Buyer’s Guide for Commercial Intrusion (Burglar) Alarm Systems: Part 2 Detection Devices

This is the second blog in a series of blogs to provide a comprehensive guide to designing and selecting the intrusion alarm system that is right for your organization. I have tried to keep this as brand generic as possible. This blog will cover the most common type of detectors that are typically used for an intrusion alarm system.

There are many different types of detectors that can be used with an intrusion alarm system. This blog we will concentrate the discussion on the most common type of detectors used with most systems today; door and window contacts, motion detectors, and glassbreaks detectors.


Door and Window Contacts

Recessed Door Contact

These devices are the first line of defense. When protecting your building all the accessible openings should be contacted. There are a number of different manufacturer’s producing contacts. These units are a magnetic contact and when the door or window is opened an alarm is triggered. They produce contacts that are recessed mounted or surface mounted. They make contacts that are designed for monitoring man doors, rollup doors, windows, roof hatches, safe doors, just about any opening you can think of can be contacted. For high security applications they make biased contact switches that are very difficult to defeat.

Rollup Door Contact

Surface Mount Contact

These devices are typically programmed as either a perimeter point or an entry exit point. When programmed as a perimeter point anytime the door or window is opened with the alarm system active an alarm will be generated immediately. When programmed as an entry exit point a delay is provided to allow for entry in or exit out of the door for disarming or arming purposes.

Glassbreak Detectors

When using glassbreak sensors to protect an occupied building it is very important you select a glassbreak detector proven for this application. Not all detectors are equal. The wrong detector will provide ongoing alarm issues.

Glassbreak detectors are used to provide perimeter protection of a building. They detect an intruder the moment glass is broken. These units are designed to sense the breaking of glass and to trigger an alarm condition. For the majority of applications an acoustic glassbreak sensor is what is mostly used today. These sensors listen for the high frequency of breaking glass and trigger an alarm.

ShatterPro II 5812AW

There are two types of units we typically recommend. For quiet spaces we will use an acoustic sensor such as the GE Security / Sentrol 5812AW (ShatterPro II). This unit can be wall or ceiling mounted and provides up to a 25’ radius of detection. This unit can detect through blinds and light drapes.

ShatterPro Plus

For louder areas (break rooms, entry doors, etc.) we will use the GE Security / Sentrol 5885 (ShatterPro Plus) unit. This dual technology unit is equipped with the acoustical glassbreak sensor as well as an infrared detector. It is designed and rated for occupied space. This unit works as an acoustical glassbreak detector except when it senses the interior presence (infrared detector) of a person then it shunts the glassbreak sensor thus avoiding any interior generated alarms.

We have successfully deployed thousands of these units for the Integrated Perimeter Alarm System as I defined it in Part 1 of this discussion.

The glassbreak detectors are typically programmed as a perimeter point; anytime these units sense glass breaking they go into alarm.

Motion Detectors

Choose your motion detector carefully; quality and reliability do matter. A cheap inexpensive passive infrared detector has a greater likelihood of creating false alarms than does a more expensive dual technology detector.

There are two major classes of motion detectors; the passive infrared detector and the dual technology detector.

The passive infrared looks for a change in heat (infrared) within the field of the detector. The dual technology detector looks for motion (microwave) and heat (infrared) both must be present in order to trigger an alarm condition.

Dual Technology
Motion Detector

These detectors are designed for a specific coverage pattern. Make sure the coverage pattern is adequate for the area you are trying to cover. Installing a 35’ x 30’ unit in a warehouse is not going to provide much coverage. Installing a 90’x70’ will provide much better coverage. Keep in mind that the coverage pattern is clear line of site. These units cannot provide the coverage if they are blocked.

These units are typically programmed at interior followers or perimeter points. An interior follow will allow for a delay if an entry exit delay is first present otherwise it goes straight into alarm. The perimeter detector goes straight into alarm.

Next blog we will discuss outdoor and environmental detectors.

Buyer’s Guide for Commercial Intrusion (Burglar) Alarm Systems: Part 1

This is the first of a series of blogs in an effort to provide a comprehensive guide to designing and selecting the intrusion alarm system that is right for your organization. I have tired to keep this as brand generic as possible. This blog will cover the conceptual part of designing your security system.


Intrusion alarm systems are the first line of defense for protecting your business and its assets, followed by an access control system and video surveillance system. The intrusion alarm system is typically the least expensive of these three systems.

The intrusion alarm system is designed to detect an intruder and alert the authorities.

