Barco OpSpace brings clarity and peace of mind to Amsterdam UMC control room

Operators at the Amsterdam UMC security control room have started using two integrated workstations with Barco OpSpace. Today, all critical sources can be seen and controlled on a single screen. The new way of working has brought the operators overview, peace of mind, and time savings. 

Amsterdam UMC is a leading academic medical center that combines complex, high-quality patient care, innovative scientific research, and education of the next generation healthcare professionals. With more than 19,500 people, Amsterdam UMC's two locations work together to provide good and accessible care. Amsterdam UMC was formed in 2018 from a merger of Amsterdam's two academic hospitals, the Academic Medical Center (AMC) and the VU University Medical Center (VUmc). 

Security of the Amsterdam UMC

Amsterdam UMC wants to ensure the security of its patients, staff and visitors as much as possible. The security control room plays a crucial role in this. The control room is part of the hospital's security infrastructure and is responsible for security within the two hospital sites. Combined, the hospitals have 165 kilometers of corridors and 65 security guards who maintain security in the hospitals. 

The main task of security control room operators is to distribute incoming alerts. These vary quite a bit, from something as simple as opening doors to responding to burglar alarms. But serious emergencies such as CPR and even hospital disasters can also occur. The operator in the control room picks up these alerts and dispatches security personnel within the hospital as needed. In addition, operators in the control room also monitor the outside of the hospital via camera images.

From clutter to overview

At the end of 2022, the AMC security control room was renovated in cooperation with Dutch integrator INTER. "The old control room was in need of replacement," says Rogier Kemeling, Department Head of Security at Amsterdam UMC. "In the past, we worked with as many as 26 computers. Each computer had its own monitor, keyboard and mouse. This meant that both the workspace and the workstations were very cluttered."

"In the new control room, we decided to go for two integrated workspaces equipped with Barco’s OpSpace personal workspace solution and ergonomic workstation furniture from CREON. This solution allows us to show multiple sources on one workstation, so we don’t have to go back and forth between 26 screens anymore. All the necessary sources can now be seen on the two integrated workstations. We can control both workstations with just one keyboard and one mouse."

"Working with Barco OpSpace gives operators more overview and peace of mind, which benefits the process. Moreover, thanks to the integrated new workstations, we’ve saved time because we always have easy access to the sources. We no longer have to go to the computer in question first and unlock it."

100% continuity  

"Our business operations run continuously, 24 hours a day. Therefore, it’s essential that our systems are redundant. After all, the primary process should never be interrupted. In an emergency, we can’t afford having our computers go down. Because of the redundant implementation of the control room, the primary process will always continue to run, even if one of the systems should fail."

Future control room plans

"In the future, we also want to revamp the security control room within the VUmc. We want to set it up in the same way as at the AMC location. Our ultimate vision of the future goes even further: We are striving to eventually merge both security control rooms into one centralized control room for the Amsterdam UMC."