Trying unsuccessfully to review a theft incident on tape from an outdated analog system led Becker Furniture World to explore the benefits of upgrading their surveillance system to digital video. “Security is very important to us to prevent store theft both internally and externally,” said the company’s chief operating officer, JR Wilson. “We had an analog system which was becoming impractical. We had to constantly change tapes. When we couldn’t find a theft incident that occurred on one of the tapes, we knew it was time to upgrade to a digital system.”

Jason Becker, Video Technology Advisor for Marco, introduced JR and Becker Furniture World’s IT Manager, Henry Griner, to a March Networks Digital Video Surveillance (DVR) system.

In April 2003, Marco installed a networked March Networks 4000 Series System with two 16-camera Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) at their furniture store in Becker. A third 16-camera DVR was installed at their Distribution Center in August 2004. And most recently, Marco added an eight-camera March Networks 3108 DVR at their new Thomasville Store in Maple Grove.

Because all the DVRs are networked, the system allows Becker Furniture World to view up to 16 cameras simultaneously from PCs at any of their locations, which has made it much more convenient for selected employees to view security video. “If we wanted to view a tape,” said JR, “we had to walk in the office where the VCR was. Now we can view them from several different PCs, which makes it much more convenient for us.”

JR explained, “We decided to go with the March Networks DVRs because they give us the ability to view more than one camera at a time, provide more history, and allow us to record only when there is motion, which saves us time in reviewing video.”  Henry added, “March Networks also has a proprietary operating system which is good for security purposes.”

Becker Furniture World was able to utilize some of their existing cameras with their new system, and Marco provided them with some new cameras where needed. JR said, “The photos taken with some of our older cameras were fuzzy—we couldn’t really pinpoint who the person on the photo was. Our new cameras give us much better quality. The digital clarity definitely makes a difference.”

JR sited just a couple examples of how their new digital surveillance system has paid off. “We had a group of people come to our store and make furniture purchases with bad checks. Our video system cameras captured their photos, and we sent them to our remote locations. The same people went to our St. Cloud store to make a purchase, and because we had their photos, we were able to turn them into the police when they came to pick up the furniture.”

He went on, “In another incident, a former employee loaded up a piece of furniture in our back warehouse and we were able to view the incident on our cameras and give it to the police for prosecution.”

In both incidents, the DVR systems eliminated the loss of inventory. “These are examples that have saved us an enormous amount of money,” said JR. “It’s also a deterrent when people see the security cameras.”

One of the reasons JR and Henry selected Marco as their digital video provider was because of their existing IT relationship. “For us, partnering with Marco was an important aspect of our decision because of the level of service they provide,” said JR. “Jason Becker and Jonathan Warrey (Marco Sales Manager) provide us with solutions, not just hardware. Not everything always goes 100% perfect, but when there is a problem, Marco makes it right.”

Becker Furniture World felt the installation of their new system went quite smooth. JR commented, “Marco brought in the boxes, plugged in the cameras, loaded the software, and we were live. Everyone at Marco is very knowledgeable and capable, and our video system is easy to use.”

Founded in 1978 with a mere 500 square feet of retail space, Becker Furniture World, Inc. has grown to be one of the largest and most innovative, privately owned companies in the furniture industry today. The store, located in Becker, Minnesota, features the largest showroom space in Minnesota, including a Thomasville store, a 115,000 square foot distribution center, and more than 370 employees.