The Londoner Hotel CCTV Installation

The Londoner Hotel sits on a corner of Leicester Square in central London. Across 16 storeys it has 350 rooms and suites, five restaurants and bars, and a subterranean wellness floor with a spa and gym. The hotel attracts high-profile guests and houses significant collections of artwork and high-value furniture throughout its communal and guest spaces. Edwardian Hotels London, which owns the property, needed a video surveillance system that could protect those assets and people without compromising what makes the hotel what it is. That meant 560 cameras that nobody would notice, covering every area with no gaps.

The Challenge

The Londoner presented two requirements that had to be satisfied at the same time. The first was coverage. A hotel of this size, with a penthouse, multiple bars and restaurants, a wellness floor, and 350 guest rooms, has a large number of areas that need monitoring. Any blind spot in a space containing valuable artwork or used by high-profile guests is not acceptable.

The second requirement was that the cameras had to disappear into the environment. Each area of The Londoner has its own design identity. The bars, restaurants, corridors, and guest spaces all have different themes and colourways. A camera that works perfectly in one space would stand out in another. Every camera position required thought about how the device would sit within that specific interior, not just whether it covered the right angle.

Balancing complete coverage with discreet installation across a building of this complexity was the central challenge of the project.

Why Hanwha Wisenet

Slam Systems had already installed Hanwha Wisenet X series cameras and Wisenet WAVE VMS in other hotels within the Edwardian portfolio. That track record meant both Slam Systems and Edwardian Hotels had confidence in the technology before The Londoner project began.

The Wisenet X series cameras run on Hanwha's Wisenet 7 chipset, which includes eXtreme WDR (wide dynamic range) for clear footage in high-contrast lighting conditions such as hotel lobbies, bar entrances, and spaces with strong natural light alongside dark corners. Lens distortion correction ensures accurate footage at wider angles. At 5MP resolution, the cameras provide enough detail to identify individuals and review incidents clearly.

The combination of image quality, the range of camera form factors available, and the proven performance in other Edwardian properties made Wisenet X the right choice for The Londoner.

What Was Installed

In total, 560 Hanwha Wisenet X series 5MP cameras were installed across the site, covering all public areas, back of house, entrances and exits, corridors, dining and bar spaces, the wellness floor, and guest floors.

Six servers handle storage, backup, and video analysis. To meet the hotel's requirement for no downtime, each server is configured to automatically back up another if one fails. The redundancy means a hardware issue does not interrupt recording or access to footage.

Wisenet WAVE VMS ties the system together. The Smart Search function allows operators to search footage by drawing a zone on screen, such as a section of corridor, the area around a bar, or an entrance point, and pulling up only the footage where motion occurred in that zone. This significantly reduces the time needed to investigate an incident. Mohamed Elsabahy, Group CCTV Manager for Edwardian Hotels, receives automatic alerts if any camera, server, or hard drive reports a fault, so issues are picked up and resolved before they cause a problem.

Managing Security Across the Edwardian Portfolio

One of the practical advantages of Wisenet WAVE is that it connects multiple sites. Edwardian Hotels has the VMS installed across its collection, which means Mohamed Elsabahy can access and review footage from any hotel remotely via laptop or smartphone. He does not need to travel to a site to check footage or respond to an alert.

The Londoner is also planning to integrate the WAVE system with the laser protection system installed in its bars to protect high-value spirits. When the laser protection triggers, the CCTV system will be able to provide footage of what happened in that area, giving the hotel a complete record for any investigation.

"Through WAVE, I can remotely access any hotel's video system and review its footage without spending time travelling to the site. It saves a lot of time and effort, and makes events much more accessible as I can quickly view what's happened through my laptop or smartphone." Mohamed Elsabahy, Group CCTV Manager, Edwardian Hotels London

"There was a clear focus on getting the best cameras and VMS to ensure security was optimised for The Londoner, there were no blind spots, and events could be investigated easily. Simultaneously, camera devices needed to blend in well with the different themes and unique colourways in each bar, restaurant, corridor, and other spaces." Tarik Khamliche, Managing Director, Slam Systems

The Result

The Londoner Hotel now has 560 cameras covering every area of the building with no blind spots. The Wisenet X cameras fit the interiors of each space without drawing attention. The six-server setup means the system has never gone down due to a hardware failure. Wisenet WAVE gives the hotel team fast, searchable access to footage, and the Edwardian group manager can oversee the whole portfolio remotely. Investigation time has dropped significantly compared to searching through traditional recorded footage.

If you operate a hotel or hospitality venue and want to discuss a CCTV installation, call us on 020 3302 6838 or fill in the contact form to arrange a free site survey. We have extensive experience working in occupied hotels and understand the specific requirements of the hospitality sector.

This project was covered by Professional Security Magazine and Hanwha Vision