Petards wins $2 million casino surveillance contract
Known for protecting the Sydney Opera House, company enhances its gaming portfolio with a deal to install its UVMS network video recording system in two Oklahoma casinos; managing large amounts of video a distinct challenge, as is developing a useful GUI
If it is true that pornography was the driving force behind the rise of VHS — not to mention the Internet — then it is equally true that the casino (or “gaming”) industry has long been the earliest adopter of surveillance technology. This should not be a suprise. Casino operators long ago realized that the savings realized far outweighed the cost, and gaming regulators spurred on the lackadaisical by requiring specified levels of coverage and performance. With casino gambling increasing in popularity, especially in the Midwest and Southeast, a burgeoning market awaits those with clever and effective additions to the traditional eye in the sky.
Orlando, Florida-based Petards, having installed security systems such high-faluting venues as the Sydney Opera House and Wimbledon, has been developing its casino portfolio for some time now, and a recent $2 million deal with two casinos in Oklahoma is their latest success. Petards will be installing its UVMS network video recording devices at the Broken Bow and Pocola casinos — both of which traffic mainly in slot machines and are operated by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. Key to the company’s success, company president Frank Baitman tell us, is the system’s user-friendly graphical user interface. Ease of use is important because surveillance personnel tire easily, and because the high turnover rates require frequent training of new personnel. According to Baitman, learing to use the UVMS requires only half an hour of instruction.
We should note one other Petards success. The UVMS will be installed as part of a security overhaul of the Minneapolis Light Rail System scheduled for early December.
-read more in this company news release
