The judging panel were specifically looking for innovative installations and selected the North Lanarkshire council project Controlware have been working on with partners ntl:Telewest Business.

With one of the lowest crime rates in the country, North Lanarkshire council has pioneered the use of CCTV as part of its commitment to public safety. To replace its outdated system, the council turned to ntl:Telewest Business and Controlware Communications - and now has in place the first fully managed converged solution of its kind in the UK, and one of the largest in Europe.

To improve operational efficiency, the council decided to centralise its CCTV monitoring operations. The outdated analogue-based system, which had no capacity for expansion and required excessive videotape storage space, was replaced with an innovative, IP-based CCTV solution.

The IP CCTV solution converts analogue camera feeds into digital signals and transmits them, via an ntl:Telewest 2GB Metro Ethernet VPN, to the central monitoring unit, where operators monitor images from over 300 CCTV cameras. The network incorporates high levels of resilience, rerouting traffic without disrupting transmission and is supported by a 24/7 managed service, which pinpoints the location of any fault and alerts the council automatically.