Non-Profit Market

A Place Called Home 2830 S. Central Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90011

A Place Called Home

A Place Called Home (APCH) is a safe haven in South Central Los Angeles where underserved youth are empowered to take direction of their lives through educational programming, counseling and mentoring. Founded in 1993, APCH began giving the impoverished inner-city children a place to come after school to get a snack, do homework, watch TV, play with other children and be with people that care about them. Additionally, APCH offers an all-day school in collaboration with the Los Angeles Unified School District. APCH strives to increase high school graduates and college entrants and reduce violence and gang-related activity. When APCH began it served 12 children in the basement of a church. Since then, the organization has grown rapidly. Now serving approximately 1,200 children a year, APCH has a 15,000 square foot facility and plans to expand further over the next two years. In a region known for its history of gangs, violence and poverty, APCH has to ensure and provide a secure environment for their children to be away from crime and let down their defenses. Therefore, a powerful surveillance system is very important in their day-to-day operations. Previously, APCH leased a surveillance system.The system operated poorly while yearly leasing fees continued to increase. At least two cameras every week would go down, and APCH did not have video coverage of areas when needed.

A Place Called Home (APCH) helps children in South Central Los Angeles reach their academic, creative and social potential.

“With the exacqVision surveillance solution, APCH saves more than $6,000 per year and prevents numerous crimes from occuring at the facility.”

— Angela Maldonado

Chief Operating OfficerA Place Called Home

To get the cameras running on the system again, APCH waited several days before the system was serviced. Being a non-profit organization with a very tight budget, they had limited funds for its video surveillance. Therefore, APCH determined it was time to install a permanent, cost-effective video surveillance system that was reliable and scalable for their future needs. Don Stewart from Stewart Communications, a local security integrator, recommended installing two exacqVision EL-Series hybrid servers along with a combination of IP and analog cameras.

The exacqVision EL-S hybrid server provided the ideal low cost, high performance solution. Since the EL-S is a hybrid solution, APCH could utilize both IP and analog cameras from the same server. Even the initial installation cost of the EL-S hybrid servers and cameras were less than the previous equipment installation. Furthermore, the servers required little to no maintenance. “In the two years that we’ve had the exacqVision hybrid servers, we have had no failures or blackout periods,” said Angela Maldonado, Chief Operating Officer. “The constant headache of maintenance and missing video evidence is gone.”

Additionally, Stewart Communications installed 53 analog cameras along with Vivotek and ACTi IP cameras throughout the facility including all entrances and exits, the recording studio, dance studio, computer labs, classrooms, fitness center, basketball court, outdoor playground and exterior views of the sidewalks and street immediately surrounding the facility. The new cameras provide complete coverage of the facility at all times. Volunteers, staff members and children now feel safe no matter where they are within the facility.

Besides saving money on the equipment and increasing coverage of the facility, one of the main reasons APCH selected exacqVision was for its included user-friendly exacqVision VMS software. The client interface is installed on all of their computers running Windows and Mac operating systems. The security crew, office administrators and facilities staff members easily operated the VMS software without a need for extensive training or technical support. Since so many different people are using the surveillance system every day for various purposes, the intuitive exacqVision Professional VMS software provides capabilities for all of their needs. The exacqVision VMS also enables APCH to view multiple servers and camera views on their screen. Therefore, the APCH guard station is able to monitor all camera views simultaneously throughout the day to ensure the safety of employees and children. For example, when a student appeared to be getting out of control in the fitness center, the Head of Security was able to view the situation as soon as it started and still monitor all other areas of the property on the VMS software. He was able to send someone to the scene immediately to deter the incident before there was an injury. Additionally, APCH Head of Security has immediate evidence he can export and provide to the police from the exacqVision Professional VMS software. Graffiti and attempted robbery are regular occurrences at APCH. Recently, when one student stole APCH property, the Head of Security was able to quickly search the video to find the exact time of the incident, identify the suspects involved and share the video with law enforcement officers.

Just as much as the surveillance system protects the children at APCH, it also safeguards the volunteers and staff members. The exacqVision VMS software monitors any activity occurring around or near staff and volunteers.

exacqVision Professional VMS software helps APCH monitor all areas of the facility to prevent violence before it hapens.

Meet the Integrator

“The exacqVision surveillance system has proven to be a tremendous cost savings to us while providing high quality, reliable video evidence. We can put our savings back into educational programs for the children. Our children, volunteers and staff feel secure and at home.” Angela Maldonado Chief Operations Officer A Place Called Home

www.stewcom.com 909-920-4310

Stewart Communications installs the latest video surveillance systems to meet their customer’s needs. Using the newest technology, Stewart Communications finds surveillance solutions to reduce company insurance costs, monitor building activity and eliminate property theft.

Equipment-At-a-Glance Software: •exacqVision Professional VMS software •Exacq Mobile app Hardware: •3exacqVisionEL-Shybridcameraservers •17Vivotek&ACTiIPcameras •36Prodigyanalogcameras •3PoEswitches Purpose/Benefits: •Reducescrimeonproperty •Protectschildren,staffandvolunteers •Savestimeandmoney •Scalableforfurtherexpansion

While they are away from the facility, APCH administrators and guards use the complimentary Exacq mobile app to monitor the facility. Anytime an alarm is triggered, APCH administrators can quickly evaluate the situation from their iPads or iPhones. Recently, when an alarm went off at 2 a.m., the Head of Security and COO were able to quickly view the video from their homes and search to see what caused the alarm to go off. Within a matter of minutes they decided how to respond to the alarm. Before the exacqVision VMS software, they had to respond to alarms blindly. They would send police to the site only to find out it was a false alarm and incur an unwanted cost. “Now that our team can access the exacqVision VMS on their phone or via the web, we can make an educated decision,” said Maldonado. “There is no risk or additional cost for APCH.” When APCH recently renovated one of their properties and expanded their space, they were able to easily add another EL-S hybrid server to their surveillance system without any down time or problems. This scalable solution allows APCH to easily add cameras to the system as necessary and view them from the same client software. APCH has been impressed with the results. With the exacqVision surveillance solution, APCH can monitor their children, staff and volunteers at all times and have a peace of mind that everyone is safe. The APCH property is much safer than it ever was with the previous surveillance system. At the same time, APCH has an efficient surveillance system in place that saves more than$6,000peryearandpreventsunrulybehaviorfromoccurringonthepremises.