VMS – Scorpions Services-Contracting Solutions

Intelligent Video Management System {VMS}

Scorpions Services proposes an open, scalable and cyber-secure Video Management System that unifies live monitoring, resilient recording, intelligent search, alarm verification, evidence management and multi-system integration. Video is not an isolated CCTV island — it becomes an operational information layer connected to access control, intrusion, intercom, building management, parking, alarms and approved business workflows.

Design objective: one command interface for live, recorded and event-driven video, with faster incident verification, high evidential integrity and resilient service across one site or multiple sites.

Video & event edge

Dome, bullet & PTZ cameras
Panoramic, fisheye & thermal
Microphones, SIP & talk-down audio
Panic, door, fence & PIR inputs
Legacy analog via encoders

Transport & power

Managed PoE / PoE++ switches
Fiber backbone, ODF & patch panels
Redundant L3 core, firewall & VPN
UPS, PDU & surge protection
Generator-backed critical circuits

Core, storage & intelligence

Management & recording servers
Failover & edge storage sync
RAID, NAS / SAN, archive
GPU / AI analytics servers
AD/LDAP, SIEM, patch & backup

Operations & systems

Control room & video wall
Mobile / web clients
Access control interface
BMS / PSIM integration
Fire & intrusion event receipt*

Core Capabilities

One command interface for live, recorded and event-driven video across one site or multiple sites
Faster incident verification using alarm-linked video, maps, nearby cameras, bookmarks and SOPs
High evidential integrity through controlled export, digital signing / watermarking, audit logs and role-based access
Resilient service using distributed recording, edge storage, failover, RAID, UPS and health monitoring
Lower operator workload through metadata search, object classification and carefully tuned analytics
Future-ready integration through ONVIF, vendor SDK/API, REST, webhooks, OPC/MQTT, SIP and dry contacts

Architecture Principles

Open edge: ONVIF-conformant IP devices and verified driver compatibility
Distributed resilience: recording close to cameras; edge recording continues if a server or network path fails
Separation of duties: camera, management, storage and client traffic logically separated
Evidence by design: synchronized time, audit logs, controlled exports, chain of custody
Health before failure: tamper, packet loss, storage, clock drift, UPS and switch health supervised continuously
Scalable licensing: sized for the initial scope plus an agreed growth margin

Intelligent Response Workflow

Step	What happens
1 · Detect	Camera analytics, access / intrusion input, panic button or operator observation creates a time-stamped alarm
2 · Verify	Live + pre-event video, nearby cameras, audio, map and device health are presented to the operator
3 · Correlate	Identity, door, zone, time and rule context; nuisance alarms are removed
4 · Respond	Pop-up layout, SOP, talk-down, bookmark, escalation and dispatch
5 · Record & improve	Evidence export, audit log, incident report, KPIs and rule tuning

Typical sequence: a perimeter analytic, access-denied event or panic button raises an alarm → the VMS presents the alarm camera, pre-event buffer, nearby cameras, map and source-system details → the operator verifies the event and follows the on-screen SOP → all actions are recorded → the incident is bookmarked / exported under controlled permissions.

Connected Equipment

Fixed indoor domes, outdoor bullets, PTZ, multisensor / panoramic, fisheye and thermal cameras
ANPR / LPR and special-environment (marine, corrosive, hygienic, explosion-risk) cameras
Mounts, housings, IR / white-light illuminators, microphones and IP speakers
Video encoders / decoders and industrial edge-storage cards
IP intercoms, panic / duress buttons and supervised network I/O modules
Managed PoE switches, fiber backbone, firewalls, routers / SD-WAN, online UPS and NTP time source
VMS management, recording, failover, analytics / GPU and metadata / search servers
RAID storage, NAS / SAN, archive / backup appliance, workstations, video wall and PTZ joystick

Integration & Cybersecurity

Access control, intrusion, fire (read-only), BMS / PSIM, parking / gates, elevator and notification events
Active Directory / LDAP, email / SMS gateway and SIEM / syslog consolidation
Logical zones: camera / edge, server / storage, client / control room, management, integration / DMZ
Named accounts, RBAC, least privilege, MFA for remote / admin access
Network segmentation with deny-by-default ACL / firewall rules
Device hardening, signed firmware, HTTPS / TLS, certificates and secure SNMP
Audit log retention, syslog / SIEM export, clock-drift monitoring
Client-approved remote support: VPN, MFA, time-limited authorization, session logging
Encrypted configuration / database backups with off-site copy and restoration tests

