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Technology over manpower benefits remote mine site

When a prominent player in the local mining sector started suffering frequent security breaches at a remote, unmanned fluid pumping site, it found itself incurring not only steep financial losses but also downtimes of 4 to 6 hours per incident. Over and above issues like perimeter, access control breaches and communication failures, cases of violent attacks were occurring and the site’s remoteness from any main arterial road made for slow response times.

The company in question, a multi-faceted global business that suffers from relentless cable theft (and which chose to remain anonymous), approached five companies to tender on a solution to the problem. The winning tender was from RR Electronic Security Solutions (RRESS), and it completed the project – from the initial go-ahead to carry out a risk assessment through all the required processes, through to commissioning a fully functioning system – in six months.

“The previous method of protection was fully reliant on the human factor, which often slept,” explains RRESS’ managing director, Rivash Raghubir. “This resulted in assaults, multiple breaches of the site, and losses to personnel, production and profits. In order to effectively deter, detect, verify, react and ultimately displace any nefarious activity, our client prescribed a three-tier solution employing the exclusive use of technology over manpower. This meant the integration of three separate systems working in unison to keep the site fully operational 24/7/365, ensuring that essential water was distributed without further interruption to all satellite pump stations.”

Electronic patrols

Measures used to protect this site previously were a combination of manned guarding, a panic button and palisade fencing. The client’s expectation was for a high end, industrial quality, early warning surveillance-based system that would automatically alert its control room, and display live footage of the breach as well as pre-and post-event footage. This system would need to operate independently, irrelevant of lighting or atmospheric conditions, whilst avoiding the need to post any security officers whatsoever.

“The client did the initial scope of works,” says Raghubir, “but upon being awarded the project and as part of the final scoping, we discussed options with them pertaining to design effectiveness and integration techniques, and adjusted where necessary. The client’s project manager personally visited the site daily to inspect progress, and our team would communicate with all project stakeholders at least every second day. Our project coordination team would also submit written reports to the client’s project manager at least once a week.”

The installation

As specified by its client, RRESS installed CCTV in the form of nine FC Series and two PT Series FLIR thermal cameras around the perimeter, chosen because of their proven track record in similar applications. Cathexis Level 3 video analytics were deployed for their accuracy, reliability, seamless integration, user friendly setup for optimal performance, and their proven track record in the mining industry.

Gallagher electric fence technology was chosen due to its robust perimeter solutions, coupled with its effective and reliable controller and command centre application “This met the with the client’s main needs,” Raghubir explains. “This physical barrier delivers high levels of reliability, is hard to bypass, reduces false alarms and permits monitoring across multiple sites from a central location. Ultimately our highly qualified and experienced team delivered a successful, fully operational system using our product knowledge, design skills and integration techniques.”

Before any work could commence, however, there were some initial hurdles that had to be overcome. These included reticulation installation to deliver secure and neat cable routes to the field equipment. It was required that this make use of existing infrastructure in the interest of minimising project costs. The electric fencing design also needed to be customised for optimum performance, given the complexity of the perimeter line and the need to adhere to relevant COC standards. Following completion of the project, Raghubir says the only challenge still remaining as a work in progress is the sourcing of a robust, stable, reliable backup power solution that can deliver six hours of UPS backup.

Successful conclusion

With the project commissioned after just six months of intensive work, Raghubir reflects on the outcomes and the lessons learned. “It was stressful but successful – we couldn’t ask for more as all goals were achieved. In future, we will create a solid concrete zone inside the perimeter’s ‘no man’s land’, covering the grass. It is important that the initial planning of a project be scrutinised regularly once work has commenced, with all changes readily updated. We found it is vital that technicians be issued with an abundance of consumables, connectors and sundries to allow maximum continuity, negating the need to leave site.

“In the end, we achieved zero loss of production, zero theft, a 500% return on investment, and a site that now runs 24/7 without manned guarding. Even more importantly, our client is delighted about having chosen us for the project, and we look forward to working with them on further projects in the future,” he concludes.

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