Teething problems are unavoidable

I read with interest Carl Samm's article 'From bad to worse' in the November edition of Security Installer.

The BSIA has been heavily involved in the development of the new European Standards for intruder alarms in an effort to minimise the disruption and confusion such a significant change brings. A healthy debate on the introduction of the standards was inevitable and I am sure this debate will continue for the foreseeable future as new parts of the EN 50131 series of documents are published.

Teething problems are unavoidable as installers get to grips with the new standards. However, their introduction should be seen as an evolution, not as a revolution as the industry moves towards higher levels of professionalism. For example, risk assessment is not new. BS 4737 required an assessment to be carried out by the installer. The new standards have just formalised this process. The introduction of new terminology was inescapable when you consider that the introduction of the standards is a process of European harmonisation and will bring real benefits for those that import and export.

Problem with customers

It is true that the design proposal is a much more complex document now than previous specification documents. The BSIA envisaged installers having an issue with the fact that customers would not understand the document. That is why we produced a series of specification templates which were sent to our members as far back as March 2003. There is no reason why installers cannot provide their customers with a simple, generic document explaining things like client responsibilities, a breakdown of the definitions or examples of how the equipment works.

The problem the industry currently has with grading is deciding what type of system should be installed to cover what risk, as there are a number of factors to be taken into account other than the risk assessment. However, most installers are getting to grips with grading. This knowledge will become more important as the product specifications start being used by manufacturers to grade products. It should also be noted that Grade 4 products are being produced by BSIA manufacturers and will become more prevalent.

Installers who are taking the trouble to learn the standards inside out and fully understand the differences between grades are becoming experts in their field. They can give the in-depth advice to customers that is expected from a professional quality installer. This advice can tailor the system to the customer's needs, but also enables them to put strong arguments forward for a bespoke system to counter requests for systems based on price only.

Grading will be an issue

Grading is an issue, and will continue to be an issue until all the EN 50131 series of standards are published and mature; until all installers fully understand what each grade can offer; and until the drivers for grading, i.e. customers, specifiers, insurers, and brokers, are able to clearly state their grading requirements.

With respect to Carl Samm's comments on police response, ACPO/ACPOS require and endorse DD243. One particular police force has chosen to include further confirmation of a false/genuine alarm by adopting a call back to site. Whilst this is a variation on the ACPO/ACPOS policies, this does not contravene DD243 as it is seen as an additional form of confirmation initiated by the police.

Overall when it comes to the new standards, things are improving. In the next couple of years it is expected that the complete EN 50131 suite of standards will be published. Professional quality installers do understand the current scheme based on PD 6662 scheme document, they also know what the benefits and limitations of each grade are. Therefore, there are now many customers that are extremely satisfied with PD 6662 (EN 50131-1) systems which have been installed to a high specification and are now giving the protection that the customer and their insurer requires.