High level protection for the food and drink industry

Transcription

1 Press UK, 21 st October 2016 Content prepared for Risk UK High level protection for the food and drink industry The farming, food and drink sector plays an important role in the UK and food production is the UK s single largest manufacturing sector. The industry faces particular risks as production is industrialised, which increases the opportunity for tampering, contamination and extremist activity. Nick Burnham, Head of Solution Sales for Siemens Building Technologies UK, examines some of the technologies that can be used to mitigate potential threats to the integrity and safety of our food and drink. Food manufacturing is the UK s single largest manufacturing sector. The food and drink supply chain is a major part of the UK economy, accounting for 7% of GDP, employing 3.7 million people, and generating over 80Bn per year. The average UK household now spends about 9% of its expenditure on food, compared to 16% in 1980s. This puts food and drink producers under pressure to mass produce food at an affordable price that the consumer is willing to pay. The increase in global supply networks and the consequences of malicious or accidental contamination mean that the food and drinks industry has to assess any potential vulnerability, implement controls and know how to respond. Serious threats can come from terrorism and extremism, extortion where demands for excessively high sums of money are made, and industrial espionage leading to theft of intellectual property. Siemens AG Communications Head: Clarissa Haller Wittelsbacherplatz Munich Germany Unrestricted Page 1/6

2 The scale of many manufacturing sites is vast, and safeguarding food authenticity has to encompass many areas of the operation including materials and products, process engineering, premises, distribution networks and business systems. Developing an effective security and safety solution will assist in the delivery of safe, quality products to consumers, ensure a secure environment for employees and visitors, while protecting assets, the business, reputation and brand. Command and Control At the heart of security and safety systems is the centralised Command and Control platform that will mitigate risk of attack, reduce the consequences of a strike and deliver vital information and intelligence at all times. The integration of multiple security and safety sub systems provides situational awareness of the entire plant, particularly vulnerable areas, and enables an effective response to a critical incident, including the proper co-ordination and dispatch of the right resources. Operatives are immediately alerted to any suspicious activity and prompted to take the correct action. The software will automatically set in motion a sequence of preagreed activities to ensure the right procedures are adhered to, as well as distributing essential information to management and relevant parties. State-of-the-art solutions for effective perimeter security detection include longrange video, advanced detection systems and analytics. CCTV and automatic number plate recognition cameras can monitor vehicle entrances, shipping and receiving docks, storage areas, laboratories, processing, manufacturing, packing areas and offices. Smart access control Comprehensive access control will monitor who goes where, and when. Smart card readers located at all entry points ensure only authorised personnel have access to specific areas at particular times via a personalised smart card, particularly in high risk and hazardous areas. Smart cards have the potential to enhance workplace security through the inclusion of authentication for accessing the IT network and applications, digital signature and encryption, biometric data and printer access management. Increasingly, Unrestricted Page 2/6

3 standardised and certified interfaces are being established with Enterprise Resource Planning software systems such as SAP and Human Resources, as well as facilities management. This ability to interface with data sources enables an automated process for identity management, including automatic assignment of access entitlements based on the individual s role and responsibilities. The operational cost savings, increased data consistency and security that can be achieved is significant for this sector. Alarm detection throughout all buildings and the perimeter will alert staff to any potential intrusion via fences, doors, walls and windows. Smart perimeter protection It is not only difficult and expensive to safeguard large perimeters and fence lines of manufacturing plants, but the requirement for costly duct networks, together with the associated power supplies and cabling infrastructure, places significant demands on available resources. A solution to this challenge is the adoption of solar powered perimeter devices that utilise light, not just the sun, as their energy source and will remain powered for up to three months, even in total darkness. Wireless networked solar-powered active infra red beams form a series of interconnected beams, immune to interference and with built-in redundancy. They provide higher sensitivity and reduced false activations as the parallel beam sets are multiplexed to eliminate unwanted alarms. Solar-powered fence mounted perimeter intrusion detection systems will detect all attempts to cut, climb or remove the fence and ignore fence disturbance caused by weather or vehicle movement, with an ability to detect intruders up to a distance of 3 metres. They reduce false alarm activations as detection algorithms are distributed along the complete fence line with an automatic self learning calibration feature. Mobile systems Authorised personnel can now take advantage of instant access to incidents by viewing on smartphones and tablets. To ensure secure connectivity, all communication between the mobile app and server is encrypted. A further advantage is Video Push that allows the user to upload live video from a mobile device directly into the Command and Control system to enable operatives to view the same footage as an authorised mobile user out in the field; GPS positioning automatically documents the location of the pushed video. Unrestricted Page 3/6

