Premier butcher is a cut above on security

Fairfax Meadow, the premier UK catering butcher, has had more than just security with the new surveillance system installed by Gardiner Security NVIP Matrix Net Limited at its main Derby location. Milestone XProtect Enterprise IP video surveillance software in combination with Mobotix network video cameras inside and out is helping maintain demanding industry specifications and quality in factory practices.

“The underlying reason for the surveillance is to enhance security, but what’s coming out strongly as a bigger benefit is the improved quality in our practices because people are being supervised better. I think it will pay for itself even more in that way,” says Tony Carlisle, IT Manager at Fairfax Meadow.

Its old CCTV system was outdated and labour-intensive, poor quality, inflexible, and required closing down to search for evidence. Refrigerated rooms and wash-down procedures also require exceptionally robust hardware. The new system is easily scalable for adding or moving cameras to improve surveillance coverage. Searching for evidence is now easy and fast. Video images have greater clarity. The management has also discovered that the system is a new tool for improving quality practices to uphold demanding industry standards.

“The main reason we have surveillance is to reduce and deter the amount of internal theft we get. Once meat is taken and removed from our packaging, it’s not traceable. Depending on the cuts of meat, it can be very high value. The biggest advantage, however, and one not initially considered by the management, is that the surveillance is used more for monitoring the working practices, checking that people are doing what they’re meant to be doing in the right way to follow proper hygiene procedures,” says Tony Carlisle.

Fairfax Meadow is British Retail Consortium (BRC) accredited and embraces the highest standards for running its business. The BRC Technical Standard for Companies Supplying Retailer Branded Food Products was developed by UK supermarket retailers in 1998 to provide a common standard for companies supplying retailer branded food products and assist them in their fulfilment of legal obligations and protection of the consumer.

This involves a grading system based on the status and number of non-conformities, attainable through fundamental requirements which must be well established, monitored and maintained. Requirements include monitoring HACCP (Hazardous Area Critical Control Points), internal audits, traceability, corrective action, layout, product flow and segregation, housekeeping, hygiene and training. Fairfax Meadow’s Royal British seals prove that the accreditation is for customers at the highest levels of society.

The procedures for handling the meat properly at Fairfax Meadow include everything from wearing special uniforms when inside the facilities to hand washing, use of metal detectors, labelling packages correctly, and more. The new cameras have been set up inside the working areas of the factory as well as outside, so these activities can be picked up in the video images for archiving and easy review.

Factories at Fairfax Meadow are big, and there are about 380 employees and four locations, with the largest in Derby and North London, followed by Canterbury and Newcastle. They process and package meat at each site. All of the locations are planned for further implementation of the Milestone IP video surveillance system.

The company is using only Mobotix cameras that are protected in their own housing and come as one total unit each, unlike other cameras that are delivered separate from the housing and wiring, which makes them more vulnerable to element degradation. “We looked at a whole lot of cameras from Gardiner Security like Axis and Pixord, but the combination of Milestone with Mobotix was very, very good for our needs,” says Carlisle.

The Mobotix hardware can handle down to minus 30 (centigrade) straight from the box. It encompasses different environments with extremes in temperature, plus microphones and speakers for audio, PIR sensors and mega-pixel resolution that gives excellent image quality with good depth of field in the images. As another advantage, Mobotix cameras do not need to run power to them, just an Ethernet cable.

As a Gardiner Security NVIP, Matrix Net is also looking at the newer capabilities the Milestone software allows such as access control integration, and at implementing the Paxton Access control solution that integrates with the video. It is also advising Fairfax Meadow on the options for wireless connections for more perimeter coverage, as required by insurance providers. This would give guards increased overview and previews of what may be happening elsewhere on the grounds without having to run around all the buildings.

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For more information please contact Stephen Marsden @ Townhouse Communications:
Tel: 01625 875271 mobile: 07774 699685 email: sm@tcomms.co.uk
Gardiner Security website: www.gardinersecurity.co.uk or phone 01706 343343