How do you want the alarm system to function?

 

The answer to this question will vary depending on the size of your organization, the size of the facility you are trying to protect, the organization’s culture, operations, and areas of control.

The larger your organization the more likely you are to want this system to be as automated as possible with only a few individuals being responsible for the system.

For small organizations it is easy to assign an alarm code to every individual (or use a common alarm code for all) and train the employees on how to arm and disarm the intrusion alarm system. “First one in disarms the alarm system last one out arms the system.” The larger the organization the less likely the alarm system will be managed in this fashion.

If you have a large facility or if the layout to that facility is segmented this will impact how you want the system to function. The larger the facility or the more complex the layout the less likely an employee getting ready to leave at the end of the day is going to arm the intrusion alarm system. If an employee has to walk a 100,000 square foot facility to make sure no one is in it prior to activating the alarm system it is doubtful your average employee is going to do this; unless they are specifically tasked and responsible for doing this. They may activate the alarm without walking the facility, not realizing someone is still working in their office or they may just not worry about it at all leaving the business unprotected. Likewise if the layout of the building is very complex requiring them to scour the entire building prior to activating the alarm the less likely the alarm is going to be activated.

An organization’s culture plays a role in whether the system will be activated or not. Those organizations that recognize and understand the importance of the security system and making sure it is activated will get this done consistently. If there is accountability for not activating the system then it will get done. If it is viewed as just a good idea and no one enforces a policy of making sure it gets activated then it may or may not get done. I can tell you from personal experience I have seen companies spend thousands of dollars on an intrusion alarm system to not activate it once. This is not an isolated incident; I have seen this occur at several organizations. For these organizations the system is counter to their culture.

How does your organization operate? Do you have a very strict schedule or do employees come and go as dictated by their work load or projects they may be working on? Do you always have someone in the building? With most or our customer’s being located in the Silicon Valley we have seen it all and we have developed and adapted our security systems to provide the best coverage possible based on the different operational needs of our customers. This is some of the knowledge I wish to share with you in this series.

Are there areas of the facility you want to operate independent of each other? Most intrusion alarm systems control the entire building as one area or partition. However, there are applications in which you may want to control specific areas independent of the main building. Some examples are a high value area, cash room, network room, office area, shop, pharmacy, etc. It is possible to control multiple areas independently as separate systems.

 

Big Picture – Types of Systems

Standard Intrusion Alarm System – This system typically consists of keypads at the main entry points of the building for activating and deactivating the system. The alarm system is manually armed and disarmed by entering a code into the keypad. Disarm the system upon first entry; arm the system at the end of the day last one out. The system will consist typically of door contacts, motion detectors, glassbreak sensors, interior sirens and an outside bell.

 

Integrated Alarm System - This type of system integrates the intrusion alarm system with the access control system. This integration can take place several ways depending on the capabilities of the access control system.

•  Integrated Perimeter Alarm System – This type of integration can apply to any access control system. It consists of protecting the perimeter of the building utilizing door contacts and glassbreak detectors. Installing local door alarms at the perimeter access controlled doors; allowing card holders to enter and exit through these doors after hours without having to arm and disarm the alarm system. Programming the alarm panel to automatically arm and disarm based on a schedule and supervising these armings and disarming via the monitoring station.

• S2 Security - Alarm System Integration – This type of integration applies to the S2 Security access control system when integrated with the intrusion alarm system. With this integration the S2 Security system controls the arming and disarming of the alarm system. The system is armed based on a schedule and based on there being no faults on the alarm system. If the alarm system is faulted then the S2 Security system delays the arming for a programmed period of time and will activate the alarm system once the system is normal and ready to arm state. Disarm takes place when the first authorized person presents their access control to gain entry into the building – if the alarm system is armed it will disarm prior to letting the person into the building. 

This concludes the first part of this series. Next blog we will review and discuss the types of detectors that are available for these systems.

 

Dummy Cameras – To Use or Not

Recently one of my customers invited me to look at adding cameras to their existing video surveillance system, a system that we installed about a year ago. The surveillance system monitors key areas of a newly constructed building on their campus. This particular customer has been experiencing problems with thieves breaking into vehicles in their parking lot.

After reviewing the cost to add an additional camera to their system my customer asked if we provided dummy cameras. A dummy camera is a fake camera that looks like a real camera but does not contain any of the electronics and is not connected to the video surveillance system.

