The initial stage of the day is to confirm with our customer our time of arrival on the day of installation, ensuring the customer is on site and ready to meet with us. Once on site we complete a walkthrough with the customer outlining the steps of our installation and liaising with anyone else on site that we may impact while completing our work. Once we have carried out all agreed works we complete a walkthrough to check that everything has been completed and meets the specification provided by the customer. Once we are
happy with the installation we then complete one final walkthrough with our project lead to cross reference all work carried out which is checked off on our final completion document.

At Parade House our engineers would be working around the sites staff, management and residents with some of the residents potentially being vulnerable which posed new challenges to the team. Ensuring the safety of the residents would be the primary objective for us.
With a long list of goals to achieve at Parade House it was evident that our engineers would need to spend multiple days on site. Due to this it was vital to stick to a precise deadline and agreed dates of installation.

Task 1. CCTV
First on the agenda for Parade House was to install a new IP based CCTV system to increase security and to allow Maureen and Claire to remotely monitor their business when not on site. With Parade House being an older building we had a real challenge when it came to planning cable runs. With the aid of CAD floorplans and extensive notes taken on the
building we provided the engineers with exact cable runs meaning the job of cable installation was completed on day 1. With a total of 26 cameras it was necessary to run all the data through a locally hosted server. This was both to increase the security of the system and to manage the amount of cables coming into one point.

The issues that needed to be overcome by our engineers on Task 1 was safely working around the residents who freely move around the property. Where possible our engineers made residents aware of their presence and where they would be working. Working with the staff, management and on-site handy man were also a large factor of making this project run without any issues.
With all CCTV works completed Parade House now has a state-of-the-art monitoring system which can be viewed at multiple locations within the property and also remotely with smart devices that are registered to the system.

Task 2. Access Control
The next task to be tackled by us was to install a fully operational access control system at multiple entrances to the property. This would allow staff and management to enter the property when required and limited access to certain areas where required. When corresponding with Maureen and Claire it was clear that the system would need to be complex and fully operational as soon as possible.
Thanks to forward thinking and extensive planning all required cabling for the access control was installed at the time of our engineers installing the CCTV cables. With four Paxton Net2 door controllers installed in the attic spaces to keep the interior of the building looking clean and as if our engineers had never been on site.

Access control was installed on both the main entrance and the “staff” entrance which can be controlled remotely from a central control centre. Multiple fobs were issued to staff so that they can open both entrances by simply showing their fob to the readers.

Task 3. Bell System
Parade house required a system that would allow multiple doorbells to be rung from a single doorbell press, this would mean that members of staff and management would know that there was a visitor at the front door regardless of where they were in the property. This was a complex task for us that required extensive testing of equipment before installing at Parade House.
With the best solution now ready to be installed our engineers arrived on site and began work, being sure to consider testing our engineers made sure that all the staff and management were aware of the specific testing times, there would also be times when the bell system would not be online. 

To ensure no visitors were left standing outside we had one of our engineers’ man the CCTV and personally tell a member of staff that a visitor was waiting to come in. Once all the testing had been completed our engineers confirmed
the working system with staff and management that any further ringing bells would be a visitor at the front door.

Task 4. Intercom System
With Parade House being a busy environment, it was not always possible for a member of staff to come to the front door to grant access to a visitor, to solve this issue we also installed a Videx Intercom system. When a visitor arrives the property, they are able to directly speak with a member of staff or management via a 2-way audio intercom system which allows remote opening of the door access control. Parade house also wanted to automate their new bell system with the intercom. 

Thanks to planning and testing we were able to combine the intercom system with the bell system. Now when a visitor calls the intercom at the front door both the intercom phone and the bell system activate resulting in a visitor never being missed or being left outside for extended periods of time.

Task 5. WLAN
The final task to be completed was to install a Wireless Local Area Network across the entire property. We installed 12 access points which all combine to make one large scale WLAN. With multiple SSID which some had to be restricted and others not, we can monitor users and data.

Having these systems allowed Maureen and Claire to have a better understanding of their staff’s movements while improving the quality of life for the residents and stopping anyone unnecessarily waiting at the front door. 

As a result of the work carried out by us, Parade House now runs smoothly offering a better environment for both residents, staff and owners.