Flexible, Expandable IP/Hybrid Camera & Recording Systems for Offices & Businesses

You can buy security cameras anywhere. But to have a truly functional, robust surveillance/recording/monitoring security camera system for your office in Woodridge, IL, you need system design, installation, programming, and integration with your data network from someone who truly understands both. Don't get sucked into contracting services from a "camera installer" for whom IT networks are just a sideline or vice versa.

For decades, Andromeda has served the IT/Security needs of small-to-medium sized organizations like yours in the greater Chicagoland IL/Indy area. We have cultivated expertise in both the data network "brains" as well as the camera/access control/alarm/communication "arms and legs" of office systems and have years of experience integrating these together for a diverse cross-section of businesses, municipalities, and other associations/organizations.

Your timing for creating or expanding a current security camera surveillance system could not be better. There is no longer a need for an expensive, dedicated system to monitor your premises. We also provide great options for expanding an older security camera system with better/newer analog and digital technology without scrapping what you might already have! By leveraging your existing IT network for your security camera system(s), Andromeda can save you time, money, and lots of headaches with efficient integrated systems that can do more than you probably imagined: real-time alerts, automated responses, and more.

Security Camera/Surveillance/Recording Systems -Woodridge, IL 60517

We are a certified Panasonic Network Camera Installer. We utilize the latest in IP Video Camera technology, which allows the cameras, DVR recording and viewing all to be performed on your existing computer data network. This allows you to use your existing investment in your data wiring and data systems and extend that network into the security camera/webcam arena.

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Panasonic Cameras and Recording Software

• Panasonic manufactures over 20 different types of network video cameras. The following are some of the features that are available:
  Wireless
• Outdoor
• Power-Over-Ethernet (PoE)
• Digital and Optical Zoom
• Very High Resolution
• Low Light, Night Viewing
• Motion and Thermal Activation
• Full Pan, Tilt, and Zoom with Scanning Presets
• 2-Way Audio with Microphone and Speaker

The ability to record and later playback is an important and necessary part of any video security system. There are many options available; from on-camera memory sticks to a full-blown, searchable recording system capable of storing months worth of video from all your cameras. The viewing software is very user-friendly and easy to use.

Andromeda Technology Solutions will work to understand all your needs and provide a solution that exactly fits those needs, and allows for future growth if necessary. Our attention to detail will ensure you receive a system that you will be 100% happy with.

Applications

There are many types of applications where it pays to see there, when you cannot be there. Here are just a few types of oranizations that have benefited from our security camera systems:

• Parking Lots
• Daycare / Nursery School
• Construction Sites
• Car Dealerships
• Retail Stores
• Restaurant / Franchise
• Self Storage
• Hotel / Motel
• Multi-unit Residential

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Flexible / Programmable / Expandable Surveillance Systems

You can start with just a few cameras and expand the system as you grow. It is very easy to add security cameras to the system, without throwing away any of your initial investment.

There are options to synchronize recordings with your POS receipts, so you can exactly match the video recording with an individual receipt transaction.

The wide variety of camera types and camera options make the system extremely flexible to fit almost any application.

We can also setup remote access for you to view live video or search through recorded video, from any remote location with Internet access. You can keep tabs on your business without having to be there.

Integration: Get The Most From Your Security Systems

How does Integrated Security work?

How does Integrated Security work?

Integrated Security works by allowing you to program a multitude of responses—both in the Cloud and as control back to external hardware—based on any number of triggers from external hardware regardless of origin/type (cameras, access sensors, alarm fault sensors, motion, smoke, temperature,...)

Why is Integrated Security better?

Why is Integrated Security better?

This allows the entire system and designated human responders to more accurately assess the detailed nature of a security event and respond in the most precise/appropriate manner, virtually eliminating undue responses to false alarms.

Triggers:
• Motion in ...more

I.S. Responses:
• Discontinue ...more

Triggers:
• Door opening ...more

I.S. Responses:
• Selective lock ...more

Triggers:
• Zone fault ...more

I.S. Responses:
• Set/Reset ...more

Triggers:
• Manual Pan/Tilt/Zoom signals to designated cameras
• Overrides of any current Access Control statuses
• Set/reset Alarm status

I.S. Programmable Responses:
• Alert Central Station
• Email/text alert to owner/designated responders
• Pop appropriate camera feed(s) to all responders
• Release of appropriate cameras to manual control

Integrated Security works by allowing you to program a multitude of responses—both in the Cloud and as control back to external hardware—based on any number of triggers from external hardware regardless of origin/type (cameras, access sensors, alarm fault sensors, motion, smoke, temperature,...). This allows the entire system to more accurately assess the detailed nature of a security event and respond in the most precise/appropriate manner, virtually eliminating undue responses to false alarms.

AndroPedia Tech Library

As part of our service, it is important to keep our client-partners well informed on Security Camera system developments, news, and best practices. Here is just a sampling of typical items from our AndroPedia^SM library archive:

Security cameras have many uses at your business. They can be used to deter crime, monitor employees and ensure safety on your premises. Cameras can also be used as a piece of a larger integrated security solution with software add-ons (i.e. facial recognition, temperature maintenance etc.) or equipment integration such as access control with visual intercom capabilities.

As technology advances and companies look to integrate different devices cameras will be able to do even more.

All of this in mind, your professional camera system is an investment in the security of your business and you want to get your money’s worth out of it.