My response was this is something we don’t install and I sent the customer a link to an article about dummy cameras. This article highlighted the advantages of such cameras; cost and the deterrent effect of having these units in place. It also revealed the disadvantage; false sense of security and no video images that can be used as evidence.

I echoed the reasoning in the article and advised they consult their attorney before deploying such a system. To my surprise my customer responded that it was the local police department that recommended the deployment of the dummy cameras.

This got me to thinking what is the real issue here? If the police department is recommending the use of these units, perhaps the deterrent value outweighs the possibility of a lawsuit.

I spent several hours researching this topic looking for articles in which lawsuits related to a false sense of security due to a camera (real or fake) being installed. I could not find anything. I reviewed a number of forums asking the same question; site the cases where this has been an issue?

I reviewed the website of a well known attorney specializing in the security systems industry, Ken Kirschenbaum. I could not find an article or case that directly relates to this issue. Almost every article I read says the same thing; don’t install them for fear of the liability associated with this “false sense of security”.

Yet if this fear is so prevalent why are there so many companies selling these cameras? A quick Google search reveals numerous companies willing to sell you a dummy security camera. These devices are really inexpensive. If there were so many suits taking place one would think there wouldn’t be any demand for these types of devices.

My conclusions:

Dummy cameras may be an effective tool for deterring an unsophisticated thief. Most professionals can easily identify a real camera from a fake one. The blinking LED is a sure give away.

Don’t post signage that states for your security, or for your safety, or some other phrasing that may give people the belief the cameras (real or fake) are being constantly monitored.

Consult your attorney for their opinion.

Integrating Your Access Control System with Your Intrusion Alarm System

I often get asked to integrate the alarm system with the access control system such that employees don’t have to arm and disarm the alarm system. They want this to be automated and they want their employees to be able enter and exit the facility as needed with their access control card.

This request can be driven by a number of factors. Sometimes it is the shear size and layout of the facility. If the facility is large or the layout is complex they find their employees unwilling to walk the facility prior to arming the alarm system, thus the employees either don’t activate the alarm system or they activate the alarm system with employees still in the facility.

Sometimes this is driven by the number of employees. The more employees the less likely the alarm system will be activated, unless you task this to a specific group of employees. If your policy is the last one out arm the alarm system; then the larger the organization the less likely this will get done. If your policy is the facilities (security, custodial, etc.) department to arm the alarm system then it is more likely to be accomplished.

The integration of these two systems starts with the system design. Depending on the products we are using we can accomplish this in two different ways.

Perimeter Alarm with Local Door Alarms

This method will work with any access control system. It requires an intrusion alarm system that can be programmed to automatically arm and disarm.

The alarm system is designed with perimeter protection only. All the perimeter doors are contacted and all the perimeter glass is monitored. The system is programmed to automatically arm and disarm based on a provided schedule.

At each of the perimeter access controlled doors we install a local door alarm. This local door alarm ties into the access control system and the intrusion alarm system. This unit allows employees to enter and to exit without triggering the alarm system. After-hours when the alarm system is active your employees can enter with their access control card and freely exit the building even when the alarm system is active.

The local door alarm serves a secondary purpose as well. It alerts employees of door prop open conditions prior to alarm activation. If the access control door is left in an open position the local door alarm will sound a pre-alarm warning. If the door is shut during this pre-alarm then no alarm is generated. However, if the door remains open for an extended period of time then an alarm will be generated at the local door alarm and if the building intrusion alarm system is active this same alarm will be transmitted to the monitoring station.

This is a great solution for companies that may have personnel working all hours of the day or night. We find this solution works well with our high tech customers that may have engineers or software development personnel that tend to work long hours or off hours.

The downside to this type of system is that it is providing only building perimeter protection. If an intruder can get inside your facility without forcing a door open or breaking the glass then they will be undetected.

S2 Security Access Control + Intrusion Alarm System

S2 Security has an innovative interface for integrating the intrusion alarm system with their access control system.

With the S2 Security system the access control system monitors the status of the intrusion alarm system and based on a schedule and the alarm system in a normal condition will activate the alarm system.

This allows for an intrusion alarm system that includes not only door contacts and glassbreak detectors but also interior motion detectors. Providing a greater level of security to the facility; the motion detectors are designed to detect the interior presence of an intruder.

This system does not require the local door alarms, because it is never active when employees are inside the facility, unlike the perimeter alarm system. Based on a schedule and when there a no faults on the alarm system the S2 Security system will arm the intrusion alarm system. Once armed the first authorized employee to present their access control card will disarm the system prior to gaining entry into the facility.