Analytics & Guardrails

Perimeter: line crossing, intrusion zone, loitering, wrong-way, radar cueing
Interior: people counting, occupancy, queue, abandoned / removed object, restricted-zone entry
Traffic / parking: vehicle class, stopped vehicle, direction, LPR / ANPR
Operations / safety: PPE, fall / person-down, smoke / flame visual alerts
Investigation: appearance / object search; face search only if lawful and approved
Analytics are probabilistic and environment-dependent — validated per scene, never replacing certified life-safety or human decision-making

Sizing & Storage Basis

Quick formula: Raw storage (TB) ≈ total average bitrate (Mb/s) × 10.8 × retention days ÷ 1,000
Example: 100 cameras × 4 Mb/s ≈ 400 Mb/s aggregate ≈ 4.32 TB/day
30-day raw requirement ≈ 129.6 TB before RAID / overhead / reserve / growth
Every camera documented with resolution, lens / FOV, FPS, codec, WDR, audio, analytics
Recording mode: continuous, motion / event, dual stream, pre / post alarm, edge duration
Retention, playback load, availability targets and growth margin agreed with the client
Final sizing validated with the vendor tool and performance test

Testing, Commissioning & Handover

Stage	Acceptance evidence
Design review	Approved camera plan, coverage / FOV, network, storage, cybersecurity, integration matrix and responsibility schedule
Installation inspection	Mounting, field of view, weather sealing, labels, cable test, grounding, rack condition and asset serials
Point-to-point test	Every stream, audio path, I/O, preset, event, map icon, clock, recording profile and health alarm verified
Image-quality test	Day / night scenes, backlight, target motion, focus, IR reflection, privacy masks, recognition / identification objective
Recording / retrieval	Continuous / event recording, edge recovery, playback, synchronized cameras, export, signature / checksum and retention behavior
Resilience test	Server / service restart, failed recorder, uplink loss, storage alarm, UPS event, failover and return-to-normal
Cybersecurity test	Accounts / roles, MFA, disabled defaults, ports / services, certificates, firmware baseline, logging and backup / restore
Integration & performance	Source events, alarm priorities, camera associations, SOPs, sustained ingest, simultaneous clients, CPU / GPU / NIC and packet loss
Training & acceptance	Operator, investigator and administrator training; scenario drills; punch list; client sign-off

Maintenance & Lifecycle Support

Daily: automated health alarms, recording gaps, offline / tamper, storage capacity, shift review
Monthly: sample playback / export, lens & housing inspection, event-rule review, audit review
Quarterly: clean exposed cameras, verify focus / IR / night images, UPS checks, capacity reports
Semiannual: firmware / software risk review, failover & restore tests, role recertification, analytics retuning
Annual: representative acceptance retest, retention verification, cybersecurity assessment, lifecycle plan
Recommended spares: one per critical camera family, SFPs, PoE switch, PSUs, matched disks, patch cords

Scorpions Delivery Scope

Survey & risk assessment: stakeholder workshop, scene objectives, existing-system audit
Engineering: camera plan, FOV, equipment schedule, bandwidth / storage, network, cybersecurity
Supply & installation: approved equipment, cabling, mounting, racks, servers, operator room
Programming & integration: VMS configuration, users, maps, alarms, analytics, SOPs, dashboards
Commissioning: point-to-point, scenario, image-quality, resilience and cybersecurity testing
Training & handover: role-based training, as-builts, backups, manuals, test records, spares
After-sales support: preventive / corrective maintenance, remote support, patching, upgrades

Client Benefits

One command interface	Live, recorded and event-driven video across one site or multiple sites
Faster incident verification	Alarm-linked video, pre-event buffer, nearby cameras, maps and on-screen SOPs
Evidential integrity	Controlled export, digital signing / watermarking, audit logs and role-based access
Resilient service	Distributed recording, edge storage, failover, RAID, UPS and health monitoring
Lower operator workload	Metadata search, object classification and carefully tuned analytics
Future-ready integration	ONVIF, SDK/API, REST, webhooks, OPC/MQTT, SIP and dry-contact I/O

* Fire-alarm integration is supervisory / event-driven only — certified annunciation and safety control remain independent. Final quantities, models, storage and retention are confirmed through a site survey, risk assessment and approved client brief.

Ready to start?

Final quantities and models require a site survey, risk assessment, camera-location plan and approved client brief.