11/18/13 On Thursday, November 14, the Plymouth School Board approved a Design Build Process with EMCOR Construction Services for a CCTV system that will be installed in every building in the PCSC school system. The board vote was unanimous (5-0) in favor of the process.

The CCTV system came about as a recommendation by the Director of Safety, James Phillips, during an August meeting of this year.  Phillips was at the November 4 meeting; however, information on the system and process had been given to Board members prior to the meeting.

Phillips came to PCSC in July of this year. After reviewing existing safety policies and procedures, equipment, Phillips made the recommendation to the Board that included the CCTV upgrade.

The Design Build Process approved by the Board on Thursday night comes with a “not to exceed” clause and full disclosure of both pricing and payrolls for the completed project.

Superintendent Daniel Tyree said, “The bottom line is there will be full transparency and PCSC will see every dime that is spent.”  Tyree went on to say that the advantage of the process approved is that the corporation avoids architectural fees, project management fees, and includes the ability to select the components that will work with the existing computer system at government pricing.

According to Phillips, the video upgrade will allow building principals to monitor their own facilities as well as add a monitoring aspect that could be viewed by safety personnel at a central location.

Phillips said, “The CCTV system is a robust upgrade and will fulfill needs in terms of safety. This is a pro-active step” The Board has already approved a bond to implement the safety recommendations.

According to Phillips, the proposed system will be password protected and within a secure network. He said the CCTV cameras would be placed to monitor hallways, entrances, and common areas. “The system will allow us to know who is coming into our properties.”

The Board is expected to obtain further information on the Design Build at their regular meeting in December.

Carol Anders Correspondent