An intruder breaks into a facility after hours and steals thousands of dollars’ worth of valuable assets and damages property. Personnel discover the scene the next morning when they open shop only to find that the few cameras they had installed didn’t get a clear view of the criminal’s face. As a result, it’s going to be difficult (if not impossible) to find the perpetuator and retrieve the stolen items.

Traditional video surveillance systems are typically forensic tools that help authorities prove a crime after it’s happened. Of course, that can only be accomplished if the cameras were positioned correctly and the footage is clear. And even then, there’s still the challenge of extracting every relevant segment of video and packaging it together so it can easily be viewed by either management or police. By that time, the intruder could already be hours away and across state borders!

Today’s network technology enables facilities—such as retailers, banks, airports, health care and critical infrastructure to name a few—to protect their premise in real time and deter intruders on the spot with a combination of network video, audio, and analytics. With a network audio solution, facilities can truly take passive surveillance to active deterrence and avoid the nightmare scenario we described above.

How network audio can help your customers

The ability to easily and automatically deter intruders while they’re live on scene revolutionizes security and safety for businesses.

Network audio solutions can be configured specifically to the environment it’s placed in. For example, when analytics are embedded into a network camera, it can sense somebody who is loitering in an area that exceeds a predetermined amount of time. This could be a retail store, parking garage, an emergency exit or alongside a fence at a critical infrastructure facility or airport. The network audio solution can be configured to trigger a programmed announcement through an AXIS C1410 Network Mini Speaker, indoors or an AXIS C1310-E Network Horn Speaker outdoors, that plays a pre-recorded message stored in the speaker saying, “Thank you for shopping, someone will be with you shortly,” or “We see you, and your actions are being recorded. Please depart the area immediately. Authorities have been notified.”

The network audio solution can also be configured to alert security personnel in a central station or offsite via a mobile device. The operator can instantly make an announcement to that exact location no matter where they are to scare off potential criminals or warn those that may have wandered into an unsafe area before it’s too late. Deterring intruders before they break into a facility, or others that inadvertently enter a restricted area, not only creates a more secure environment for customers and personnel, it also provides significant cost savings by protecting critical assets and infrastructure.

Network audio solutions offer greater flexibility and scalability

As businesses expand so too will their security requirements. Network audio solutions allow for significantly more scalability and flexibility than legacy analog systems explains Chris Wildfoerster, Business Development Manager, Audio, Axis Communications, Inc.

“Since our network audio solutions are PoE,” says Wildfoerster, “they tend to be more scalable, economical, reliable, and easier to configure and modify. If the user wants to change messages stored in the speaker, combine zones, schedule time zones and monitor the health of their system, they can easily accomplish this because everything is on the network and done via intuitive software. If they want to add a speaker, simply run a category cable to the speaker from their PoE switch. They don’t have the limitation of antiquated speaker wiring or amplifier power concerns common in analog systems.”

Wildfoerster went onto explain that this flexibility extends beyond configuration. “Since our network audio solutions run on the network they can be incorporated into a business’s IoT ecosystem and easily integrate with other systems, such as surveillance and access control. Transform your passive security system into an active deterrence solution with the addition of Axis or third-party analytics, such as mass communications, loitering, perimeter defense, weather warnings, gunshot detection, and much more. See it with Axis cameras, say it with Axis audio, and do it using analytics.”

How to include network audio in your security solutions

Network audio is applicable for a wide range of market segments. But there’s a lot to consider when designing a network audio system. If you’ve never designed one or simply want support doing so, that’s where Axis Audio Design Service can help. With this service, Axis Communications uses scientifically proven, industry certified software to design a network audio solution that’s specific to your client, including proposal and sales assistance, product and configuration information, and even heat maps illustrating dB coverage.

Years ago, there were limited options with audio and video. The demand for network based audio solutions is rising rapidly as technology and artificial intelligence evolves. Today’s network audio solutions replace your existing static analogue paging systems with intelligent smart network-based solutions. See something with cameras, Say something with speakers, Do something with analytics to provide greater security and safety 24/7/365 even when personnel aren’t present.

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