Fairfax Meadow, a catering butcher, uses IP CCTV for more than preventing losses.
A new surveillance system was installed by Gardiner Security NVIP (network partner) Matrix Net Limited at its main Derby site. The installer fitted Milestone XProtect Enterprise IP video surveillance software with Mobotix network video cameras inside and out.
Tony Carlisle, IT Manager at Fairfax Meadow, said: “The underlying reason for the surveillance is to enhance security, but what’s coming out strongly as a bigger benefit is the improved quality in our practices because people are being supervised better. I think it will pay for itself even more in that way.” The company reports that its old CCTV was outdated and labour-intensive, poor quality, inflexible, and required closing down to search for evidence. Refrigerated rooms and wash-down procedures also require robust hardware. The new system is scalable for adding or moving cameras. Site managers have found the system a new tool for improving quality practices to uphold industry standards.
What they say
Tony Carlisle added: “The main reason we have surveillance is to reduce and deter the amount of internal theft we get. Once meat is taken and removed from our packaging, it’s not traceable. Depending on the cuts of meat, it can be very high value. The biggest advantage, however, and one not initially considered by the management, is that the surveillance is used more for monitoring the working practices, checking that people are doing what they’re meant to be doing in the right way to follow proper hygiene procedures.”
Fairfax Meadow is British Retail Consortium (BRC) accredited. The BRC Technical Standard for Companies Supplying Retailer Branded Food Products was developed by UK supermarket retailers in 1998 to provide a standard for companies supplying retailer branded food products and assist them in meeting legal obligations. This involves a grading system based on the status and number of non-conformities. Requirements include monitoring HACCP (Hazardous Area Critical Control Points), internal audits, traceability, corrective action, layout, product flow and segregation, housekeeping, hygiene and training.
The procedures for handling the meat properly at Fairfax Meadow range from wearing special uniforms when inside the facilities to hand-washing, use of metal detectors, and labelling packages correctly. The new cameras have been set up inside the working areas of the factory besides outside, so these activities can be picked up in the video images for archiving and review.
Factories at Fairfax Meadow are big. There are about 380 staff and four locations: besides Derby, north London, Canterbury and Newcastle. They process and package meat at each site. All of the locations are planned for further implementation of the Milestone IP video.
The company is using only Mobotix cameras that are protected in their own housing and come as one total unit each, unlike other cameras that are delivered separate from the housing and wiring, which makes them more vulnerable to element degradation. "We looked at a whole lot of cameras from Gardiner Security like Axis and Pixord, but the combination of Milestone with Mobotix was very, very good for our needs," Tony Carlisle said.
The Mobotix hardware can handle down to minus 30 degrees C, from the box, the manufacturers report. Features include microphones and speakers for audio, PIR sensors and mega-pixel resolution. Mobotix cameras do not need to run power to them, just an Ethernet cable.
As a Gardiner Security NVIP, Matrix Net is also looking at the newer capabilities the Milestone software allows such as access control integration, and at implementing the Paxton access control product that integrates with the video. It is also advising Fairfax Meadow on the options for wireless connections for more perimeter coverage, as required by insurance providers. This would give guards more overview and previews of what may be happening elsewhere on the grounds without having to run round buildings.
