Enriching campus life with unified security
Every day, thousands of people move through the University of New South Wales’ (UNSW) campuses. Learn how this leading Australian university unified security to gain clearer insights, respond faster, and enhance collaboration with law enforcement.
The company
The University of New South Wales is one of Australia's leading universities, ranked in the top 20 worldwide. UNSW has seven faculties and 47 schools providing world-class education, with seven main campuses in Kensington, Paddington, Sydney CBD, Cliffbrook, Randwick, Manly Vale, and Canberra. Over 63,000 students attend classes at UNSW, all led by a diverse team of 8,318 staff.
The challenge
UNSW's outdated security system lacked advanced functionality for managing multiple campus locations and thousands of CCTV cameras. With restrictive analytics capabilities, the team had limited means for proactive monitoring, and the system was primarily used for post-incident review. The university also faced limited system integration, inefficient evidence storage, and aging help point infrastructure.
The solution
Centralized campus monitoring
Cameras across multiple campuses stream into a central control room. Transitioning to a single unified platform has reduced operational complexity and improved campus-wide visibility.
Enhanced emergency response
30+ upgraded help points provide live video and audio feeds, enabling operators to make faster threat assessments and verify emergencies before security staff arrive on scene.
Digital evidence management
Genetec Clearance streamlines evidence sharing with law enforcement. Security staff compile video from cameras and body-worn devices, then securely email cases to NSW Police.
Scalable security infrastructure
Streamvault appliances manage and store video across locations with full system redundancy. The infrastructure also easily scales to support system expansion to other campuses and sites.
“Integrating the new help points within Security Center has assisted in accelerating incident response on campus. These devices allow the team to both see and hear what’s happening live at the scene, providing critical situational awareness and enabling faster, more informed decision-making during incidents.”
Melissa Fenech, Security Technical Services Manager at UNSW
Results
UNSW centralized over 2,500 cameras, 10 AutoVu ALPR cameras, and 30 help points across their network within Security Center, with all video and data streaming to a centralized control room. Working from a unified view, they’re now able to quickly navigate between multiple cameras, locate individuals during live incidents or investigations, and respond to help point calls all in one place.
"We needed a user-friendly platform for both live and recorded footage, that could integrate with our existing access control system. To ensure operational resilience, we also required full system redundancy, including a production and disaster recovery fleet of servers. Genetec’s flexibility, scalability, and broad capabilities make it an ideal fit for the complex and dynamic needs of a university environment,” said Fenech.