Arecont Vision Megapixel Cameras Bring Clarity to King Soopers Distribution Center

 

Customer

King Soopers is a supermarket chain owned by The Kroger Company with a significant presence across the state of Colorado. To keep their stores’ shelves stocked for daily business, King Soopers operates a massive distribution center that occupies approximately 550,000-square-feet located on the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains.

Challenge

The King Soopers Distribution Center is required to have a functioning video system in order to pass an annual audit. When the previous analog video system started to fail, replacing it became urgent. Due to the size of the facility and the limited capabilities of the analog system, the customer also had not been getting the image quality it needed. Video had been recorded to a digital video recorder (DVR), which was failing and wouldn't keep the date and time or control the pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras. The analog system provided insufficient resolution, and the video was not detailed enough to provide evidence related to loss prevention. Higher resolution video was needed to identify what products were being delivered to and shipped from the facility. The facility has high (approximately 40-foot) ceilings, and cameras had to be mounted just below the ceiling height to ensure they would not be damaged by forklifts. The analog cameras they had been using could not provide the needed image quality from that distance.

Megapixel Solution

When the existing analog camera and DVR system needed an upgrade, the customer contacted United Systems in Denver, a locally-owned security integrator that has been doing business in Colorado since 1957. United Systems did a full presentation to King Soopers’ decision-makers using demonstration video shot at their facility. The customer immediately saw the benefits of a megapixel IP camera solution, according to Chris Keith, Director of Sales and Technology, United Systems. Arecont Vision cameras were chosen because of their excellent image quality and wide variety of cameras.

An Arecont Vision AV20185DN-HB panoramic camera was installed outdoors on the side of the building to watch the guard shack, trucking lanes, parking area and shipping and receiving. The 20 megapixel, 180-degree day/ night panoramic camera provides a complete view of the property, replacing a PTZ camera that provided only a limited view. Also, recording the previous PTZ camera view had captured only the image in the direction the PTZ was pointed. In contrast, the Arecont Vision AV20185DN-HB panoramic camera captures the entire scene in high resolution with a much larger field of view. A heater-blower enables the camera to operate despite temperature extremes.

King Soopers has future plans to add three Arecont Vision D4S-AV5115-3312 cameras in the warehouse focusing on the shipping and receiving doors. The 5-megapixel all-in-one indoor dome camera includes a 3.3-12mm IR-corrected lens which provides extremely clear images from its mount high above the warehouse floor. They will also be adding multiple 3 megapixel cameras throughout the warehouse replacing their current analog cameras. King Soopers is very pleased with the quality of the Arecont Vision cameras and having the ability to pan/tilt/ zoom digitally without the loss of the current view. This allows them to put a focus on walkway paths and still view wider scenes.

The new NVR/storage system is built around an ExacqVision Z Series 24-terabyte server. Video signals are transmitted using fiber and Cat-6 cabling. The system is being monitored both locally by onsite managers viewing day-to-day operations and centrally by the corporate office. United Systems designed the system, performed the installation and provides on-going service.

The new system now allows the customer to get more detailed video of how product is being handled and what is actually being delivered and shipped. The Arecont Vision megapixel cameras provide superior image quality, and a digital zoom makes the image even more useful, according to Robert Urbanek, Information Technology Manager, Advantage Logistics (King Soopers), Aurora, Colorado.

Arecont Vision cameras now provide the customer clear images they can use for tracking product movement and to view on-the-job accidents and injuries, according to the integrator. “We like the excellent image quality,” said Mr. Keith. “We also like the digital zoom we get through the NVR.”

Although King Soopers has not calculated the return on investment (ROI) of the system, the ability to pass the audit was a critical element of business operations, and the higher-resolution images of Arecont Vision megapixel cameras provided the desired level of video coverage.

About Arecont Vision

Arecont Vision is the leading manufacturer of high-performance megapixel IP cameras and associated software. Arecont Vision products are made in the USA and feature low-cost massively parallel image processing architectures MegaVideo® and SurroundVideo® that represent a drastic departure from traditional analog and network camera designs. All-in-one products such as the MegaDome®, MegaView™ and D4F/D4S/D4SO series provide installer friendly solutions. Compact JPEG and H.264 series of cameras address cost sensitive applications. These innovative technologies enable Arecont Vision to deliver multi-megapixel digital video at IP VGA camera price points.