Controlware Communications has provided an IP CCTV transmission system to Aeroports de Paris Group for the new Galerie Parisienne terminal extension at Charles de Gaulle airport. The IP CCTV solution integrates with the existing Aeroports de Paris surveillance network, and ensures a high level of security is in place to safeguard passengers, airline companies, and partners throughout the new Galerie Parisienne extension.
Aeroports de Paris Group is Europe’s second largest airport group, managing 14 airports and aerodromes including Paris-Orly, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, and Paris-Le Bourget. A record 86.4 million passengers passed through Aeroports de Paris terminals in 2007, an increase of 4.7 per cent on the previous year, ranking Aeroports de Paris number one for traffic growth amongst Europe’s three largest airport groups.
Controlware has been working closely with the Direction Informatique et Telecommunications department at Aeroports de Paris since 2003, when they embarked on an ambitious CCTV upgrade programme to improve the level of security throughout their airports.
As part of this huge project Controlware was selected to supply codecs that enable video from analogue cameras to be streamed over IP networks. Controlware has assisted Aeroports de Paris with the evolution and expansion of their surveillance network, supplying codecs that to date support over 5,000 cameras to create one of the largest ever integrated IP CCTV networks in Europe.
“The flexibility and scalability of the codecs supplied to Aeroports de Paris provide easy integration with the existing CCTV network,” says Carmelo Musumeci, country manager for Controlware Continental Europe. “This is especially important in the context of large-scale and evolving projects like Aeroports de Paris.”
Airport challenges
In the face of rising passenger numbers, all airports today face huge challenges. There is the wider economic pressure of increased competition. At the same time they have to manage ever-present and constantly evolving security threats. Since airports are highly public environments that operate around the clock, the task is not easy.
Protecting airports is also made more difficult by their physical size and the diverse nature of businesses that work within them. Airports today are not only focused on passenger transport alone, but multiple business activities such as cargo freight, retail and associated services. This business diversification increases the number of potential threats to the airport, making identification and protection much more challenging than ever before.
As the airport authority for the Paris region, security and safety operations are a top priority for Aeroports de Paris. Since 2002 a dedicated security team, independent of the company’s operating divisions, has guaranteed the promotion of a ‘security culture’ throughout the organisation.
The security team defines standards and coordinates security policy between public services and airport divisions. This ensures that security is an integral part of all Aeroports de Paris operations over and above compliance with the standards set by the state. Aeroports de Paris is committed to the ongoing improvement of airport systems and extension of advanced security systems to help protect the airports it controls.
State of the art
The new C645 million Galerie Parisienne extension to terminals 2E and 2F at Charles de Gaulle airport is the largest boarding satellite in France and provides further capacity for both passengers and planes.
Since passenger traffic through Charles de Gaulle grew 5.4 per cent to 59.9 million people during 2007, the Galerie Parisienne extension provides much needed additional space. A total of 26 contact aircraft, including six giant Airbus A380 planes, can be parked simultaneously, enabling an additional 8.5 million passengers to use Charles de Gaulle each year.
The Aeroports de Paris IP CCTV solution provides state-of-the-art video surveillance encompassing both airside and passenger areas including luggage sorting, check in desks, access to restricted areas, ATM cash machines, car parks and perimeter monitoring applications. The integrated IP CCTV system enables Aeroports de Paris operators to access, share, and view live and recorded video from thousands of cameras at any location on their network and to operate a crisis centre that can be used in case of emergencies. To bring the 600 cameras that monitor the Galerie Parisienne terminal extension onto the existing IP CCTV network, Aeroports de Paris deployed 150 high performance 4-port video codecs. The codecs sit between the coaxial cable network (connected to the cameras) and the Ethernet network, converting the video from analogue cameras to IP for transport across the local or wide area network. Each codec enables live viewing of video at 25 f/s 4CIF. This allows operators to monitor and control cameras in the Galerie Parisienne at real-time DVD quality. By archiving video at up to 12.5 f/s 4CIF Aeroports de Paris record at a similar quality to real-time video but at a more cost-effective price point for storage hardware, while ensuring no events or alarms are missed.
“Controlware is proud to continue its partnership with Aeroports de Paris and to help ensure high levels of security are maintained throughout the new Galerie Parisienne terminal extension,” Musumeci says.