ThreatViewer bolsters security and monitoring at the U.S. Golf Open

13 June 2007

ThreatViewerTM, an integrated security product from Augusta Systems®, is deployed in an effort to bolster security and monitoring capabilities at the upcoming 2007 U.S. Open Championship golf tournament.

“Sporting events and other high-profile entertainment venues draw large crowds and, therefore, require stepped-up security measures. These measures include deploying advanced monitoring technologies, like ThreatViewer. ThreatViewer will provide us with additional security enhancements, such as the capability of seeing in all directions at once from a single location,” said Chief Robert Full, emergency management coordinator for Allegheny County and chairman of the Pennsylvania Region 13 Task Force, a regional anti-terrorism and emergency response consortium consisting of 13 counties in western Pennsylvania and the City of Pittsburgh.

Full’s group will coordinate public security efforts for the 2007 U.S. Open Championship, held this week at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pa. The event will draw thousands of spectators, news outlets and some of golf’s biggest stars, including Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and others.

Multiple ThreatViewer systems featuring 360-degree imaging technologies, image data processing capabilities and wireless communications capabilities will be deployed during the U.S. Open. The 360-degree imaging technologies, which leverage components from Augusta Systems partner EyeSee360, Inc., will enable Region 13 personnel to “see” in all directions at once from a given location.

These features will enable security personnel to deploy multiple ThreatViewer systems wherever needed to remotely monitor a location or situation in real time, as ThreatViewer captures and processes surveillance data and transmits it to personnel at operations centers and in the field. ThreatViewer will be utilized in conjunction with the Allegheny County Mobile Command Center.

The U.S. Open deployment is the second major sporting event to utilize ThreatViewer. It was deployed for critical infrastructure security during 2006 Major League Baseball All-Star Game events. Also, ThreatViewer was recently selected by Allegheny Energy to provide remote monitoring and perimeter security capabilities at an electricity substation, and is in use in projects related to military facility protection, maritime security, and other applications.

ThreatViewer features multiple sensing options, including sensors with panoramic imaging, pan-tilt-zoom camera, infrared imaging, gas detection, temperature measurement and humidity measurement features, among other options. ThreatViewer systems generally consist of multiple ThreatViewer sensor packages, rugged computers with ThreatViewer user interfaces, wireless long-range communications, dedicated power supplies, and all associated sensing, computing, and software features. ThreatViewer can be utilized as a stand-alone security system or integrated with other security systems or assets.

“ThreatViewer provides a flexible security option for the U.S. Open. It can be placed wherever it is most needed to collect, process and transmit data to security personnel,” said Patrick Esposito, president and chief operating officer of Augusta Systems, Inc. “Because of its flexibility, ThreatViewer can assist security and emergency response personnel in a host of applications, including urban and homeland security, public safety, law enforcement, port and border security, national defense and industrial monitoring applications, among others.”

“Events like the U.S. Open and baseball’s All-Star game highlight the need for advanced technologies. The threats to the public are evolving and security operations are evolving as well. In fact, sporting events and other mobile deployments are become the proving grounds for some of the most advanced security technologies. By deploying ThreatViewer along with Allegheny County’s mobile command center at the U.S. Open, we are working to ensure that the best technologies are put to use to protect our citizens and visitors to the region,” added Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato.

ThreatViewer provides remote monitoring capabilities in military, industrial and homeland security efforts.