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The invisible in motion

Billions of rand, from both government and the private sector, will be poured into South Africa’s construction industry over the next three years, as part of a concerted effort to create up to 100 000 much-needed jobs in the course of upgrading the country’s infrastructure.

However, warns Zane Greeff, technical director for Elvey Security Technologies, theft from sites is likely to undermine the success of the various ventures unless adequate security measures are put in place.

“Criminal activity on building sites, particularly those that house steel, copper, cement and other re-sellable commodities, is a massive problem in South Africa,” says Greeff.

An ardent advocate of the use of wireless technology to safeguard sites and materials, he says that while the technology has been around for some time its continuous and astounding development is adding immeasurably to the convenience of life in the 21st century. Technology has become a major influence in the security industry, upping the ante of the intrusion alarm to the point where any site, no matter how architecturally challenging or remote, can be protected against even the most determined criminals, he notes.

Wireless has many advantages over its hard-wired cousins, continues Greeff. “I recently visited an extremely upmarket corporate building that boasted a state-of-the-art wireless security system. Owing to its design, a hard-wired system was not an option, not only from an aesthetic perspective but also because it would not have been able to secure certain areas that would have then been very vulnerable to criminals.”

For example, in a large office park environment some areas are not offered any protection due to the large distance of wiring needed between the control panel and the detector. Wireless technology is revolutionising the traditional alarm system, not least of all because there is no more laying of cables, which was the most tedious process for installers. Now all that is required is placement and programming, which is not only important to installers but also for property owners wanting an aesthetically pleasing end result.

Not only does wireless security technology offer high-level protection for every nook and cranny, but it is just as effective outdoors as it is inside. What is more, only the main control panel needs a power source – all peripheral connections operate on battery power – which means it can be installed just about anywhere on the premises.

In addition, systems such as the Visonic PowerMaster 10, have been designed to use minimum power, which is in accordance with the worldwide move to greening. It is also a huge plus for power-challenged countries such as South Africa, says Greeff, since, through the use of the system’s adaptive transmission power mechanism, every wireless device registered on the panel is continuously measured for communication quality. The panel automatically sets its transmission power to the minimum desired quality between the two, which has the added advantage of extending battery life to up to eight years. And from a health point of view, minimised transmissions translate to cleaner air on site.

Another great advantage of wireless on construction sites is that devices can be moved around to protect newly vulnerable areas as other areas are completed and become inaccessible from the outside.

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