Outlining Responsibilities, Tools, and Standard Operating Procedures
In addition to the maintenance operations themselves, a solid CCTV maintenance procedure involves some administrative effort on the side. A thorough inspection can detect problems, but simply logging them somewhere doesn’t solve anything.
Preventative actions can prolong the life of equipment, but some of it will inevitably break.
It’s important to be ready to deal with problems when they occur.
This usually involves several things:
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Establishing responsibility
It’s important to know who performs operations and when. Many organisations, including large ones, supplement basic, frequently-scheduled in-house maintenance operations with more infrequent, but more thorough check-ups by external auditors or experts.
Whatever you choose, it’s important for the checklist not to fall through the cracks of your responsibility chain.
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Knowing what’s available
It’s also important for everyone to know what equipment and tools they can use. Many problems require only general mechanical tools, like screwdrivers and pliers.
But other problems are more difficult to diagnose and solve, and require more advanced equipment.
For example, cables that can’t be easily accessed over their full length can be difficult to test and diagnose. Specialised equipment, such as time-domain reflectometers (TDRs) may be required in this case.
It’s important to know what CCTV maintenance equipment is available, and to know when more advanced procedures than what’s available need to be performed.
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Establishing authority and standard operating procedures
Many preventive operations can be performed on the spot. A loose screw can be tightened, a dirty lens can be cleaned.
But what about items that need to be replaced?
Verification is only meaningful insofar as the people performing it know how to take corrective action. That involves guidelines about what purchases can be made with or without approval, what CCTV maintenance tools are available, how to contact suppliers, or which operations require outside expertise and which operations can be performed in-house.
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Establishing a Documentation Chain
CCTV and security equipment are long-lived, so the history of maintenance operations performed on it can span over many, many years. Furthermore, not all of it is fully performed with in-house personnel.
Consequently, it’s usually a good idea to establish a documentation trail. At a minimum, you should document the following details for each CCTV maintenance procedure:
- What equipment was inspected and when
- What the inspection revealed. If equipment was found to be in working order, document that as well. If information on a piece of equipment is missing, it should mean that the equipment was not inspected, not that it was working fine.
- Any preventative or corrective action, any item repair or replacement
- Who performed each operation? Many mysteries about a piece of equipment have been solved by just asking the right person as opposed to guessing.

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Improving your Maintenance Procedure
Maintenance sessions are not just a way to keep your system secure. They’re also a good opportunity to improve you maintenance procedure, and you should take advantage of it whenever you can.
If you find that any additional verification, preventative actions or CCTV maintenance tools and equipment are needed, you should document that as well.
Recommendations and Conclusions
CCTV maintenance is an essential component of any organisation’s security strategy. Timely, thorough maintenance is the only way to ensure that a CCTV system can keep you safe 24/7.
Most organisations choose to perform CCTV maintenance procedures based on a checklist. This checklist enables you to verify all relevant functionality in a reliable and traceable manner.
Most items on the checklist apply to any equipment and organisation, but we encourage you to adapt and improve your CCTV maintenance checklist and procedure based on your organisation’s requirements and on your own experience with your own installation.
At the end of the day, a CCTV installation is only a means to an end. No one is a better arbiter of its efficiency and shortcomings than yourself.
But this doesn’t mean you have to do it all yourself. CCTV maintenance is a time-consuming task, especially without the right personnel and the right tools. Luckily, we have both! Let us take CCTV maintenance off your plate so you can focus on what you do best – run your business.
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