Outdoor Security Systems
The most effective approach to reliable outdoor security is to build a layered system made up of multiple devices such as outdoor
pet-immune sensors, perimeter beams and CCTV. Gerriko Technology Solutions supplies a range of tried-and-tested products that can
be used in a range of outdoor security applications and can all be integrated into other systems, such as CCTV and internal
intruder alarm panels.
Due to the diversity of the outdoor environment, no one system can deliver everything and performance will very depending on
environmental conditions. Thus it is quite common to find design compromises in many components that make up an outdoor security
system. It also takes longer for systems to "settle down" in an outdoor environment and it is not uncommon for sensor settings
to be adjusted over a number of days to reduce initial false alarms and optimise performance.
It is therefore essential to build a system using the right components that takes into account a number of criteria about
your property, namely:
- Is appropriate to the size and nature of your property;
- Takes into account the number of access points, the type of perimeter
surrounding the property and other risk areas outside of the property boundary;
and - Is effective in coping with the mix of foliage, pets, animals, vehicles and humans,
and the amount of general traffic/movement within the property.
All properties, no matter whether they are commercial or residential, generally have 3 common areas, namely:
A PERIMETER -- THE GROUNDS -- AND A BUILDING
The value of an outdoor security solution designed for any of these 3 areas is determined by its particular purpose and the
total lifecycle cost you are prepared to pay to purchase, to install, to operate and to maintain.
The diagram above and the description below explains some of the options available to you. Please feel free to
contact us should you have any queries or if you wish to discuss your requirements with us.
[1] EARLY WARNING SYSTEMS
Early Warning Systems (such as Roboguard) are designed to give advanced warning to the inhabitants of a property
that an intruder has been detected within the remote off-building detection zone. The purpose of an Early Warning System
is to detect trespassers on a property and provide sufficient time to allow the resident to respond proactively. They are
designed to reverse the element of surprise from the intruder to the building occupier / owner.
The ROBOGUARDTM system was originally designed by Trap International CC over 15 years ago as a technical
solution to help farmers in South Africa avoid attack by giving them advanced warning of potential intruders on their property.
Today Roboguard can be found protecting residential properties, small holdings, building yards, caravans, tents,
warehouses, car parks, road/railway construction sites and factories from vandalism, intruders and trespassers.
[2] PERIMETER PROTECTION SYSTEMS
Perimeter protection systems are physical barriers and electronic systems that are erected and installed at the perimeter of a
property to deny or control access to potential intruders. We include human guards under this definition. Examples of perimeter
protection include high walls, electric fences, access control systems such as automatic gates and line-of-site or point-to-point
active beam systems. A driveway alert system would often be derived from an active beam system.
Most of these systems will be complemented with electronics to detect if the system has been compromised. This MAY
indicate intrusion within the property. However, the weak link with any perimeter protection system is the primary access point,
namely the front gate. The most sophisticated perimeter protection system will be compromised if the gate is left open or the
gate is left unlocked. Automatic Gates and/or Manned Security offer a costly solution to this problem. As a rule, active
electronic systems are power hungry and will require mains power which is stepped down to 12V or 24V DC. This can be costly to
install. Hence remote systems, such as Roboguard offer a viable alternative for remote entrances onto a property.
[3] EXTERNAL ALARM SYSTEMS
The original external alarm system was the simple outdoor floodlight attached to a Passive Infrared (PIR) motion sensor. These
were only effective at night when they would flood an area with light if the PIR detected movement. Unfortunately, the technology
was never good enough to ignore pets and small animals or moving foliage. Thus, this simple solution provides limited value during
the day and after time becomes of limited use during the night, as experience has found that most people eventually ignore
these lights due to the high level of false alarms caused by badgers/foxes/pets or are not woken up at all by these
lights due to the thickness of their bedroom curtains.
More recently, external sensors such as the Maximum Guard AV, have been developed which combine dual PIR and microwave technology
to ensure they do not create false alarms. These alarm systems are generally attached to the external walls or a property and are
primarily used to provide protection of the property when the owner was absent. If attached to the building alarm control panel,
these alarm systems would be armed when leaving a premises and would need to be remotely disarmed upon entering the premises.
Thus to be effective these alarm systems require a remote keyfob for remote arming and disarming at a distance. There are a
variety of solutions available for this, including the use of telemetry devices which means you can use you mobile phone to arm
and disarm the alarm system.
[4] SURVEILLANCE (CCTV) SYSTEMS
Surveillance systems, such as CCTV, are primarily intended to provide a visual record of events post hoc, ergo propter hoc (i.e.
after the event). Although many modern systems provide some image processing that can be used to trigger downstream systems, such
as remote monitoring, emails or SMS text messages, their main function is still to record and identify intruders reactively.
Unfortunately the location to record good footage is not necessarily the best location to place the intruder detection sensor.
Hence it is generally recommended that a separate alarm sensor is used to detect the intruder and wireless communication is used
to trigger the CCTV system to record any intruder movement. These systems assume a competent authority, such as an alarm
monitoring company is in place to act upon the information recorded thereby providing a deterrent.
[5] THE SIMPLE SOLUTION
Solutions are dependent upon the problems presented and we would be foolish to say that electronic systems, such as CCTV,
Roboguard, Photoelectric Perimeter Beams, etc. are necessary for all situations. In many cases simple solutions such as good
outdoor lighting, which you can manually control inside will suffice (we do not recommend automated lighting that is not linked to
proper external sensors that can deal with small pets and animals such as foxes). Signage and visual deterrents, such as dummy
CCTV cameras and dummy Roboguard sensors are also useful to get the potential intruder to have second thoughts about the actions
they are about to take. Other responsible actions is to ensure that the property is properly secured when you arrive back to your
premises, as it is a well known fact that a majority of burglaries occur when someone is present within the building.
Not all alarm systems presented above are suitable for or are required to be hooked into your existing alarm panel. In fact, we believe a more effective method is to have a system which gives personal notification that an intruder has been detected. This can
be done either through SMS alerts on your mobile phone or through specialised receivers which are designed for use while you are present in the building.
The best approach to installing an outdoor security system is to design and build a layered system comprising of various
components, as described above. We like to leave it up to the customer to make an informed decision about their own security
needs.
We recommend that you discuss any problems you have with your local An Garda Siochána Crime Prevention unit.
