At Livingston in West Lothian, the former Almondvale Shopping Centre and the new Elements Square extension have been rebranded as The Centre – now one of the biggest shopping centres in Scotland.
The original Almondvale security system was installed more than 15 years ago, before redevelopment and extension of The Centre which began in 2006 and finished in October 2008. In late 2005, Siemens Building Technologies Security Solutions entered into discussions with Land Securities to design and put in a phased three year upgrade, valued at more than £1m. It would allow the system to be extended into two new car parks and Elements Square, the 375,000 sq ft extension.
Land Securities’ technical services manager John McLean says: “It was a challenging development project that involved ensuring the continuity of existing systems during the works. Siemens adopted a multi disciplined approach, working closely with the building services team, architects and contractors to ensure that our security systems were never compromised.”
Siemens provided Land Securities with a managed service package which made allowance for key phases in the retail development scheduled for 2007 and 2008
Blane McConnell, Business Development Manager for Siemens BTSS, says: “Our track record in working on complex multi-site developments, together with our innovative financing model meant that Siemens was perfectly placed to provide seamless support throughout the duration of the project.” The first phase involved installation of PTZ domes and fixed cameras to provide coverage of the new 2-storey ‘Centre Car Park 2’. The security product firm created and installed a fibre network which can send high definition images from multiple camera sites. Siemens had a part in the rebuilding of a Comms Room and new Central Management Suite, where the number of cameras has increased four-fold with capacity for expansion. The suite features a new monitor wall with 16 19-inch split screen TFT monitors and a central 40-inch ‘Event’ TFT monitor. A separate console sits in front of the monitor wall and features two operator positions, each with a matrix control keyboard and two 15-inch TFT spot monitors.
The suite is manned 24 hours. Security staff monitor cameras at the shopping centre and from a site at Dundee. The 15-year-old camera matrix, with a finite capacity, was slow and cumbersome. In its place: a new matrix and a new modular digital recording system. John says: “Compared to the original recording system, the new system is unbelievably fast, there are three main reasons why it is proving invaluable. The clarity of the high definition images, speed of the retrieval of information and the fact that we have done away with paper handling as the data can be loaded straight onto disk.” Phase two was installation of new PTZ dome and fixed cameras in new four-storey state of the art The Centre Car Park 1. Other cameras were installed in a link corridor to The Centre Car Park 2. Siemens installed another fibre network to support the required video and data transmission. The DVR capacity was also increased to take the new cameras.
John says: “We have almost one million square feet to protect including wide pedestrian walkways, stairwells and parking areas. Our philosophy is to provide a security prevention service ensuring that all our customers feel safe and can shop with confidence. We have excellent safety standards with well lit access areas. Our car parks are brightly lit with music playing to add to the feeling of safety and protection.”
The final, major phase was designed with BDP Architects, Wallace Whittle and consultants, the Blackwood Partnership. Elements Square was built with the modern day shopper in mind, featuring double height glass shop fronts, terracotta and zinc walls and granite flooring – to help give the feeling of shopping on the high street indoors, enabling customers to meet, relax and eat whatever the weather.
The security manufacturer had to ensure that the front of house cameras met with the architects’ aesthetics and included stainless steel finish PTZ dome cameras and unobtrusive bespoke grey painted fixed dome cameras. The finishes were required to fit the contemporary styling and blend with materials including zinc cladding and stainless steel as defined by the architects. The DVR capacity now features 15 x 16-channel recording servers that are now archived via 77 terabytes of RAID5 storage. Critical service spares including cameras, fibre transmission cards, monitors and DVR system components are held on site to minimize system down-time.
The Centre has over 155 units featuring high street names including Debenhams, Marks & Spencer, River Island and Warehouse with restaurants including Wagamama, Ask, and Nando’s.
