HIGHLAND PACKAGING SOLUTIONS, USA

THE CHALLENGE

Highland Packaging Solutions, Inc. is a thermoforming packaging supplier for the agriculture sector, manufacturing clamshell packaging for berries, tomatoes, and eggs. In 2012, the company moved into a new 250,000 square foot facility in Plant City, Florida. With the larger space and added number of personnel at the new facility, an upgraded surveillance system was needed to ensure that plant management and safety policies and procedures were adhered to and the security of the facility, assets, and people was maintained.

THE SOLUTION

The solution to the facility’s upgrade needs was Qognify’s Ocularis Enterprise Video Management System (VMS). Approximately 100 Axis 360-degree IP cameras were installed throughout the facility and grounds, including the parking areas and gated entrance. The technology solutions provider, Redd Ash Technologies, played a key role in the project by designing and building a dedicated robust network infrastructure to support the highly integrated solution which includes surveillance, access control, and Voice over IP communication. The open architecture of Ocularis allowed Redd Ash Technologies to integrate a technology solution they developed in-house that monitors the health of every device on Highland’s network.

THE RESULT

The video surveillance system is integrated using Ocularis VMS for seamless control and is further integrated with the HR and communications systems. A similar security system and Ocularis Recorder located in a second facility in nearby Mulberry, Florida, is also tied into the Plant City networked system. The camera feeds are recorded and are often used for safety training and as a manufacturing tool to help ensure overall safety in addition to conventional security monitoring. “We use the 360-degree cameras to get maximum coverage of the shop floor at the most economical cost,” said John Baird, President and CFO, Highland Packaging Solutions. “The Ocularis software takes the fisheye images and dewarps them so they can be displayed as four separate pictures. That makes the video easier to watch and we don’t miss anything. We also like the accuracy of the Time Slicer feature of Ocularis because it allows us to slow down the video and slice out a portion for review. If there has been some type of altercation, we can very quickly do a time slice of the incident to see who was involved or how it started.” The recorded video images provide detailed information for forensic review of a worker’s compensation claim as well as for reviewing overall human resource management for employees on the shop floor. The surveillance and management system is also in control with conventional security applications. Ocularis gives multiple operators full control over video including PTZ presets, joystick control and digital zoom. This gives operators the advantage they need to make the right decision when an alert is sent because they have the “eyes at the scene.”

THE CUSTOMER

“From a business standpoint, the system helped us save time and money in a countless number of ways. Our worker’s compensation rate is down by almost 50% because we have the video backup to refute bogus claims. We can also better enforce safety produces because the cameras are always watching. Overall it’s been a great investment and we couldn’t be more pleased with our investment.” —John Baird, President and CFO, Highland Packaging Solutions, Inc. “The performance of the Ocularis engine has been instrumental in the efficiency of the central processing units (CPUs). Servers would normally run at about peak load with that many cameras and that much bandwidth, but with Ocularis, our CPUs are running in the high teen, low twenties percentiles.” —Rommel Roberts, CTO/CEO, Redd Ash Technologies.