2004

Cost-effective Security [Irish Construction Industry Magazine]
 

New technologies can deliver cost effective methods of crime prevention and detection for the construction industry.

A recent report "The extent, impact and cost of crime in SMEs in Ireland" contained some very alarming statistics.  It showed that almost one in two businesses (46%) had experienced crime in the past 12 months. Theft by outsiders was reported by 49% of respondents to the survey, burglary by 35%, damage to vehicles by 31% while 16% reported theft by their own staff.

The report estimated the average cost of crime to those businesses affected at 8,230. Interestingly, only 16% of businesses said they had incurred no direct expenses as a result of crime while the remaining 84% still had direct costs to pay despite higher insurance claims.

Perhaps the most disturbing of all the statistics was the affect that almost all of the companies surveyed had some form of crime prevention systems in place.  Eighty-two percent of them had alarms, 42% used alarm response systems, 36% had CCTV systems, and 16% had manned security.

It is not the case that any or all of these systems don't work.  They do work, but to varying degrees of effectiveness and every business has to weigh up the costs of an investment against the results it delivers.  For example, having manned security patrols constantly monitoring a construction site on foot as well as through sophisticated CCTV systems will probably result in an almost watertight system.  But an enormous cost.

On the other hand, an alarm system may work very well in detecting unauthorised entry to a site, but it may not result in the crime being prevented. In 1999 (the most recent available Garda statistics), the Gardaí received 135,000 alarm calls from traditional burglar alarms. A staggering 117,000 of these were false alarms.

Similarly, passive CCTV systems simply record what has already happened.  They do not necessarily work as a preventive measure.  A security guard sitting in front of a battery of TV Screens may or may not notice the intruder in the shadow in one of them and it will probably be the next day when the recordings are analysed that any description of the intruder can be gained for the Gardaí.

However, new technologies have led to the creation of a system, which can deliver all of the advantages of intensive manned security solutions at an extremely low cost. Netwatch incorporates advanced alarm technology with the most modern CCTV techniques to create an intelligent security system which allows the Command Centre to watch in 'real-time' the intrusion taking place at a premises and, more importantly, to speak directly to the criminal before they commit the crime. Knowing that they are being watched and that the Gardaí have been notified is a huge deterrent - in 99% of cases recorded the intruder leaves the premises without committing a crime.

Front its central command centre in Carlow, Netwatch provides extremely cost effective monitoring and control of remote site activity 24 hours a day, reducing the need for on-site guards.  Netwatch enables companies to monitor and manage multiple remotes sites from a single location.  Remote visual monitoring also minimises costly Garda call-outs though the ability to remotely verify and respond to calls.

The Netwatch system differs from standard DDTV systems in some very important respects.  Firstly, it is an event based system.  When an alarm is triggered on a premises live pictures of the area where the security breach has occurred are sent down ISDN lines to the Netwatch command centre.  Secondly, it is a fully interactive system.  The cameras can be controlled remotely to focus on different areas and they are equipped with microphones and speakers allowing the command centre to communicate directly with the intruder to warn them to stop, that the Gardaí are on the way or indeed to alert them to danger.

It also allows for a high degree of liaison with the Gardaí. For example, if the Gardaí inform Netwatch that they have a car in the area the command centre will simply guide them to the exact location of the intruder allowing them to be apprehended "red handed".  If, on the other hand, the Garda response time might be too long Netwatch communicates directly with the intruder to warn them that they are on camera and the Gardaí have been alerted.  In 99% of cases this results in the intruder vacating the premises as fast as possible.

Another advantage of the system is that Gardaí and keyholders know they are only called upon when the activation has been caused by a genuine intruder, and they have the added protection of our Command Centre keeping the criminal under surveillance as they approached the premises.  Finally, it is truly cost effective with a full monitoring service costing as little as €20 per day - not much more than an hour of a security guard's time.