UK Test & Demonstration Facility Showcases Sensor Dependability & Integration Capabilities

It is nearly impossible to imagine that nestled in the quiet serenity of England's picturesque Cotswolds region, peacefully coexisting with herds of grazing deer, is an elaborate security proving ground where sophisticated perimeter intrusion detection systems are being put to the test.

Keeping unauthorized intruders out is serious business for Arizona-based Southwest Microwave, Inc. (SMI), an industry-leading manufacturer of outdoor perimeter security systems. Sensors from Southwest Microwave have fortified the world's highest security sites since 1971, and are installed across broad ranging applications, often in harsh climatic extremes.

Ensuring the reliability of these systems is critical, a mission that the company's wholly-owned European subsidiary - Southwest Microwave Ltd. (SML) - fulfills on a daily basis at its internationally-acclaimed, 900-square-meter Test and Demonstration Facility in Eckington, Worcestershire, UK.

Constructed to British and European Standards
Built in 2002 on what was once a debris-laden plot bordering the firm's offices, the site went through a stunning transformation to become a shining example of industry best practices. This is due in large part to the project development efforts of Tony Backx, Southwest Microwave’s European General Manager.

“Building the UK Test and Demonstration Facility was no simple undertaking, especially given the challenging terrain and rural location of the facility,” Backx explains.

“Soil had to be brought in by the truckload and graded. A special PVC membrane was then added against weeds and covered with vast quantities of imported gravel. The weeds returned almost immediately, and the site has required monthly preventative treatment ever since.”

Backx explains how cable ducts were put in end to end, concrete for a camera tower was poured and power distribution poles and boxes were installed. Fences were erected prior to adding the final layer of gravel, with each post mounted in solid concrete.

“The pigeons liked the razor coil best”, he recalls. “When it first went in, they built nests and laid eggs. Safe as houses in there.”

Safety is the name of the game at Southwest Microwave's Test and Demonstration Facility, which meets both British and European Standards. Fence construction is in compliance with BS1722 Parts 10 and 12, and includes chain link, 50x50 mm and 358 weld mesh and steel palisade.

Barbed wire, razor coil and catenary wire topping structures line the fences. This diverse configuration demonstrates the range of European fencing options and offers visitors a first hand look at the consistency of detection achieved with Southwest Microwave's revolutionary INTREPID™ MicroPoint™ Cable cut/climb attack sensor across varying fence conditions.

Round The Clock Monitoring
Along with the MicroPoint™ Cable system, many of Southwest Microwave's other detection systems are put to task at the site, including various bi-static microwave sensors, passive and active infrared barriers, dual technology sensors, and the latest addition to the INTREPID™ family of products - the MicroTrack™ covert buried cable sensor.

The facility also features CCTV cameras and a fully-equipped weather station, complete with wind analysis tools and precipitation collectors.

“One of our key objectives is to offer European end users, specifiers, consultants, systems integrators and installers the opportunity to observe Southwest Microwave's leading-edge perimeter detection systems installed and operational in a real world environment,” explains Backx.

“There is no other facility in the UK or Europe with such a wide range of equipment, meeting government standards, that demonstrates how perimeter security equipment would operate if it were installed at an actual site.”

Each detection device is integrated into PC-based monitoring and control systems, which interface to onsite CCTV equipment for instantaneous evaluation of an alarm at the precise location where it occurs. Infrared lighting and video recording devices ensure that alarm activity and climatic data are captured on a 24/7 basis and stored for later analysis.

“We want to know the cause of every alarm that occurs at this site. Day or night,” Backx says. “With 24-hour event monitoring and audit trailing, our personnel can call up alarm history and illustrate to visitors how our sensors react during specific weather conditions, which are often a concern.”

In fact, the test range was intentionally sited North/South to illustrate just how effectively the INTREPID™ fence sensor eliminates weather-related nuisance alarms. Southwesterly winds are the region's strongest, coming up from the Atlantic through the Bristol Channel. Winds like these will cause a traditional fence sensor to go into alarm. Southwest Microwave's “intelligent” fence sensor can differentiate between a point impact, such as a cut or climb attack, and a distributed disturbance, like wind or heavy rain. Visitors see first hand how the INTREPID™ system will alarm only for legitimate intrusion attempts.

“Seeing how successfully the equipment operates here gives our visitors confidence that it will perform reliably back at their facility.”

Since it was first commissioned, the UK Test and Demonstration Facility has played host to officials from the US and UK Government and Military, the UK Police Forces and the British Airport Authority. Representatives from many other high risk organizations in the transportation, utilities, corrections, industrial and commercial sectors have also visited the site.

Comprehensive On-Site Resources
Southwest Microwave Ltd. has a broad portfolio of onsite services to complement the Test and Demonstration Facility. The company's Deer Park offices are staffed with experienced applications engineers, sales consultants and technical service personnel who can provide system design recommendations, detailed project quotations, system commissioning services and technical support.

Quarterly, onsite hands-on training and product certification for new users of INTREPID™ system products are also offered.