Securing the mecca of performing arts with unification
The Lincoln Center embraces all platforms of music and art and welcomes the entire community across its 16-acre campus in New York City. Today, the team uses Security Center to manage video, access control, and evidence management. The unified approach not only heightens efficiency and collaboration; it helps them ensure that guests have a great experience.
The company
Lincoln Center is an iconic performing arts district, spanning 16-acres in downtown Manhattan, New York, United States. As a cornerstone of the city’s culture, the arts and entertainment campus brings together 11 organizations focused on music, dance, and theater. With more than 30 indoor and outdoor facilities, the Lincoln Center hosts world-leading artistic programming and welcomes over 5 million visitors annually. The security team at the Lincoln Centre works around the clock to secure its buildings, events, and people while making sure guests can safely roam around and enjoy all this cultural destination has to offer.
The challenge
Overseeing the security of a 16-acre downtown performing arts campus doesn’t come without challenges. While the security team relied on various security technologies to maintain a safe and welcoming environment, most of them were disjointed which led to inefficiencies in their day-to-day operations. The team also worked closely with the police when incidents would come up, but compiling and sharing evidence sapped resources. They wanted a more efficient and streamlined way of working to improve response to incidents, enhance the guest experience, and boost law enforcement collaboration.
The solution
Unified security monitoring
If someone forces a door or leaves it open, the security team gets an alarm with the live video of the door. This allows them to respond immediately and ensure there's nothing suspicious going on.
Effective map-based navigation
Operators use Plan Manager – the map-based interface – to quickly address issues on campus. They jump from camera to camera directly from the map to track rowdy crowds or dubious individuals.
City-wide collaboration
Using the Federation feature, Lincoln Center participates in the Lower Manhattan Security Initiative. This program provides the NYPD with access to public-facing video feeds to support city-wide security.
Flexible growth opportunities
Having an open platform means the Lincoln Center can keep adding new technologies, such as geofencing analytics. This will help the team spot people in areas where they shouldn’t be.
“One of the reasons we chose Security Center is because it’s very easy to add new modules and technologies and it’s also open to many other third-party integrations. With unification, we can layer multiple technologies within one platform and that helps us achieve more efficient and seamless security.”
Danny Mulligan, Director of Security, Lincoln Center
Results
Today, the Lincoln Center uses Security Center to manage 359 cameras across its campus. A two-year expansion plan is in place to add another 260 cameras in various areas. The security team also manages and responds to access control alarms from the unified interface. Beyond security, they can also quickly identify long lines and crowd bottlenecks to address any issues that may impact the guest experience.
Using the Federation feature, Lincoln Center has further strengthened their partnership with local law enforcement. During big events, the security team can easily share video monitoring access with police agencies to ensure everything goes smoothly and guests have a great experience. The Clearance evidence management system allows them to securely email the NYPD any evidence within an hour.