Dive Brief:
- Schneider Electric is incorporating IPConfigure’s video surveillance capabilities into its EcoStruxure Building platform to enhance building security, efficiency and occupant comfort, the company said Tuesday.
- IPConfigure’s Orchid video management system will be integrated with EcoStruxure’s security technology platforms, Security Expert and Access Expert, according to a news release. Security Expert unifies physical access control and intrusion detection, while Access Expert provides mobile cloud security with video monitoring, alarms, visitor management and building operations, Schneider Electric said.
- The integration of these EcoStruxure systems with Orchid will “allow facility managers in a digital cloud dedicated or cloud-enabled environment to share collected information seamlessly across multiple infrastructures,” including video systems, access control systems, building management systems and power management systems, Andre Marino, senior vice president of digital buildings at Schneider Electric, told Facilities Dive.
Dive Insight:
The increased availability of public cloud environments has added more complexity to companies’ IT environments, making it difficult to manage and secure them, according to a resource piece from the California Institute of Arts and Technology. Business and employee records are the most common forms of data companies store in the cloud, with more than half of companies storing business records, including finance and accounting data, in the public cloud, according to a 2022 SANS Institute survey involving several hundred respondents.
Orchid is based on hybrid cloud architecture that can reduce the complexity of IT processes like network management and infrastructure, IPConfigure CEO Chris Uiterwyk said in an interview. “So, we take a lot of the behind-the-scenes complexity out of managing the system, which really allows operators to scale out the system,” Uiterwyk said. Orchid is built from “the ground-up to be light-weight,” he said, pointing to the simplicity of its user interface. It can be “an ideal solution” for facility managers, building operators and security personnel who “don’t want to have to sit through a lot of training” to understand how a system like this works, he added.
Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Building platform, which connects hardware, software and services over an Ethernet internet protocol backbone, aims to maximize building efficiency, enhance comfort and increase building value, according to its website.
The integration of Orchid and EcoStruxure systems in a cloud-enabled or full-cloud deployment gives facility managers and owners access to “large amounts of data across all their facility systems, allowing for unparalleled scalability and easy decision-making,” Marino said, noting that this integration through the cloud simplifies data access management for video monitoring and security operations.
Adding Orchid to Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxure Building platform will allow for: support of single or multi-site configurations locally or via the cloud; an open application programming interface for easy integration with third-party systems; the ability to manage and record any number of cameras, locations and users through a single interface; and single sign-on integrations that enable secure access as users’ roles change within the organization, according to the news release.
Orchid can be installed on Windows or Linux devices and can record from thousands of different camera models, using open standards like the open network video interface forum, the release said. Schneider Electric noted that the Orchid integration will place “leading video security technology” at the forefront of the EcoStruxure’s energy management tools that outfit buildings with smart technologies to help measure energy usage.
“Security systems are a key technology to accomplish the goal of making buildings more sustainable and efficient, enabled through digitization and integrated systems,” Marino said. “By reducing the complexity of energy management tools and security, the digital future is oriented toward greater sustainability as smart technologies become easier to adapt, install and deploy for building owners and facility managers.”
In January, Schneider Electric said a ransomware attack had affected its EcoStruxure Resource Advisor platform, which provides companies with building applications like monitoring, visualization and control systems. The 1.5 terabytes of data theft claimed by the Cactus ransomware gang reportedly include sensitive documents like non-disclosure agreements and copies of passports.
