Plan Design for CCTV Jobs, which software

[rory 0]

which software d oyou use, if any, to make a plan layout of the location with camera placements, lens widths etc?

 

I only use Paint Shop Pro currently, though it comes out good, is there anything easier??

[qman 0]

I use VISIO and Netflow.

[rory 0]

I use VISIO and Netflow.

 

where do you get them from??

[qman 0]

www.pacestarsoftware.com

 

when you get it, let me know

[rory 0]

www.pacestarsoftware.com

 

when you get it, let me know

website is down, or link is bad..?

[Stanislav 0]

VideoCAD -program for professional CCTV system design.

http://www.cctvcad.com

[msecure 0]

Am using Visio too but VideoCad looks cool! Thanks Stanislav for the url. Will download the demo & try it!

[Designssnet 0]

VISIO seems to be best for me...

[CSG 0]

These programs look interesting, but how do you use it. Do you use it as part of your proposal, or after you get the job? Either way, it seems very time consuming to layout your customers entire facility just to make pretty pictures. Some of my proposals go three typed pages and that can take me upto 4 hours with research. To measure the dimensions of rooms and CAD the cctv layout looks like a full time job for little return, unless you are getting paid as a consultant.

 

What do you think?

[cctv_down_under 0]

CSG I disagree with you, I can tell you that the more time you spend on your qoutation the more chance you have of getting it, this can be the difference between looking proffesional and charging more or looking like you just don't care.

 

For a end user to want security a problem must exist, therefore it has to be serious in order to spend money and therefore they must be stressed to want or need to do it, making your customer confident in your profesionalism is the best key to winning quotes.

 

I quite often do three quotations and include a Visio drawing, onsite I use my PDA in the quote to take pictures to add to the quotation I also use a light level indicator and I take a measurement wheel to measure camera runs, I use a viewfinder to determine lens sizing and voice recording on the PDA to store info on the cable runs and equipment needed.

 

Choosing three quotations offers three levels of security and allows the person to choose the level they can afford or need.

 

I would like to learn more on Visio as I am a basic user but I cant find a link to download a tutorial anywhere!

[rory 0]

Darn you do all that? i like PSP for the customization of it .. i like to make my own images of the cameras, lawn and sand

[SteveSurf 0]

I would like to learn more on Visio as I am a basic user but I cant find a link to download a tutorial anywhere!

 

I love Visio! For a proposal, the best items that Visio can contribute are Site Plans, Room Plans, Conceptual Block Diagrams and Point-to-point diagrams (submittals). Most of the Consulting Engineers I work with use AutoCAD, and we do as well, but for my own work I use Visio.

 

I found the best way to learn Visio is to take a diagram someone else has created and play around with it. The diagrams will all come with the stencils that supported it, so it makes changes a snap. My Xdrive account seems to be down for the last day, but I'll post an example when it comes up.

[SeanMort 0]

I've been using Visio for all my drawings. Started out using it in 1997 when I bought a package called InterCad at IFSEC, it had all the CCTV component stencils bundled with Visio. I just upgraded my Visio over the years and still use the stencils and the all ones that manufacturers have on CD's.

One of the things I have started to use, which works great for site cabling distances etc is the Google Earth site. It allows you to get a reasonably clear aerial view of most places on earth and has a measuring tool which you can drag from point to point and get fair estimates of distance. I can also take a snapshot of the site, paste it into Visio, and then trace a sketch over it before deleting/hiding the snapshot. Anyone else tried this ?

[Stanislav 0]

It is possible to use VideoCAD together with Visio, AutoCAD, etc. *.bmp, *.jpg, *.jpeg, *.emf, *.wmf, *.dxf, *.dwg files are supported as a background.

http://www.securitypark.co.uk/article.asp?articleid=23173

http://cctvcad.com/CCTVCAD-Professional_design_of_CCTV_system.html

[Stanislav 0]

New VideoCAD version 5.0 was released. Many users' suggestions were taken into account. New teaching articles "The principles of CCTV design in VideoCAD" were published.

We look forward to improve our software. Any suggestions and criticisms are welcome.

http://cctvcad.com

[jisaac 0]

One of the things I have started to use, which works great for site cabling distances etc is the Google Earth site. It allows you to get a reasonably clear aerial view of most places on earth and has a measuring tool which you can drag from point to point and get fair estimates of distance. I can also take a snapshot of the site, paste it into Visio, and then trace a sketch over it before deleting/hiding the snapshot. Anyone else tried this ?

 

shoot have I tried this? Man we live by Google earth over here. Especially for outdoor shots and such. Heck I have got every single one of our customers locaitons set on my places and can do a really cool lonnggggggggggggggggggg tour of all our customers. My wife says I am a google earth nerd. And she is right! GOOGLE EARTH IS EXCELLENT FOR ME!

[rory 0]

i wish they'd hurry up and get the Digital Globe Satelite over my island

[jisaac 0]

i am telling you, it is a gift from God. Just this last design I have been working on where it involves putting some ASIM PIR detectors the curtain kind on a perimeter. Man I did that whole design in 3 times less time it would have taken me if I had to go out there and measure it myself. And I do that on almost every proposal I do ( use google earth somehow. )

what is fun is for the people who have never seen that before is to let them believe for a little while that it is showing images in real time. Man they will walk outside and try to find themselves on the google earth images for hours!

[securitymonster 0]

google earth rocks! I use it alot too. I haven't had anybody walk outside trying to see themselves but some people sure do freak out and start having me input 10 or more addresses.