When 'mainstream' isn't enough

Electrified perimeter security systems are growing in popularity, with a number of specialist manufacturers competing energetically to improve their product offerings by making them more flexible and reliable. Today's systems are less prone to false alarms, can be divided into zones, controlled more easily and are simpler and less expensive to maintain. Most importantly, they're proving to be a powerful weapon in the ongoing battle against criminality.

The perimeter, of course, is the first line of defence, and represents the very best opportunity for any organisation to protect itself. Those who neglect security at the perimeter leave themselves more vulnerable to attack further in, and it's here that the risk of damage and/or loss will be much higher.

The basic objective of any perimeter security system is to slow down the progress of would-be intruders and give security personnel and the police time to respond. Wherever they include a detector element linked to local or remote CCTV monitoring, the systems allow total management of the security scenario without risk to security personnel or members of staff. With the additional use of tannoy systems intruders can be warned off, while video recordings may later be used to trap offenders in Court.

That said, the very best modern perimeter defence systems will go even further than this. They actually 'fight back', stopping potential intruders from encroaching any further on private business space. As well as offering highly reliable detection capabilities, the great strength of the latest electrified systems is that they put up an active deterrent in the form of a painful – but totally safe – electric shock.

It's this active feature which is beginning to attract a growing number of security system designers and clients in many different scenarios. These are systems they can use to stop the attack at the boundary before any damage or loss is incurred.

A question of economics?
Electrified perimeters now offer better value for money than many other security solutions. The best of these systems are no longer expensive to install. It's worth end users shopping around because prices can vary a great deal (with older generation equipment being more expensive simply because it's usually harder to install on site... in this market, paying out more money doesn't always buy you a better system).

Those who neglect security at the perimeter leave themselves more vulnerable to attack further in, and it’s here that the risk of damage and/or loss will be much higher

Maintenance costs shouldn't be too high, either (but will again be dependent upon the system you choose). With other forms of security system – from CCTV cameras and lighting through to PIR detectors – involving continual maintenance costs, the simplicity and relative economy of the electrified perimeter is currying favour with end users.

There's a clearly defined set of international standards which determine that correctly installed electrified systems shouldn't cause any injury. The fact that some of them have achieved licenses allowing them to be promoted as Secured By Design "Police Preferred Specification" products has also served to reassure commercial users.

Better technology, new strategies
With electrified perimeter systems becoming more sophisticated and user friendly, security planners are again turning their attentions towards the boundaries of their sites as the place for focusing their investments.

When an intruder alarm system in and around a building is activated, it's usually already too late. The activation is simply a signal that the intruders have succeeded and are at work inside the premises.

CCTV on its own will not keep many intruders at bay either, though it may deter some. Whenever such systems are activated, you need a personnel response of some kind. The effectiveness of the site's security will depend on the quality and speed of that response. Often, control of this response will be in somebody else's hands, and the security manager is then dependent upon the performance of the police or other authorities. Strengthen the perimeter, though, and the security manager will be in charge once again.