Video Analytics in the Energy Sector

Daten & Wissen / Sept. 21, 2022
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According to the latest surveys, 94% of the Energy sector prioritizes the safety and security of their employees as well as plants. Many utility businesses are investing in modern technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and IoT-based sensor technology to keep their workplace safer and better.

The Energy, Oil & Gas sectors are working towards developing cyber and physical security. They make extensive use of CCTV cameras, webcams, and often sensors to collect thermal, infrared, and night vision video footage which then provides video analytics systems and helps to find anomalies in operations.

Why is innovating important for the Energy sector?

Safety & Security are two of the most important aspects that should be followed by industry leaders and especially in the Energy sector. If any threat is located in the Energy plant such as intrusions, fights, unregistered vehicles, fire, or smoke, then the Utility will be shut down for an ample period until complete recovery. Video Surveillance and Analytics can be used for real-time monitoring of remote locations to detect any unwanted threats or incidents.

The Energy and Utility sector is the 9th most-targeted industry in the terms of threats and attacks. The Energy sector is considered the backbone of every country and is often coined under critical infrastructure. A slight disruption in the Energy & Utility sector could have devastating consequences on consumers that rely on power, gas, oil, and various other resources.

Video Analytics and its Use Cases in Energy Sector

Video Analytics is basically when AI is applied to CCTV Livestreams to detect events and mishaps in the monitoring area. With the help of Computer Vision and AI algorithms, any video surveillance camera can be converted into a smart camera and observes events happening on-premises.

There are many applications of this intrinsic technology and some of them are stated below which are commonly used in the Energy sector:

Intrusion Detection

The Intrusion Detection solution uses CCTV cameras to detect intruders entering in and out of the premises. The solution works in the following manner:

  1. Open the monitoring dashboard
  2. Mark the area on the dashboard
  3. Confirm the area of interest
  4. Start Monitoring

An Intrusion Detection system can be used by many industries as it can be used to track and locate people entering the region of interest, by a perimeter, schedule, or even by crossing a line. The Energy sector can leverage this technology to monitor remote locations and get instant alerts whenever anyone trespasses into the marked region.

Face Recognition

Face Recognition is an advanced AI solution that works on biometric technology and detects/recognizes the faces of people. This technology is used in many sectors and can be utilized in two major ways - Webcam & CCTV Camera.

Webcam-based Facial Recognition can be used for authentication, enrollment, and attendance in any SME or Large enterprise. While on the other hand, CCTV-based Facial Recognition works on capturing and identifying people from analog and IP-based cameras for locating and recognizing people from an approximate distance of 8-10 meters.

Incident Detection

Video Analytics technology can be used to identify incidents such as fire, smoke, leaks, explosions, and many more. Once the incidents are detected and identified successfully, a notification alert is sent to the safety/security manager on the Dashboard. Alternatively, real-time alerts can be generated through smartphones and Emails.

Fall/Duress Detection

Unwanted incidents such as a person falling from a height, and collapsing on the floor due to heatstroke or vitamin deficiency, can have a major impact on the workflow and reputation of any organization. Video Analytics can be used to detect any such event and generate alerts to the safety manager, who would then look into it.

Similarly, workers are susceptible to starting a fight anytime and without solid reasons. Workplace violence is a major growing concern in any Energy, Oil, and Gas sector, therefore there must be some measures taken place such as Video Surveillance. Advanced AI Video Analytics detects fighting among workers and notifies the labor head, who would then take appropriate actions in the matter.

PPE Detection

Workers are negligent towards following safety measures and are often found violating the most common rule i.e. to wear safety wear during working hours. PPE, short for Personal Protective Equipment is designed to protect workers against any sort of dangers such as chemical spills, electrical shock, falling debris, and lasers ruining eyes.

Smart Video Analytics recognizes workers who aren’t wearing a PPE kit and instantly alerts the EHS head, which then mandates the employee to follow safety norms. Many injuries and incidents can be prevented using such advanced technology.

Security Guard Tracking

Security Guards have a bad habit of consequently roaming around the campus on duty, as well as having prolonged conversations with other guards even leaving their posts. Often, security guards take breaks in every 10-15 mins to go out and have a smoke and/or chill near the tea shops.

This behaviour can majorly affect the security guidelines that the organization has to follow, and needs to be stopped immediately. Video Analytics technology can help the Energy sector to avoid any such scenarios by tracking the live location of the security guards, and if any of them are found to be loitering, then their location and photo of the missing post are sent to the owner or security head for further analysis.

Vehicle Tracking

Video Analytics solutions can be installed at entry gates to register incoming vehicles and/or check whether the vehicle doesn’t have any suspicious activity. The number plate or license plate of the vehicle is captured while it stops at the entrance, along with its weight and other features.

The speed of the vehicle is tracked inside the premises and if it crosses the threshold limit then an alert is sent to the plant manager. When heavy vehicles are Overspeed inside factory areas, it can be hazardous to the plant’s safety and can cause major incidents.

Machinery Maintenance

Video Analytics can be used to keep regular checks of maintenance and machinery health. It will notify the maintenance manager whenever the machinery is at its limit or is been malfunctioning for a while. It can come in handy whenever the machines need to be put under maintenance and can save tons of money.

How to adopt Video Analytics in your business?

Video Analytics is relatively a new concept and many businesses are harnessing this technology to improve their overall safety and security. But, this technology is only available by a handful of providers and especially by AI provider companies. To enable Video Analytics in your CCTV cameras, you will need to connect with such companies and buy the package.

Steps to adopting Video Analytics are given below:

Contact AI providers: Establish connections with AI providers and ask them for the solution, they will entice you to make the correct technical decisions.

Connect the camera to the system: The software or Saas platform the AI company provides, connects it with your cameras through the RTSP link.

Apply Solution: Configure cameras on the dashboard and then add services of your choice, such as intruder detection, face recognition, PPE detection, and many more.

Start Monitoring: Start monitoring with the solution and get instant messages and email alerts on your smartphone and dashboard.

Read More:

https://datenwissen.com/blog/transform-logistics-ai/

https://datenwissen.com/blog/improving-warehouse-security

Let’s Wrap it Up

The Energy and Utility sector is a critical infrastructure and has to be maintained with utmost care. It is economically and environmentally responsible for a country’s growth, hence modern technologies needed to be adopted to enhance operations and provide ultimate safety and security.

Video Analytics can work as a major tool for the Energy sector and Daten & Wissen can help you with it. We are a team of experts that build customized AI solutions and help businesses achieve their business goals. Tell us your technical needs and we will surely help you with fulfilling them.

We are happy to help you :D

FAQ

Q: What is Video Analytics?

A: Video Analytics is when AI is applied to Video Surveillance and incidents can be detected on the monitoring frame.

Q: Difference between Video Surveillance and Video Analytics

A: Video Surveillance is the manual monitoring of events and Video Analytics is the automated monitoring of events using AI.

Q: Applications of Video Analytics in the Energy Sector

A: Use Cases of Video Analytics are as follows

Q: Benefits of Video Analytics for Energy Business

A: Some of the major benefits of adopting Video Analytics in the Energy business are:

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Daten & wissen

Daten & Wissen is the team of expert AI engineers to help your business to embark on a transformational journey with the adoption of this futuristic technology.

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