capthook1980

The chef situation sounds funny but he was made responsible for lost / missing / stolen items within the kitchen area. He has a lot of people going in/out of the kitchen and freezers for deliveries, etc. That is the reason he wants the cameras. The cost of the lost items and the cost of the cameras are his responsibility. Except for the jeweler, can the equipment, supplies, accessories, etc. for a complete and reliable 8 camera system be purchased for about US $ 200 per camera or less? If not, how much? What equipment would you recommend? What percent profit margin does the industry usually expect and actually achieve? Thanks.

I have been dabbling with CCTV for about 6 months. Started out with X10, then the chinese cameras on ebay. Recently, I started looking at the more professional cameras and systems on e bay and other websites. I have been approached by a few people wanting me to give them a quote for their businesses. The first one is a bar/pool hall with very low light conditions. He wanted a total of 8 cameras, a digital recorder or PC DVR and 2 monitors. 2 cams would be for the front and back entrances. One for the adjacent coin operated laundry, one over the cash register, one for an outdoor patio, and the remainder viewing the seating/dining area. The building is about 75 ft wide by 150 ft. long. His office is close to the center of the facility. This is where the central monitoring system will be installed. The other monitor will be next to the office - at the bar. The bar owner is not computer literate but can probably operate one for simpler tasks. The second one is an apartment building that has had student vandalism problems. The building is 5 stories tall and they wanted to install the cameras in the corridors, one for each level. They want the images available to the superintendent and the tenants over the internet. The superintendent is comfortable with computers. The third one is a restaurant and the chief chef wants to install the cameras in the freezers and the kitchen. He has 4 freezers and plans to use 2 cameras in the kitchen. The freezers are about 8ft.x8ft. and he needs infra red to see in the dark in the freezers. The freezers, kitchen and his office cover a 60ftx60ft area and are adjacent to each other. The last one just signed a lease and will renovate the space for a jewelry store. He wants 3 cameras. A very small one installed outside within the stripmall walkway/corridor. This will view the front door and glass store front. The other 2 within the store will be watching over the displays and entrance door. He wants one of the inside cameras to be pan/tilt/zoom so he can zoom in on the faces of the prople that enter. He wants the dome cameras so the camera positions would not be known. In addition, he has a safe that has a connection for an alarm. He wants this on an alarm. His total space is 16ft. wide x 26 ft. deep. The display customer area is 16 ft. deep and the work area behind the customer srea is 10 ft. deep. Probably except for the jeweler, these people are cost conscious. They have already requested for quotes from companies but have not acted on the quotes because of the "high" quotes they have received. They are in general looking for "more affordable" systems for small business people like them. Can the experts in this forum give me an idea of the equipment and installation costs of such systems? What do these systems sell for installed? Where is the best place to purchase "affordable", "best buy" or "good value" equipment for small businesses. What make and model do you recommend. All these businesses are near the Toronto area in Canada. Prices in Canada should be relatively comparable to the US. Hope this is not too much. Thanks.