Six CNI utilities sites across South West England and Wales have been secured from terrorist attacks and ongoing criminal threats in a £3.25 million security project. Gas distributor Wales & West Utilities appointed principal contractor Chubb Systems and Littlewood Fencing to work collaboratively on a fully-integrated perimeter protection upgrade.
Littlewood secured the perimeter with a Lochrin Bain ‘Combi’ CPNI Approved palisade fence system enhanced with Gallagher monitored pulse fencing (MPF) to 4m high. They also installed Crime & Fire Defence Systems MAP vault panels, CCTV towers, security and field marshalling kiosks along with associated concrete and civil works.
Littlewood Security Division manager David Jackson said: “We’ve worked with Wales & West for many years as the incumbent supply and installation partner for perimeter security systems, but this latest project with Chubb also included the integration of access control, CCTV cameras, reporting systems and networks that enable remote monitoring from a central control station.”
In total, more than 2500m of fencing were installed along with twelve CPNI BASE vehicle gates and six Crime & Fire MAP vaults. With a number of sites located on the Brecon Beacons, access issues and inclement weather conditions made collaborative project management essential. A large element of the package involved civil works that had to be completed mainly by hand. This was achieved with a strong emphasis on health & safety ahead of programme and to a high standard.
Gallagher business development manager Jason Hunter said: “A Gallagher MPF delivers safe and controlled, energised pulses. If seeing the fence and warning signs isn’t enough of a deterrent then receiving a short sharp shock should definitely deter. “The system is also connected to our Command Centre, which will alert the security team that there has been a breach so they can react quickly and effectively.”
Wales & West Utilities security manager Ian Raclette said: “Gallagher’s MPF meets the CPNI criteria we demanded and helps us to detect criminal or terrorist activity in real time, reducing further any threat on these strategically important sites.” Wales & West Utilities covers a sixth of the UK, serving a population of 7.5 million.
