CCTV installations

[Isetech]

It has certainly been an interesting journey, man I have learnt a lot.

From XVR's to NVR's and beyond, it has taken me a lot longer than I expected, but I am finally at a point where I am happy with the progress. I just need a new faster laptop, the old I3 is just not fast enough.

Yes some of it was installer error. Its not like it is rocket science, there are steps you have to follow, once you know the correct steps, it the same thing over and over, which is why I couldn't do this as a full time job.

I found the right people to get the information that I needed, I am now on the home straight, I did a full factory default on all the equipment and restarted, now that I have a pretty good idea of the equipment required and setup procedure, it is just a step by step process, going through one camera at a time and making sure all the parameters are correct. The NVR is really just for the recording, the cameras that we are using have all the requirements to operate without the the NVR, even place to install micro SD cards.

The key to any project is the tech support, be electrical, CCTV, Solar, Alarms, drives, PLC's. When you open a machine full of control gear, you cant be expected to know ever single parameter for ever device, that it why it is so important to buy from companies which have smart people who deal specific product everyday.

For example I had a machine repair last week, The VSD was showing an error, I have commissioning sheets for all my projects, when the machine stops the production stops, it costs money, I call the VSD supplier, put my ear pods in to dampen the noise, I tell the tech support guy the error code and because I understand how to get around the VSD parameters, he just tells me what to check, 3 minutes later, reset and bingo the machine is ready to go.

[Isetech]

What have I learnt?

The most important component to buying products, is certainly not the price, it is knowing who to call when you get stuck. The R20 saving on a product could result in hours if not days trying to setup a product, especially when you start getting involved in these more complex systems, which integrate with networks, routers, switches, bandwidth, and stuff not really relevant to entry level stuff like analog systems. I am going to dig a little deeper into network systems in my spare time.

IF you are going to install an NVR with a bunch of 8 MP cameras, best you check the network first, chances are if you still have a 20 gig fibre line, you might want to increase it a little, like over 100 megs.

You need to identify the camera locations, the distance from the NVR, one good thing about using network cameras, you can install a switch closer to the camera locations, which will only require one cable from NVR or switch to switch. the new POE switches that we installed can power a camera 250 meters away. For cheap kits installs we dont even use CCA cable, but these higher MP cameras will definitely have issues if you use CCA.

It is good idea to compare the cost of switches to the cost of NVR's with built in POE, I thought I was saving by buying an NVR with no POE ports built-in, that backfired on me.

A very import note, when you have to install network cables outside or buried in the ground, make sure you use the correct cable, the standard cables dont last long, when buried, even if they are in conduits. Keep them away from the electrical cables even if you use screened cables.

We went from cat 5e to cat 6 and now I see some of the equipment we installed has fibre ports, so best you get up to speed with fibre and how to link stuff using fibre cables.

I got the RJ45 and keystones termination sorted, by the end of this project I had very few termination fails.

A very important tip when working with IP systems, make sure you setup the NVR basics, then initialize the cameras log in and do the setup on the camera, this is where I went wrong, I was doing the settings on the NVR first then setting up the cameras, he NVR will pull the parameters from the cameras.

Labels, labels and more labels just makes the job a lot easier, or use different colour cables for the router, the NVR and other equipment that is not a camera cable.

Make sure if you use 10/100 switch with 10/100/1000 uplinks, makes sure you have enough uplink ports. I decided to rathe rjust replace them with full gigabit POE switches.

I got a bit burnt on these project, but knowledge and experience I gained for doing them is worth the blisters, it is going to pay off in the long run.

Some of you are going to ask why I wasted my time doing these project, simple, the most important thing I have learnt about doing solar, alarms and CCTV at this level, you have to work a lot harder with much higher risk and responsibility doing elctrical work, compared to these project which take a couple days training and you get a certificate, but the best part you can charge higher rates more than an electrical company

People dont mind paying R650 for a "technican" to fix a gate motor, try charge R650 for a qualified electrician with 10 years training and experience, let us know how that goes.