Data security for companies is critical: the legal and reputational risks and the harm caused to individuals when it falls into the wrong hands can be significant. Impressed by its global footprint, a data centre company chose G4S to design, install and maintain a security solution for its new site in Oman.
G4S has been active in Oman for over two decades and is a known name in the fire and security sector. Its customers range from banks and hotels to defence and energy companies, and specialises in introducing new technologies. In 2019 a Nasdaq-listed data centre company called on G4S’s expertise to design, install and maintain an integrated security solution for its new site located 65km from the capital city, Muscat.
G4S’s brief was to cover building and perimeter surveillance as well as staff and visitor access control. Crucially, this all needed to be accessible on a single platform for use by the company’s in-house security team.
Sumit Arora, Managing Director of G4S in Oman, said: “We created a state of the art security solution by bringing in multiple products under one single software platform for monitoring and control. This includes different types of cameras like thermal and infrared, as well as gate automation and alarm systems.
The project started with an extensive consultation period with the company on the design of the security solution to make sure it met all their requirements. A key part of this process, and one which was given plenty of consideration, was choosing the right equipment. As Sumit comments: “We have the expertise to choose the right product for each application and make it part of one integrated system.”
Top of the range equipment was sourced from across the world, while Amag Technology, a manufacturing company owned by Allied Universal, supplied the access control and video management systems – the backbone of the integrated security solution.
A dedicated team of engineers and technicians was assigned to the project site to supervise the security installation as the building structure started taking shape. Due to Covid-19 the entire team faced unprecedented challenges. However, with an efficient project management set-up and flexibility from all sides, the security solution was successfully installed.
The data centre is now used by some of the most recognisable tech brands in the world. G4S continues to carry out periodic maintenance checks and also provides 24/7 support to reduce downtime in case of any system faults.
Reflecting on the project, Sumit said: “Our involvement in the project began when the data centre was still a greenfield site, so we really were involved in its whole life cycle. Coordination and project management is key when you’re working on something like this, which involves multiple teams and equipment; but we really enjoy it because it’s very collaborative and is as far away as you can get from being transactional.”
