continue.

Desai could also assess whether specific individuals who needed to be on site (such as the foreman or the architect) were there. It was also good to see if the full strength team of builders were arriving late or leaving early. Comments Desai: “I didn’t need to take their word for it that they were on site and were proactively moving the project forward. I could see that they were there doing what I was paying them to do. It really helped me to keep on top of the progress of the building works.”

Needless to say the project was completed on time and on budget. Following the success of the trial use of two Axis 2110 network cameras outside during completion of the building work, Desai decided to deploy a total of 16 network cameras and four analogue cameras – connected via two 241Q video servers – to cover low light areas inside the restaurant. The analogue cameras were selected for these low light areas because of the fact that at the time of purchase network cameras which handled low light conditions effectively were relatively costly.

“The trial convinced me of the value of networking surveillance cameras,” explains Desai. “It taught me that cameras could be used to provide us with visual updates on how a restaurant is doing on a day-to-day basis. I can check in on Friday evening to assess how busy it is and how quickly people are being served, for example. I saw it as a great additional management tool, not just as a security device.”

After the Bristol Zerodegrees opened it was impacted by a major incident of theft in 2004 when a member of staff stole from the takings following a busy Friday night’s trading. A large sum of money was stolen but, luckily, evidence was caught on two Axis network cameras located in the restaurant and also in the bar. Continues Desai: “When confronted, the member of staff concerned blamed a manager, but it was clear from the surveillance pictures that it was her. She was subsequently prosecuted and ordered to pay back the full amount or face a jail sentence.

“This incident alone effectively proved the value of the system in terms of return on investment. And we have had other incidents including the accidental breaking of a reinforced plate glass and Zerodegrees-branded door which we caught on camera and, as a result, the insurance claim was processed much more quickly than normal.”

A more technical view

Network cameras are located in the bars on the lower level of the restaurant to ensure that nothing untoward is going on. Bar areas tend to be vulnerable to pick-pocketing or bag snatching. The wash basin areas of the bar toilets are also monitored because Desai wants to actively discourage drug usage. Clean flat areas like sinks tend to be the areas where drug users are likely to congregate. Two contracted security officers also patrol these areas and monitor entrances themselves to see who is coming in and going out.

Cameras set up outside use ‘exclusion zones’ to ensure that the right areas are targeted for movement. As such, the movement of trees outside will not trigger the system but when people start walking down the ramp into the upstairs entrance this will do so – thereby increasing refresh rates on the cameras from four to 12 frames per second (fps) for better definition and guaranteed identification of individuals as they enter.

Zerodegrees uses a two Terabyte (TB) Dell server running a Windows XP Professional software platform to store 31 days of images, normally leaving 500 MB of spare capacity at the end of the month before this material is recorded over. The police now request that venues keep 31 days of recordings so that they have enough time to pursue investigations involving someone who may have attended a public bar, perhaps to meet gang members for example, before going out to commit a crime later in the evening.

Desai adds: “Footage was requested after a woman had her handbag stolen from the bar area here. We provided the police with the relevant images. We also used the images to alert our staff should the thief come back another evening.”

If Zerodegrees experiences any security events it uses the Milestone XProtect system to manually back up all images for the 24 hours in which the event happened to two external LaCie hard disk drives, thereby ensuring that no important data is lost in case the authorities need to view it. Zerodegrees has invested in eight Megabit per second (Mbps) broadband access provided by British Telecommunications. Zerodegrees runs a Virtual Private Network (VPN) link via Netgear routers DG834G from all its sites to its hq in London so that it can view all data networks from there.

These VPNs are increasingly being used for remote, highly secure viewing of images from network cameras now located in Bristol. Images are also viewed on one dedicated computer in the Bristol Zerodegrees office where a split screen covering all cameras is often monitored by the general or assistant managers or security staff when onsite. HP ProCurve 2524 24-port switches also take connectivity for a wireless network which runs within the restaurant via three Buffalo Technologies wireless access points WLA-G54 providing network access supporting three 207W wireless network cameras. This enables effective coverage of the entire building, which is 75 metres long and contains a good number of brick walls and steel structures.

A total of six 2110 network cameras are deployed on this site from the original order placed in February 2004, with all six sited inside the building – two in the bar, one covering the downstairs restaurant, two for the upstairs restaurant and one being located in an Axis housing on the downstairs entrance.

A second camera order was placed in June 2004 once the building work was nearly complete. This order included two 211 network cameras to be located on the inside of the building looking towards each of the two entrances, a further Axis 211 network camera set above the waitress station also covering the spirits and champagne cupboard behind. The fourth Axis 211 model was sited in the office to cover all computer equipment. In addition, one Axis 205 network camera was sited in the office. Another two Axis 205s cover the downstairs wine and stock room and the safe.

Coverage of the tills

One 207W wireless network camera covers the main till downstairs, but Desai plans to site two more 207Ws over the top of the fermenting tanks which have glass tops so that browsers will be able to literally see the beer being made at the Zerodegrees. Including these units, a total of 16 Axis network cameras will have been installed.

Two analogue cameras were located in low light areas including the basin areas of the bar toilets, and a further two analogue-based cameras are sited outside of the building. These cameras feed into two 241Q video servers so that images from them can be viewed over the network and also managed by the Milestone XProtect Professional Version 4 system.

The total cost of the 16 network cameras and four analogue-based cameras, combined with the Milestone management system, was approximately £6,500 (that is the cost before cabling). Desai analysed that the equivalent analogue-based CCTV system would have cost him more than £10,000, and would not have delivered all the advantages of remote viewing in any case.

Another interesting piece of functionality is the two-way audio now offered by the 211 (A) cameras. This benefit caught Desai’s eye as he thinks there may be a potential to run morning briefings – with restaurant management teams, for example – through this system. Desai also highlights the ease of use of the cameras, which enabled him to configure the system himself.

“I am used to setting up my own computer systems and data networks. With these networking skills I found that camera configuration was easy. Frankly, Axis’ interfaces for making sure their devices are up-and-running could not be more straightforward. I can generate an IP address through the camera management tool in minutes. It’s incredibly intuitive.”

The Milestone system has a built-in web server with secure HTTPS login so anyone with proper authorisation can access the database of recorded images and live recordings from all cameras by video stream to Desai’s HP IPAQ 5450 (with biometric access) using Windows. It’s also possible to view individual cameras direct from a web browser with proper username and password verification (and IP address identification).

The end user can also assign static IP addresses to each camera, make port selections for each camera and configure Zerodegrees’ NetGear routers to get them to allow communication with a specific camera without being blocked at the firewall.

Health and Safety compliance

Ensuring Health and Safety legislation compliance is an additional potential benefit of the surveillance system for Zerodegrees. The brewery particularly demands very specific hygiene standards (which is as it should be), and only authorised staff are allowed into the restricted area where the controls and fermenting tanks are located.

“Cameras could help us check that procedures are being observed, and also ensure no staff are risking their health while going about their normal day’s work,” opines Desai. “If there is an accident while staff are working here it would be valuable or us to have the incident caught on camera should there be any Health and Safety case to answer.”

Desai is considering integrating the cash tills with the camera system using Milestone Transact, and plans to trial this combined system in the new restaurant in Reading. Also under consideration is the use of a high-end PTZ camera which could be open to web browsers wanting to see around a venue prior to making a large booking for a birthday party or a dinner party, for example.

Desai believes that to ensure total security for his core network and surveillance system, he will probably need to create a totally dedicated Local Area Network for this PTZ.