Megamall security workload decreases by 50 per cent

The more security cameras you have, the higher the risk you’ll miss something important. That’s the challenge faced by Naveen Chandran of Tamdeen Group, a Kuwait-based company who manages more than 736,000 square metres of retail, commercial and residential real estate assets. Naveen’s job would be nearly impossible without the help of the video event detection software Real Time LiveWall™. ‍

Kuwait retail properties require huge security teams and thousands of cameras.

Tamdeen manages two massive retail properties, the 360 Project and Al Kout, Kuwait’s largest waterfront, retail and leisure destination. The two operations have approximately 3,000 security cameras and hundreds of guards. Each consists of two physical retail centres joined together with a pedestrian bridge. While customers view each ‘megamall’ as one property, Naveen and his team need to run two security control rooms for each one. Maintaining a secure operation at scale means Naveen and his team were managing four individual control rooms, a set of supervisors and a set of operators across two shifts. On peak days, four to five operators and a supervisor work in each control room. At less busy times, the control rooms are manned by two operators per shift and a supervisor. In addition, each shift employs approximately 100 security guards due to the sheer size of the properties. Two shifts a day, for a total of 200 guards, are required to maintain security for one day at each retail centre. It’s a staggering operation that historically ran by reacting to incidents once they happened.

5 ways icetana Real-Time LiveWall™ improves mall security operations

According to Naveen, it was not unusual for security events to go unnoticed, simply because of the vast number of security cameras that needed to be monitored.After implementing icetana technology, Naveen said he and his team found multiple benefits to using the video event detection software.

1)   Better incident detection with a single control room and fewer camera operators

Implementing icetana technology has made it possible for Tamdeen to centralise the security operation across both retail centres into a single control room. By having potential incidents identified by the AI software, the operator’s attention is drawn immediately to the four or five cameras that detect unusual events, out of 1,000 cameras where nothing unusual is happening. “Because only important incidents are flagged for review, the number of camera operators needed across the retail and leisure operations was greatly reduced,” Naveen said.

2)   Predictive analysis allows security to take preventative action

Moving out of reactive mode and taking proactive action is another major benefit Naveen and his team have experienced. Whether it’s rescuing someone trapped in an elevator or helping someone who has experienced a slip and fall accident[SM2] , Naveen’s team is able to quickly address the situation. In the past, it was hard to know when damage to the property occurred unless somebody complained or a guard was present when it happened. Naveen now relies on alerts from icetana to stay on top of property damage. In one case the icetana technology was able to detect smoke which could have potentially turned into a major safety issue.  “Smoke was detected from 700 to 800 meters away by a camera that had an aerial view of the property,” Naveen said. “As a result, were able to extinguish the fire at a very early stage. There was no major loss of property and no injuries.”

3)   Detecting unsafe shopper behaviour

Human behaviour provides a constant source of security concerns that benefit from quick reaction. Being able to detect the possibility of physical aggression or preventing a fight from breaking out has been invaluable to customer safety and enjoyment. Another area where icetana security software is useful is in enforcing smoking rules. Smoking is prohibited in the retail properties and control room operators get alerts when someone appears to be smoking. Misuse of security exits is another common problem in the megamalls that icetana helps solve. They’re able to detect when the exits are being used legitimately for a problem and when there is unauthorised use.

4)   Managing COVID protocols

“We implemented icetana during COVID and it helped us maintain a safe shopping environment,” Naveen said. “If there were too many people in the mall, we were notified.”

5)   Restructuring security operations to be more effective

Naveen said the Real Time LiveWall™ product allowed his team to detect numerous minor incidents which are difficult to capture. It’s humanly impossible to monitor 1,000 cameras every second, and operator fatigue sets in very quickly. “Basically, we are in the hospitality industry so we need to provide good service to our customers,” Naveen said. “icetana has helped us know which are the areas of concern for security. We were able to restructure our entire operation with the insights provided.”

Real Time LiveWall™ provides drastic reductions in workload for mall security

“I would recommend icetana very strongly to anyone who is thinking about mall security,” Naveen said. “It has reduced at least 50% to 60% of our workload and made a huge impact. I would strongly recommend people to go with icetana.”

For more information about improving mall security

Have you considered a video event detection and storage solution for your retail properties? Contact icetana to find out how you can experience the same benefits as Naveen at Tamdeen, including preventing threats, restructuring security operations to run more efficiently, and reducing workloads at least 50%.