4 Risk of fire Reliable fire detection, alarm response and early intervention are essential to protect people and critical assets. The majority of applications are fully protected by conventional fire detectors; however, the manufacturing environment requires an extremely high level of protection that cannot adequately be served by standard technology. Examples would be the storage and manufacture of highly flammable materials and environments that can be subject to airborne dust, debris and dirt such as welding and heavy industrial processes, which can cause false alarms with standard detection systems. These applications require specialist technology such as aspirating smoke detectors as, unlike conventional smoke detectors, they actively draw smoke to the detector through boreholes within a piping system that runs throughout the protected area. This offers a significantly higher level of protection as standard systems can only respond if smoke can actually reach the detection element, which can be too late. Comprehensive voice alarm systems offer high performance and flexibility; they will enable both automatic and live messaging to alert all personnel to any incident. In an emergency, they will assist in phased, orderly and safe evacuation from multilevel and wide area sites. Conclusion It is essential for the food and drink industry to ensure their manufacturing plants and processes are safe, resilient and secured to the highest standard. A key requirement is to automate routine security and fire safety tasks to enable operations to focus on core business activities, whilst protecting facilities with high performance systems based on the latest safety and security technologies. The implementation of any comprehensive risk management policy should involve a multi-layered approach, starting at the perimeter and building to an estate-wide integrated solution, with the objective of deterring and delaying a potential attack. Siemens Command and Control solutions are capable of integrating multiple subsystems such as access control, video surveillance, fire detection and extinguishing, emergency call systems and communications to improve protection, even across multiple sites, manage critical situations and enhancing procedures from one single platform. Unrestricted Page 4/6

5 Siemens itself is a major manufacturer with extensive manufacturing bases across the UK, and has benefited from being able to safeguard these facilities with advanced technology, safe in the knowledge that they are monitored out of hours to ensure 24/7 protection, without investing in additional manpower. Nick Burnham biography Nick Burnham was appointed Head of Sales for Solutions at Siemens Building Technologies in September 2015; his previous role as the Director of the Transformer business for Siemens Energy Management Division means he has a wealth of expertise and knowledge in customer engagement, particularly in working with utilities, critical national infrastructure and industry. Nick is a great fan of both Formula 1 racing and rugby; for him, both sporting activities epitomise the values of Siemens: high performance and strong teamwork. Ends Editor s notes: Siemens Building Technologies is a leading provider of innovative safety, security and energy management solutions with the flexibility to deliver both stand-alone and integrated solutions. We consult, design, install and maintain advanced technology solutions that create a safe and energy efficient environment across our customers business and deliver first-rate protection for people, processes and assets. The product and services portfolio includes value-based case studies across many sectors including: critical infrastructure, transport, utilities, financial, commercial and public sector. For further press information please contact: Morvan PR: Delia Bourne Tel: morvanpr@gmail.com Siemens Building Technologies: Katy Tong Unrestricted Page 5/6

6 Tel: For further information, please see: Follow us on Twitter at: About Siemens Siemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a global technology powerhouse that has stood for engineering excellence, innovation, quality, reliability and internationality for more than 165 years. The company is active in more than 200 countries, focusing on the areas of electrification, automation and digitalization. One of the world s largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is No. 1 in offshore wind turbine construction, a leading supplier of gas and steam turbines for power generation, a major provider of power transmission solutions and a pioneer in infrastructure solutions as well as automation, drive and software solutions for industry. The company is also a leading provider of medical imaging equipment such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging systems and a leader in laboratory diagnostics as well as clinical IT. In fiscal 2015, which ended on September 30, 2015, Siemens generated revenue of 75.6 billion and net income of 7.4 billion. At the end of September 2015, the company had around 348,000 employees worldwide. Further information is available on the Internet at Unrestricted Page 6/6