Paaspop is a three-day music festival that takes place in Schijndel during the Easter weekend. The event has been up and running for more than forty years and is the big opener of the festival season. "It's a festival that has a lot to offer for everyone," says Geert Goijaarts, organizer and former member of the Paaspop management team.

Organising the festival is a major operation. Every year, a complete tent village emerges, being built and then dismantled within a few days. A large number of companies and individuals are closely involved with Paaspop in the weeks and months leading up to Easter and the event’s security is one of the major areas of concern. “For me, a festival is a success when people return to their homes safely. Tired, yet satisfied,” says Goijaarts.  

"With regards to security, you have several important tasks,” says Goijaarts. “You'll want to know what kind of people are entering the place, and keep a good eye on their mood. If something unacceptable happens, you can act quickly. In addition, we use cameras for crowd control. At peak hours, the festival site accommodates almost 25,000 visitors, and you want to prevent all of them going to the same location at the same time. The use of cameras enables us to take timely measures."

Paaspop purchased the Hikvision cameras after consulting with Werner van der Heijden of WH Safety.  "They are very high-quality cameras that allow you to guard areas extremely well. The zooming function in particular is outstanding. Our PTZ (pan/tilt/zoom) camera's image is so sharp that we can even count the blades of grass from a distance of a few hundred metres," he explains.

A sharp image like that is essential, because it’s important to see people's facial expressions in large crowds, and recognise faces. Paaspop uses over 40 cameras to monitor the entire festival area. The devices send their images to a control room, where two communication officers monitor everything closely. In the event of calamities, they can immediately inform people on the ground to act. Whenever a tent gets too crowded, the entrance is closed, with people only being allowed to enter when someone leaves first. “The cameras are an extra pair of eyes for the festival security," says Van der Heijden. "Standing in a corner of the tent, it is difficult to establish what's going on. However, from the control room, using the Hikvision cameras, it's no problem at all. Good festival security is an interplay between the insights of security on site and good camera images. Paaspop is a safe festival, and Hikvision's camera security certainly adds to this. I always say: if nothing happens and there are no incidents, my event is a success!"