On average, a professional system has a life cycle of approximately 5 years. This life cycle can be significantly shorter due to extreme weather conditions (if the cameras are outside) but new technologies are improving exposure thresholds every year.

There are many things you can do as the equipment owner to ensure that you get a long and dependable life out of your security cameras.

Here are our Top 5 Tips to Prolong the Life of Your CCTV Professional Camera System:

1. System Updates/Patches

Unless you’ve opted for a cloud based solution, your cameras connect back to a physical recording device at your facility. Professional recording devices are now more like a PC or a server. They require regular updates/patches to help improve functionality, decrease bugs and resolve issues.

2. Dust Your Recording Equipment

Your recording equipment will most likely be mounted on some kind of rack in an area where you keep the rest of your IT equipment (like your server, router, phone equipment and other hardware).

3. Regular Testing of Recording Functions

It might sound a bit foolish to say you should regularly be checking your footage or regularly confirm that your cameras are working but when there aren’t regular incidents or needs to check footage, it can be easy to forget you even have the cameras at all (maybe you won’t completely forget but you get the idea). Obviously, they last thing you want is for an incident to occur and realize too late that your cameras are malfunctioning or your recorder isn’t working properly. We would suggest adding regular testing of your equipment to your maintenance schedule.

4. Clean Camera Lenses

Just like regular testing, it is important that you check and clean your camera lenses regularly. You never know what might get on them. Additionally, make sure to clean up foliage around your cameras to avoid blocked views. It is smart to clean camera lenses at least once a quarter if not more.

5. Semi-Annual Professional Service/Checkup

There are many small things that can happen to a professional camera system that are best left for professional technicians.

• Wiring issues
• Corrosion
• Faulty Equipment
• Port Forwarding
• System Audits (verification of views, users, permissions, updates)

We would recommend that you have a professional technician come on site at least twice a year to perform maintenance and checkups – hopefully from the same company who installed your equipment. At this time they can handle all of the above and possibly even more.

A quality professional camera system is an investment. They aren’t cheap but the protection and security they give you are well worth the expense. If you take proper care of your system, it will service your needs for years. Additionally, it makes sense to look into service packages your vendor offers to maintain a system before you even install it. Many companies include all of these services for a reasonable monthly fee.

Give us a call and let’s see what we can do to prolong the life of your system today!

The post Tips to Prolong the Life of Your CCTV Professional Camera System appeared first on Andromeda Technology Solutions.

If you are looking to add a security camera system to your technology mix, here is a simple and overriding factor that you shouldn’t ignore.  Like many things in life, you get what you pay for and CCTV cameras are no exception.

There is a vast difference in a $59 security camera purchased from Costco or Amazon, and a professional grade, $300 camera.  The differences show up in picture quality, reliability, and longevity.

How To Tell If A Security Camera System is Right Choice?

Picture Quality

Imagine the unimaginable. A break-in occurs at our business. You did everything you could to prevent this (i.e. a functional burglar system, cameras and even access control at specific entrances). Now, you go to look at footage the security camera caught so you can catch the culprit and the image shows a grainy blob. Now, imagine poor quality mixed with weather or poor lighting . . . you get the picture (or lack thereof).

Reliability ­

Fast forward a few months after you install your system. Two employees get into a fender bender in the parking lot. When the police/employees request footage of the incident you don’t sweat it. You head directly to your DVR and prepare to play back footage . . . but wait . . . looks like your system is malfunctioning and a quarter of your cameras within your security camera system haven’t been recording like you thought they were. Bummer!

Longevity

When spending money on technology, it is important to see it as an investment. Sure, things come and go but investing in a quality system from a reputable vendor ensures that your system will last. Systems installed by professionals typically last years with proper maintenance and system care. That system on sale at Costco is lucky to last you a few months over warranty without some sort of failure.

The one constant with cameras – they need to work. They need to capture what you need; whether that be a parking lot, office space, warehouse or any other number of critical areas in your facility.

If you cut corners here, you’ll get cut corner results.

We’d suggest instead, invest that money into a quality system that will perform when you need it and for years to come.

The post What To Consider When Buying That Security Camera System (Hint, It Isn’t Price) appeared first on Andromeda Technology Solutions.

It looks like it's going to be another bad month for Equifax.� The company just can't seem to get out of its own way.

In 2017, the company announced a massive data breach that (it initially claimed) impacted some 140 million users.� Several months after the official announcement, the company was forced to revise the number of impacted users upward, as the forensic investigation into the breach continued.

Now, the company has announced a further upward revision of 2.4 million, bringing the total number of impacted users to slightly more than 148 million.

Equifax CEO Paulino do Rego Barros Jr. had this to say about the announcement, which raised more than a few eyebrows:

"This is not about newly discovered stolen data.� It's about sifting through the previously identified stolen data, analyzing other information in our databases that was not taken by the attackers, making connections that enabled us to identify additional individuals."

As it did originally, the company has also announced that it would notify the newly identified consumers and offer them free credit monitoring and identity theft protection at no cost.

After last year's congressional hearings on the matter, this portion of the announcement tends to illicit eyerolls. The company is in the credit monitoring business, and the way the company offers its "free" protection is that at the end of the free period, it automatically rolls into a paid plan unless the user cancels the service.

Of course, as with most such schemes, a high percentage of users won't think about it until they get their first bill. One of the more acidic comments made during last year's hearings was that the company actually seems to be profiting from their own data breach.� That makes the CEO's statement that "We are committed to regaining the trust of consumers, improving transparency, and enhancing security across our network" ring a bit hollow.

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