Trespassers broke into an industrial site in east London seeking to set up an unauthorised encampment. They faced a bright orange CCTV unit on a four-legged stand, blaring out audio and visual warnings. That was the V-Pod self-powered CCTV system, for use at void properties, on hire from Prime Secure, a Security Industry Authority (SIA) Approved Contractor and long-standing member of Secured by Design (SBD). The V-Pod, which is accredited by SBD, detected the intrusion and began broadcasting its warnings into the night.
Prime Secure’s monitoring station was alerted and a SIA-badged officer was sent to the scene as part of the company’s key-holding and alarm response service. Meanwhile local police were also contacted. As Prime Secure have police priority response status, a local police sergeant and other police officers arrived promptly before the trespassers with their caravans had the opportunity to make camp and potentially secure their position, which would have made it harder to evict them.
Less than four hours after the alert was raised by the V-Pod, the trespassers, their vehicles and their caravans were being escorted by police away from the site. Robert Dempster, of Prime Secure, said: “This is a great example of a Secured by Design accredited V-Pod working in tandem with Prime Secure’s Police Priority Response to ensure a swift resolution to the intrusion.
“Not only did the prompt action of Prime Secure and the local police prevent the situation from becoming more serious, but also it will make the perpetrators think twice when they target a property protected by a Prime Secure V-Pod.”
The V-Pod’s cameras and audio are contained in an orange box that stands just over five feet high on four supporting legs. Its colour cameras are battery powered and have a two-year battery life as it only records once triggered – when it provides visual and audio alerts to deter intruders.
Prime Secure supplies CCTV and guarding services for front of house security and access management besides more conventional security deployments for construction, corporate and property void sectors.
The company runs a fund-raising scheme called The Fiver Initiative, which gives customers using its CCTV towers and pods the option to donate an extra £5 a week to charities during hire periods in the areas where their equipment is being used. So far, nearly £30,000 has been raised for worthy causes from soup kitchens to local sports teams.
SBD Technical Manager, Alfie Hosker, said: “This is a brilliant example of how quality security products can provide an alert to prevent crime and stop incidents becoming far more serious and far more expensive to deal with. We congratulate Prime Secure on this excellent result and look forward to receiving more case studies about how they are working with police to deter and reduce crime.”
Visit www.prime-secure.co.uk.
