Edinburgh leverages Genetec in Smart City Strategy push

The City of Edinburgh Council has implemented Genetec Security Center as a core element of its Smart City Strategy, with the aim of revitalising public safety and urban planning.

The Smart City Strategy seeks to leverage advanced technologies to enhance resource management and public services in the city. Previously, the council faced challenges as its existing public space security system could not integrate with modern technologies.

Supported by financing from the European Regional Development Fund, and in collaboration with the smart solutions provider North, Edinburgh has constructed a cutting-edge Smart City Operations Centre. This centre utilises Genetec Security Center, a comprehensive platform that integrates video surveillance, analytics, and IoT sensors.

Ben Durrant, Account Executive at Genetec, remarked, "All truly connected Smart Cities start with unified security as success depends on centralising your operations under one platform. Otherwise, every new IoT device deployed will make you data-rich but information poor. Our platform differs from conventional alternatives because of its open hybrid-cloud architecture that offers the flexibility and functionality needed to evolve and keep pace with new requirements."

With this integrated platform, Edinburgh has expanded its CCTV coverage in public areas and has facilitated secure data sharing with organisations such as Police Scotland, the Fire Service, and Transport for Edinburgh.

This system not only underpins everyday operations and manages large-scale events including the Edinburgh Fringe, the Royal Military Tattoo, and the forthcoming Hogmanay celebrations, but also extends its usefulness beyond mere physical security.

Andrew Foster, Managing Director of Public Services at North, commented, "The Security Center ecosystem allows us to gather and visualise useful data sets from advanced analytics IoT sensors on how the city is actually being used by residents and visitors. This enables the council to make more informed decision making on how Edinburgh can become even safer, greener and better maintained."

The council reports significant time savings previously spent on manually reviewing surveillance footage, as well as an increased capacity to respond to viewing requests from Police Scotland. The enhanced quality of evidence footage is also expected to lead to a higher number of early guilty pleas, thus reducing the requirement for police officers to attend court.

"The benefits for Edinburgh residents are massive. Enhanced public safety, improved services, optimised traffic flow, better infrastructure and city planning," stated Gavin Brown, Head of Network Management & Enforcement at Edinburgh City Council. "Genetec and North have proved instrumental in helping deliver our Smart City strategy."