The company’s objectives for the project were three-fold. Firstly to enable system administrators to perform remote monitoring of locations throughout the Center from a centralised control room, secondly to obtain clear high-definition video, and finally to implement the system over a secure, autonomous network environment.

I-Mei Foods, established in 1934, is one of Taiwan's biggest and prestigious food product manufacturers, not only providing popular snacks and beverages to consumers, but also turning into one of the key suppliers in the worldwide food supply chain. In addition to conventional production plants, it maintains the I-Mei Foods Apprentice Training Center, a unique public facility that combines an exhibition space with two separate production areas—one for displaying manufacturing equipment, and the other for live demonstrations of the manufacturing process—retail operations, and a nature park.

The new system represents a major upgrade from I-Mei’s original security infrastructure, which had been based on traditional lower-definition CCTV cameras. To accommodate the high-bandwidth data transmission needs of the megapixel-class IP cameras that would be required, the upgrade entailed installation of a fibre optic network. Another challenge of the project was the sheer diversity of environments that needed to be monitored by the system, including not just two separate production areas, but also both indoor and outdoor areas.

During the planning stages, Vivotek conducted extensive surveys of the entire site, photographing and filming from various locations to determine the ideal positions and types of cameras that would best meet I-Mei’s needs. When this preliminary work was complete, Vivotek provided detailed schematics to I-Mei so it could quickly grasp where cameras would be positioned and the function each would serve, along with a complete system architecture diagram.

Once Vivotek’s plan was approved, engineers began actual implementation. In all, the project encompassed an impressive 330 cameras, including 281 IP8332 and 11 IP8335H cameras. The 1.3-megapixel IP8332 network bullet cameras were installed throughout the production areas and provide the high-resolution video required by I-Mei. Though designed primarily for outdoor environments with its IP66-rated housing, the IP8332 is well suited for withstanding the occasional high temperatures and humidity found around these areas.

The 11 IP8335H cameras, which are megapixel network bullet cameras also designed with outdoor applications in mind, were installed to monitor the grounds and access points of the Center. With its integration of Vivotek’s sophisticated wide dynamic range (WDR) technology, the IP8335H is ideal for ensuring clearly detailed footage is available even under challenging light conditions. WDR technology enables the camera to preserve detail throughout the field of view, even when both brightly illuminated and dimly illuminated areas are present. The combination of excellent high-resolution picture quality and WDR made the IP8335H able to cope with demanding tasks such as clearly capturing license plate numbers of vehicles entering and exiting the Center.

In addition to these two mainstays of I-Mei’s new security solution, Vivotek also installed 37 dome cameras for discreet monitoring inside elevators throughout the Center, and an SD8362E in the Eco Village park area. The latter is a 2-megapixel Supreme model that provides powerful 20x zoom as well as WDR support. I-Mei is using it primarily to capture visually attractive footage of the Eco Village, a function for which its full HD video capabilities make it eminently suited.

As for I-Mei’s experience with actual use of its new Vivotek-supplied security system, I-Mei Engineering Department managers Zhao Zhen-cong and Yang Sheng-kai stated, "This system’s video is extremely clear. We can identify license plate numbers of the cars coming in and out, and in the retail area we also get very clear views of transactions handled by the cashiers, even the denomination of the bills that pass between them and customers. Vivotek has been really helpful during the planning stage and in providing technical support. The system overall is really simple to use, and it was very easy to learn how to access all of its features."