Betting the House on Safety and Security
Cherokee Nation Entertainment’s Surveillance Technology Department expands surveillance coverage and reduces camera count with Axis multisensor cameras. Network video intercoms are used in parking lots and structures as well as loading docks for two-way communication.
Glitzy lights and dim-lit corners confound analog
When Cherokee Nation Entertainment first opened its casino resort back in 2004, nearly 2,000 analog cameras were included in the build-out to help the four-star resort secure operations. While the décor of splashy neon lights, twinkling LEDs, bright strobes and spotlights made for an exciting atmosphere for patrons, it played havoc on the cameras’ ability to deliver the image clarity the surveillance team needed to protect the property. Washed out or blurry video made it difficult to comply with the stringent regulations that govern all casino surveillance operations.
In 2016 the organization began systematically replacing the legacy cameras with a portfolio of high-performance Axis network cameras and a Milestone XProtect® video management system. “We standardized on Axis cameras – a mix of fixed dome, bullet, pan/tilt/zoom and panoramic – because they possess the wide dynamic range necessary to perform well in our variable lighting environment,” states John Underwood, Surveillance Technology Manager for Cherokee Nation Entertainment.
Over the years, Underwood’s team has continued to upgrade their facilities’ surveillance systems with new Axis camera models to keep pace with the latest lighting innovations. For instance, when the casino introduced a new type of LED backlit roulette wheel with an animated lighting sequence, Underwood’s team installed an AXIS Q17 Bullet Camera Series above the table to capture the true colors of any lammer disks laid down on the tabletop. “Accurate representation of a lammer’s color is especially critical, since the disk shows surveillance what amount of money or chips has been taken from a player or dealer,” explains Underwood.
Watching 120,000 square feet of constant action
Thousands of people flock to Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa every day to enjoy its 2,400 electronic games, 40 table games, poker room, music venues and restaurants. Each of those areas presents its own challenges to surveillance.
“We have a lot of areas with high open ceilings or video walls surrounding the area,” explains Underwood. “So we’ve relied on different varifocal lenses on our Axis cameras to achieve the coverage we need without being too intrusive on the gaming floor.” Even mounted on a 29-foot ceiling, Underwood has found that with the right lens, an Axis dome camera’s focus is sharp enough to capture the pips on a die, suits on a playing card, or the value of a chip on the felt.
“We’re not only looking at the value of the card or chip, we’re also looking for sleight-of-hand tricks like a patron adding to their bet when they think the dealer isn’t watching, or slipping a chip or two off their bet stack when they think they have a losing hand,” shares Underwood.
In the food service areas, risk managers rely heavily on the mix of Axis fixed dome cameras to oversee compliance with safety practices. “The cameras help us document accidents and determine liability, make sure staff is handling food and tools properly, trace the source of shrink, and a host of other issues that affect the safety and profitability of our food venues,” says Underwood.
On the transaction side, Axis fixed dome and PTZ cameras look for discrepancies with the use of coupons and vouchers. “Basically, we’re checking whether the voucher or coupon used for payment actually makes it into the cashier’s till,” shares Underwood.
Keeping a sharp eye on back-of-house activity
As the supply hub for the property, the casino warehouse contains a wealth of merchandise – from highly regulated items such as cards, dice, chips and slot machine components to housekeeping and hospitality provisions. “We employ a lot of multisensor and panoramic Axis cameras at the warehouse because they give us wide fields of view without losing picture quality,” states Underwood. “That’s allowed us to scale back on camera count and actually get better coverage.”
For added security, loading docks are equipped with network video intercoms for two-way communication to control access to the area. Truck drivers use the intercom to announce their arrival at the dock. This gives the warehouse employee time to verify the driver’s identity before lifting the bay doors to accept delivery.
To improve parking lot coverage, Hard Rock relies heavily on the multidirectional AXIS P37 Panoramic Camera Series and the multisensor AXIS P38 Panoramic Camera Series. “We mount them back to back on light poles to give us a full 360-degree view,” says Underwood. “They give us very accurate color without getting blown out by our marquees and LED strip lighting on the building.” In addition to quality images, having multisensors in a single camera head has enabled Hard Rock to reduce camera counts, cable drops and license fees, effectively cutting parking lot deployment costs by roughly 30%.
The resort also replaced legacy emergency call boxes with Axis network video intercoms in their parking lots and parking structures to provide two-way audio so that people can report suspicious activity or request assistance. A mix of Axis and 2N intercoms also provide access control to restricted areas like corporate offices.
“I’m always looking for areas where we can scale back camera counts,” states Underwood. For instance, it used to take two overlapping analog cameras to cover long hotel hallways. Today, Hard Rock deploys a single, centrally positioned AXIS P47 Panoramic Camera Series to capture the entire length of these corridors.
Listening for potential problems
Underwood augmented certain cameras on the property with audio analytics to detect specific acoustic wave patterns like voices raised in verbal aggression and discharging weapons. When the software, which was developed by Sound Intelligence, detects such sound patterns, it immediately sends an alert to the surveillance control room to look at the video streaming from that location.
“The analytics give us an extra level of situational awareness that we never had before,” says Underwood. “It helps us be more proactive, especially when it comes to preventing verbal aggression from escalating into physical altercations.” The audio analytics has been particularly beneficial at ascertaining aggression at certain entrances to the property, as well as parking structures and high-risk cash handling areas.
Watching for severe weather
Because severe weather is a way of life in Oklahoma, Hard Rock includes Axis cameras in its storm watch efforts. “We live in a state that faces an average of 56 tornados a year, not to mention countless ice and dust storms,” says Underwood. “If there’s a dangerous storm heading our way, we might need to evacuate everyone from the gaming floor and hotel rooms and move them to a safer, more protected area.”
Axis panoramic cameras have helped us cut camera counts, cable drops and licensing fees by 30% in some areas while greatly expanding our surveillance coverage. With the addition of audio analytics, two-way intercoms and other Axis devices, our safety and security efforts have become much more proactive.
As part of its emergency preparedness, Hard Rock mounted an AXIS Q60 PTZ Camera on a rooftop, giving the resort a bird’s eye view of the property to monitor approaching storms and assess property damage once the storm abates. “Highly experienced staff are tasked with keeping an eye on weather reports and watching the storm front as it rolls in,” states Underwood. “Depending on the attributes they see, they send an alert to the emergency response team.”
Simplifying operations in the command room
To help the command room staff have more granular control over video review, Hard Rock installed Axis video surveillance control boards at each workstation. “These joystick/jog dial combos let operators fast forward or go frame by frame without having to change something at the video management display,” states Underwood. “They can also use the joysticks to control any PTZ camera on the property, which has been really helpful in quickly zooming in on target areas.”
Maintaining a dialog about future improvements
“Everything we roll out to the other casinos run by the Cherokee Nation, we test here first,” declares Underwood. “And we’re always testing new technology from Axis.”
Underwood appreciates the abundance of information he receives from Axis about new products on the horizon and the open dialog about how Cherokee Nation Entertainment might use it. “Axis often gives us demo units to try out live in our environment to see if they fit or not,” says Underwood. “That relationship has been very key to the moves we’ve made.”
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