The project uses Dvtel’s iSOC platform to manage and monitor 150 DVTel IP cameras throughout the city. By the end of this year, Wilkes-Barre will have more than 250 cameras in operation, making it one of the largest per capita camera deployments in the United States. Schneider Electric designed and installed the system for the city.

“Small communities throughout the country are having big city problems with crime and drugs and gangs. We had some progressive leadership in our community and we didn’t want to react five years down the line; we wanted to be proactive,” said J.J. Murphy, the former City Administrator for Wilkes-Barre. Murphy has now started his own consulting business, Goals Consulting, to assist other cities with securing grant funds for similar projects.

The Safe City Initiative for Wilkes-Barre is a $2.8 million project paid for by stimulus funds. Grant money came from Federal, Pennsylvania State Gaming and Pennsylvania Community and Economic Development funds. Wilkes-Barre began building the foundation for its Safe City Initiative in 2007 when it built out its wireless network citywide and started a non-profit organisation, Hawkeye Security Solutions, to run the camera project and operate a command center to monitor the city’s cameras.

The Dvtel iSOC platform enables the city’s command center to manage and monitor surveillance video from the hundreds of cameras located throughout Wilkes-Barre 24/7. iSOC creates a common operational picture that enables users to capture, manage, analyse, integrate, and then act on previously unorganised and overly complex data. The results are improved reaction time, enhancing operator productivity and a reduction in incidents.

“At Schneider Electric we leveraged our system design expertise for Wilkes-Barre, ensuring seamless connection and integration for the DVTel IP cameras and iSOC platform,” said Sam Belbina, Vice President of Systems Integration East for Schneider Electric. “This project has proved unique given the number of cameras deployed throughout the city and the wireless network that serves as its backbone.”

Even though the system is only less than a year old, it has already proved a success, with the Wilkes-Barre Police Department using the surveillance system to catch several criminal incidents on video and then arrest the suspects. Police expect to rely on the tool to assist it with solving crimes in the future.

“DVTel is proud to play an integral role in the Safe City Initiative for the City of Wilkes-Barre,” said Eli Gorovici, President and CEO of DVTel, Inc. “Our iSOC platform is the ideal solution enabling the city’s command center to effectively monitor and mange multiple video feeds and proactively react when suspicious activity occurs. Keeping people safe and watching communities such as Wilkes-Barre grow is the ultimate reason to provide our solution.”