DAVANTIS protects La Boqueria, Barcelona’s most famous market
Case Study
The history of La Rambla is also the history of La Boqueria. Over the years, an area frequented by street sellers has become a modern market, teeming with excitement, colour, and animation. The market is like a metaphor for life in Barcelona, a human river that fascinates people watchers.
La Boqueria, which opened on 19 March – the feast of St Joseph – in 1840 was the first of Barcelona’s municipal markets. It took four years to build on what was once the site of the Sant Josep convent. However, the market is much older than that.
As far back as the 13th century, La Rambla was frequented by travelling meat sellers.
In 1836, the Marqués de Campo Sagrado, General Capitan of Catalonia, decided to regulate the travelling market that used to set up in the big square which had once been occupied by the content. As time went by, the Boqueria market in Barcelona developed into a modern market. Gas lighting was installed and in 1914 the metal roof was completed. As well as protecting the food, traders, and shoppers, it gives the market a unique character. These days, third and fourth generation of vendors proudly sell their wares in the oldest and most exciting food market in Barcelona. Shoppers find a huge variety of vegetables, meat, fish, and thousands of products, imaginatively displayed on charming stalls. La Boqueria is a place full of life and history of great architectural and cultural value.
El Mercado de la Boqueria, Barcelona’s oldest municipal market
Last summer there were numerous security incidents at the market. That’s why the Barcelona Municipal Markets Institute came up with the idea or installing security measures to protect the site. Thanks to the efforts of IMMB and with the advice of the security manager of the company responsible for surveillance at La Boqueria, a solution was found and the project began.
As part of the project, maximum security DAVANTIS video analytics systems were installed.
La Boqueria has all the ingredients to be a world-class market: it is enormous, almost 3,000-square-metres of floor space house most than 250 traders selling their wares; variety, with an exciting mixture of local and exotic products provided by a network of local farmers and traders with open minds who supply the city’s chefs with the world’s most exotic flavours; and specialisation, where lineages of sellers have amassed a wealth of knowledge passed down through the generations.
The site has evolved along with its occupants, with extensions and renovations to the back facade, including the development of the Gardunya square, which added 1,000 square metres to the market. The extra space has been used to build new stalls and loading and other facilities for the logistical area.
Naturally, an important site like this needed excellent protection.Security needed to be an intrinsic part of the everyday operation of the market.
A 3,000-square-metre market housing more than 250 traders
TRESSAT, a company that specialises in integrating electronic telecommunication, security, IT and audiovisual systems chose DAVANTIS solutions as the best option to keep trespassers out of the facilities.
Because of the complexity and size of the market, there are numerous security control cameras installed throughout the site to control and improve daily security.
DFUSION technology has been installed in the cameras to cover entrances and critical points, for more efficient surveillance and supervision by security staff. This has allowed TRESSAT to transform a passive CCTV system into a proactive security system capable of sending an alert the instant an intruder attempts to enter the site, preventing incidents and automatically notifying security staff.
“DAVANTIS videoanalytics harnesses the power of Deep Learning to design reliable solutions, significantly reducing false positive rates.”
Raül Duaigües & Guillem Galimany. Technical direction of the project
“El videoanálisis de DAVANTIS nos permite aprovechar las ventajas del Deep Learning para ofrecer una solución fiable reduciendo notablemente la detección de falsos positivos.”.
Raül Duaigües y Guillem Galimany. Dirección técnica del proyecto
Benefits for installers:
- Preliminary analysis by TRESSAT and DAVANTIS to design the most effective system.
- Use of DFUSION technology at critical access points to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of security staff.
- Freedom to adapt the product to suit the exact needs of the site. This includes aspects such as interaction with the DAVANTIS team and how alarms are received.
Benefits for end users:
- A flexible, scalable solution. This will mean the system can be adapted to cope with future changes to the site to protect and to spread out investments over time as required.
- Automatic alerts to security staff in case of a possible security breach guarantees successful management of security alarm and gives end users peace of mind.
What's keeping you awake at night?
We help you fight insomnia with DFUSION! If you have security challenges, find out how our technology can be the solution.