Voicepath Limited, working with Mayflex, the cabling infrastructure, networking and physical security product distributor, has supplied Mobotix cameras for a webcam application to monitor surf and beach conditions.
Tiger24 is a specialist website to bring visitors high resolution webcam images of current surf and beach conditions. The images come from all over the UK and are updated every 60 seconds. Other websites do something similar, but Tiger24 point out that their surf webcams are all high resolution, with zoom in capabilities, housed in purpose built installations that are designed to hold up against the most adverse weather.
Having high resolution images is a unique selling point for Tiger24, and this meant that they needed cameras which could give them that. Tiger24 needed reliable kit requiring minimal equipment on site and as little maintenance as possible, as the cameras had to be installed in remote locations.
Putting a camera on the beach brings problems of its own. To stream beach and surf conditions accurately, the cameras had to be flexible, sturdy and weatherproof. Due to extreme tidal ranges in the UK, the cameras also needed versatility.
Tiger24 contacted Voicepath Limited, to help with sourcing and installing the right technology.
Voicepath Limited specialises in the design and installation of Structured Wiring Systems for the Information Technology development and growth of businesses.
Having had a long relationship with Mayflex, and Mayflex is one of the biggest suppliers of Mobotix products, Voicepath Limited decided to use the Mobotix M10-SEC-D45D135 camera, which fitted all of Tiger24’s requirements. Not only could the cameras be installed in remote locations requiring virtually no maintenance, but they are also decentralised, meaning no further software or hardware is required. In addition, just one camera is needed for each area and visitors to the site can view a large area of the beach, giving them images of the current swell.
Once the products had been sourced, the design and installation needed to be tackled. The cameras were to be installed in seven sites in Cornwall and one site in Brighton, and each site presented its own difficulties. Dealing with each problem on an individual basis, Voicepath Limited overcame such difficulties as the fact that most buildings in which the cameras were to be installed upon were unmanned, so unplanned access became an issue. However, Mobotix’s technology meant some of the potential problems could be easily circumvented. Needing reliable equipment that required little maintenance was no issue for Mobotix. As all the cameras are decentralised and have no moving parts, there is no requirement for a server or PC on site and maintenance is kept to a minimum. In addition, Mobotix cameras have the versatility of two lenses, a feature not available on other IP cameras, and this helped deal with the extreme tidal ranges.
The remoteness of all the sites caused issues, but an even bigger hurdle was the Wide Area Network (WAN) connection. Voicepath Limited had to liaise closely with local service providers to install new cabling, but eventually all the problems were overcome.
Dave Sale, Director at Tiger24, said: “We had a lot of exact requirements to match and were worried that we wouldn’t be able to find the perfect solution. However, when Voicepath Limited told us about the Mobotix M10 we were delighted. It gave us virtually everything we wanted and allows clear, high resolution images to be displayed on our website, whatever the weather, with minimal loading time, and no interaction is required with any other technology as the cameras are completely self sufficient in their remote locations.”
Visitors to the website can click on the location of their choice and they can view the latest images for that area. But it doesn’t stop there. Tiger24 is constantly growing and is actively looking for new spots for its cameras. Providing the surfing community the first ever high resolution images at the touch of a button has put Tiger24 ahead of its competitors, and this couldn’t have been done without Mobotix technology, the expertise of Voicepath Limited and the support of Mayflex.
The M10 Camera has now been replaced with the M12 DualNight Camera.
