Document No.

GP 59-03
Applicability Group
Date 27 December 2005

Guidance on Practice for Voice, Video, and

Data Integration

GP 59-03

BP GROUP
ENGINEERING TECHNICAL PRACTICES
27 December 2005 GP 59-03
Guidance on Practice for Voice, Video, and Data Integration

Foreword

This is the first issue of Engineering Technical Practice (ETP) GP 59-03. This Guidance on Practice (GP) is
ordered to indicate the criteria that shall be involved when integrating converged network devices into the
telecommunications network. Converged network devices are those devices that traditionally have been
carried on their own transmission system be it analogue or digital that are now being engineered to be
capable of working within a common IP network. Examples of this are Telephones, CCTV cameras etc.

Copyright  2005, BP Group. All rights reserved. The information contained in this
document is subject to the terms and conditions of the agreement or contract under which
the document was supplied to the recipient’s organization. None of the information
contained in this document shall be disclosed outside the recipient’s own organization
without the prior written permission of Manager, Standards, BP Group, unless the terms of
such agreement or contract expressly allow.

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Guidance on Practice for Voice, Video, and Data Integration

Table of Contents
Page
Foreword ........................................................................................................................................ 2
1. Scope .................................................................................................................................... 4
2. Normative references............................................................................................................. 4
3. Terms and definitions............................................................................................................. 4
4. General guidelines................................................................................................................. 5
5. Network assessment.............................................................................................................. 5
6. Design considerations............................................................................................................ 6
7. Maintenance and operations.................................................................................................. 6

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27 December 2005 GP 59-03
Guidance on Practice for Voice, Video, and Data Integration

1. Scope

This GP document provides guidance for the integration of converged network devices. Converged
network devices are those devices that traditionally have been carried on their own transmission
system be it analogue or digital that are now being engineered to be capable of working within a
common IP network. Examples of this are Telephones, CCTV cameras etc. It is not intended to
provide a guidance on which converged devices should be selected, but what should be considered
when implementing converged devices. It is also not intended to specify LAN design in general as that
is covered by another ETP.

2. Normative references

The following normative documents contain requirements that, through reference in this text,
constitute requirements of this technical practice. For dated references, subsequent amendments to, or
revisions of, any of these publications do not apply. However, parties to agreements based on this
technical practice are encouraged to investigate the possibility of applying the most recent editions of
the normative documents indicated below. For undated references, the latest edition of the normative
document referred to applies.

BP
GP 59-05 Guidance on Practice for Facility Network Segmentation and Security
GP 59-60 Guidance on Practice for LAN Design

3. Terms and definitions

Closed Circuit Television (CCTV)

Generally denotes security video monitoring systems

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)

A way that end stations can automatically obtain an IP address

Domain Name System (DNS)

Protocol for resolving host names to IP addresses

Internet Protocol (IP)

The standard addressing that most networks use

Motion JPEG (M-JPEG)

A non-standard method of encoding video as a series of compressed JPEG images, mostly supported
by Apple’s Quicktime

Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG)

A standard method of encoding video with compression

Power over Ethernet (PoE)

A standard whereby power for a device is provided via the Ethernet port of a switch in the
telecommunications closet

Quality of Service (QoS)

Methods to ensure timely delivery of data packets

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Guidance on Practice for Voice, Video, and Data Integration

Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)

A standard remote management tool

Virtual LAN (VLAN)

A method of segmenting network traffic via software definitions rather than physical separation

4. General guidelines

a. No safety critical systems shall be implemented on the network unless either of the
following can be met.
1. Network availability can be guaranteed at 99.9999%.
Availability must be measured and guaranteed from end to end, not just for the
transport mechanism.
2. There is a backup system implemented in the traditional fashion.
Mechanisms shall be provided that provide an automatic switchover in the event of
a network failure.
b. IP should be the standard transport mechanism used for any converged network system.
c. Standard ports and protocols should be used unless there is a significant advantage in one
or more of the following areas for using a proprietary protocol.
1. Performance
2. Security
3. Quality
4. Manageability
d. The design of the underlying network infrastructure shall follow the guidelines included in
GP 59-60.

5. Network assessment

a. A network baseline shall be performed prior to any end device being integrated into the
network.
b. No converged network device shall degrade the existing performance of the network. Any
integration of converged network devices should not be noticeable with respect to other
currently running applications and devices.
c. Converged network device requirements shall be baselined in a separate environment to
determine the impact on network traffic that they may have. Bandwidth guidelines for
some common types of services are presented in Table 1.

Table 1 - Estimated Bandwidth for Common Services

Service Type Description Estimated Bandwidth

Requirement
Voice over IP G.711 (uncompressed voice) 80 Kb/s
G.726 48 Kb/s
G.729 32 Kb/s
CCTV M-JPEG @ 5 fps (15KB frame) 600 Kb/s
(Full motion video is 30 fps) MPEG-4 @ 5 fps 170 Kb/s

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Guidance on Practice for Voice, Video, and Data Integration

d. Communications patterns and requirements (e.g. to particular servers, to the Internet)

should be defined to determine the design criteria
e. An analysis shall be done to determine if the current network has the capacity for the new
converged network devices.
f. If capacity is not available on the existing network, an upgrade plan should be developed
and recommended prior to implementing any converged network devices

6. Design considerations

a. Converged network devices transmitting sensitive information shall be segmented behind a

firewall as described in GP 59-05.
b. QoS methods should be implemented for converged network devices requiring specific
operating parameters related to:
1. Bandwidth
2. Latency
3. Jitter
4. Packet Loss
c. Each type of converged service should be separated from other network traffic with the use
of VLAN technologies.
Segmentation improves control over routing, provides the ability to easily implement
quality of service, and can provide low levels of security
d. PoE should be considered where devices support it and access to an electrical outlet is
difficult.
Care should be taken when using PoE devices in hazardous areas. All local
regulations for the use of electronics in hazardous areas must be followed.
e. Transmission quality should be considered and agreed prior to the design phase. Higher
quality transmission demands higher bandwidth.
f. A capacity headroom of 25% should be designed into the system to allow for easy growth.
g. Data storage should be considered and incorporated into the design to account for the
following items as applicable to the system:
1. Call detail records
2. Voicemail
3. Security video
h. Data storage shall have sufficient capacity to meet all site and local regulations for archival
periods.
i. Backup and disaster recovery strategies for the converged network systems should be
incorporated into the design and should be sufficient to meet any service level agreements
that may be in place or agreed prior to implementation.

7. Maintenance and operations

a. Performance management should be implemented for devices and the underlying network
to identify trends and be proactive with capacity issues prior to quality being affected.

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b. Security updates for devices should be reviewed on a minimum of monthly intervals or

when notification from the manufacturer is received. Any potential risks should be
remedied at that time.
c. Support staff should have adequate training to enable them to operate the devices with a
reasonable level of knowledge. Maintenance contracts and vendor support may be used as
a supplement to onsite support staff.
d. Devices should be equipped with remote management capabilities providing the ability to
remotely connect to the device and configure or monitor its operation.
e. Devices should support SNMP and be capable of sending notifications to a central network
management station.
f. Devices should be capable of supporting DNS to avoid manually setting server IP
addresses if required.

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