The University of Vermont, one of the oldest universities in the U.S. wanted to centralize, integrate and organize its core physical security systems and sensors into a single video-centric interface, providing heightened situational awareness and powerful incident response management capabilities.

"We looked closely at different PSIM systems and while they were powerful, they were also very expensive and didn’t match our requirements. What we ideally wanted to find was a VMS that was capable of being our core security management system," said Senior Equipment Technician at the University of Vermont, Robert Cochran.

The university ultimately chose a video management system called VisionHub from Qognify that is fully integrated with its video surveillance and access control systems to reduce unnecessary on-site attendance as part of the University of Vermont's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The system works across the university's on-campus install base of 459 video channels and access control system.

The university is realizing many benefits from having its surveillance cameras and access control tightly integrated. Recently, the university undertook a project to provide administrative staff working at the Fleming Museum of Art - Vermont's most comprehensive collection of art and anthropological artifacts - with the ability to monitor live camera feeds remotely.

In addition to maintaining access as part of it's COVID-19 response, the university has also found value with the system managing real-time emergency events, conducting post-incident investigations, and daily on-campus surveillance. “During an emergency operations event, VisionHub is the only interface we need to assess the situation and respond,” Cochran said. “We can view live and recorded camera feeds, as well as access transactions and door information, providing us with a clear real-time picture of people and crowd movement. If any intervention is required, we can control the opening and closing of doors.”