Utility Week - authoritative, impartial and essential reading for senior people within utilities, regulators and government
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utILItY WeeK | 29th August - 4th september 2014 | 25 Operations & Assets Market view T he security manager of an electric- ity or water utility is usually based at their company headquarters in one particular town or city. But they will be responsible for managing security systems across hundreds of miles of the energy grid and protecting a group of generators and substations spread across large parts of the country. These sites are oen remote, with wide perimeters, and occasionally they are difficult to reach and access, making them vulnerable to attack. Employing a security guard around the clock to protect each part of the network is costly and in most cases not feasible. The costs the utilities sector millions of pounds every year. Metal – particularly cop- per – commands a high price on the black market, making it an attractive commodity for thieves and utilities are currently invest- ing heavily in public awareness campaigns designed to engage the public in stamping out this activity. Last year Scottish Power offered a £10,000 reward to anyone able to provide information that led to a metal the convic- tion. Thames Water has previously put the cost of replacing stolen connections, cables and fittings at £1.2 million. Then there is vandalism. Mindless and wanton destruction of power cabling, elec- tricity substations and other outlying parts of the grid is – unfortunately – a reality of life. However, governments are applying heavy pressure on utilities to protect them- selves against vandalism to avoid disrupting services vital to the public. UK regulation forces utilities to pay fines if supply dis- ruption takes place that was "reasonably preventable". The financial cost can hurt the bottom line and the reputational damage can – par- ticularly in liberalised energy markets – increase switching rates and customer churn. It is no wonder the issue of security is slowly making its way on to the boardroom table. In December last year over 37,000 homes in London were le without broadband access aer thieves lied a manhole cover and stole a large quantity of copper cable. In today's digital era, an incident of this magnitude can be a disaster for the telecoms operator and its customers, particularly for those businesses that depend on the inter- net to manage their operations. Despite the high investments in infrastructure made by the telecoms operator to restore the service aer the disruption and the compensation fees for customers, its reputational damage among existing and potential customers was substantial. So how can security directors at utility companies keep all isolated areas protected, during the day and at night, without spend- ing huge amounts of money? A potential solution is integrated security technology. A com- bined access control, alarm monitoring and video surveillance system helps security managers control an enterprise-wide security system from a central location while main- taining local autonomy. Integrated technology is especially useful for utilities that need to ensure people, valu- able equipment and facilities are safe against events that prevent a plant from operating at full capacity. Video analytics and cloud-based tech- nologies used to monitor plants, substations, generators or any other facilities situated in distant locations can also save time and resources. Compared with conventional motion detection, video analytics technol- ogy is useful in scenarios where the security team is not physically present because it is able to anticipate behaviour that might lead to the: a group of individuals loitering in an area, people climbing a fence, or the unau- thorised flow of vehicles into restricted areas. Data retrieved by video analytics solu- tions helps security managers take real- time, informed decisions to allocate security resources appropriately. By analysing CCTV images and individu- als' behaviour based on certain patterns, security teams can assess the scale and grav- ity of an incident without sending a security guard to the site, reducing time-consuming site visits and minimising business disrup- tion and inconvenience. An example might be judging whether an individual is trying to break into a building, or if one of their pos- sessions – a hat or a scarf, say – blew off and landed near the utility's property. Cloud video and access control solutions can be easily deployed via network technol- ogy and are ideally positioned to contribute to cost-effective and easy-to-manage remote security solutions. Only the necessary hard- ware needs to be installed on-site at remote locations. These remote loca- tions are secured by a monitoring station, which has access via central servers. The utility sector is one of the most regu- lated industries globally, and the risks of failing to comply with legislation are grave. Moreover, recent government initiatives focused on critical infrastructure protection have added a further burden to electricity, water and telecoms companies. Again, there are tools available to ease the yoke of regulation. Security systems that automatically generate reports to meet the demands of Sarbanes Oxley and other regu- lations can remove the need for managers to constantly audit and reassess the company's compliance in the security arena. These solutions are also capable of quickly accessing relevant data and deliv- ering compliance reports at the push of a button. In addition, partnering with trusted manufacturers with a reputation for quality is an important part of guaranteeing compli- ance with security standards and guidelines. By investing in integrated video analytics and cloud-based security systems, utilities can simplify the management of a wider net- work of plants, distribution systems, substa- tions and offices. Daniel Wan, UK channel marketing man- ager, Honeywell Security Feeling secure? Failing to maintain security can cost utilities a lot of money and smash reputations. Technology can help to protect productivity, profile and profits, says Daniel Wan. "The financial cost can really hurt a company's bottom line and the reputational issues can – particularly in liberalised energy markets – increase switching rates"