Midwest's largest nightclub invests in security

FORT WAYNE, Ind.--Pierre's Entertainment Center, a 60,000-square-foot nightclub complex that can serve as many as 4,500 people on a given night, completed the installation of a $250,000 security system this month. Networked through a DVR system from Wavelet Technologies by Innovative Technology Specialists, a small IT-oriented system integrator here, and largely installed by club employees, the system features 60 cameras from Panasonic and Toshiba, 12 miles of cable and the ability to scan and store the IDs of every patron who walks in the door. "Just what I've caught in the last three weeks is amazing," said club general manager and Pierre's chief executive officer Todd Smith. "I can zoom into every register . . . the other night we had a fight that involved 21 people and from freeze framing the fight we were able to identify all 21 of them, ban them from the club and turn their names over to the police . . . I'm able to for the first time ever to watch the whole club." The new system replaces one that had 32 VCRs recording independently, said Smith. He looked into upgrading five years ago, but said the technology to make the upgrade worthwhile wasn't available until very recently. "I go around to look at what other people are doing," said Smith of other nightclubs, "and I see how much money they're losing," by not installing a similar system. He said he's saving significantly through loss prevention, by monitoring how employees pour drinks to catching patrons grabbing bottles while bartenders have their heads turned. He said he recently returned from viewing Orlando's Pleasure Island, part of the Disney World complex. "I could save a company like Disney millions of dollars," Smith said. See the February issue of Security Systems News for details on the system from the system integrator, Innovative Technology Specialists.