The world's ports have become highly skilled in transporting people and materials around the world swiftly and effectively. Unfortunately, today's challenge is to ensure that people or terrorist hardware are not smuggled into the system and transported equally quickly and efficiently. Global security demands global solutions, which is why ports around the world are extending their security to comply with new international safeguards.
Background
The September 2001 attacks on New York's Twin Towers led the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to set new, more stringent standards for port security. The result, known as the International Code for the Security of Ships and of Port Facilities (ISPS), encourages ports to monitor and control the movements of their employees and visitors more rigorously in order to deter both terrorists and smugglers.
Antwerp is Europe's second biggest port. Of all the North Sea ports, it is the most centrally positioned with regard to Europe's largest centres of production and consumption, and it is famous for its high productivity in cargo handling and for the quality of the services it provides. In the first quarter of 2005 alone Antwerp handled nearly 40 million tonnes of freight and served nearly 4,000 ships.
To comply with the IMO's new security code, the biggest operator at Antwerp, Hesse-Noord Natie (HNN), brought in leading Belgium-based systems integrator Fabricom GTI to integrate the first phase of the installation
HNN, owned by PSA, a leading global port operator based in Singapore, is one of the leading container and ro/ro ("roll on, roll off") terminal operators in Europe, with 22 terminals in Antwerp, Zeebrugge and Rotterdam.
Fabricom GTI, the leading Belgian based system integrator, specialises in total security solutions, integrating every aspect of security from perimeter security and video surveillance to detecting and extinguishing fires. Fabricom GTI responded very quickly to the request from HNN to assist in compliance with the IMO code.
Making the choice
For the crucial access control equipment, Fabricom GTI turned to Siemens Building Technologies Security Products, a European leader in the field of access security, and one of the company's oldest and most trusted partners. Indeed, the partnering is not just technical, but strategic. For the Antwerp Port project, SBT worked closely with Fabricom GTI to help support the strategically important security tender - important because the project required delivery and installation at short notice and also has the future potential to significantly increase in size.
"Once just a supplier, Bewator quickly became a true strategic partner," explained Emile Peeters, Department Manager at Infra Buildings Security, Fabricom GTI's infrastructure arm.
"Whenever we need Bewator, they are always there. Their reliability is second to none, from the moment when we call them in to help us draft a tender, to the day we sign off on a systems delivery. That is why we return to them again and again - that, and their excellent technological skills."
The Challenge
SBT's flexibility is illustrated twice over by the HNN project. Firstly, the company responded swiftly and positively to Fabricom GTI when asked to help support the tender and then again to deliver initial equipment at very short notice.
Bewator's Granta hardware, together with the Icaros software developed by Fabricom GTI also demonstrates flexibility within the project itself. The Antwerp Port Authority adopted smart card technology based on RFID (radio frequency identification), and supplied the smart cards. The flexible quality of the Granta control system means that it is readily able to integrate effectively with the Port's chosen card technology.
The combination of the Granta system with Icaros is also remarkably cost-effective. In the first phase of the Antwerp project, 50 controllers will support up to 200 doors. But the system is uniquely expandable. For instance, not far from Antwerp, at Brussels Airport, around 250 Granta controllers are each responsible for up to eight doors.
Modularity and flexibility
The Bewator Granta system was developed to be highly reliable, as well as easy to install, use and maintain - crucial elements in providing total security for high traffic environments such as a busy European port.
Its modular hardware and software structure means that Bewator Granta users can configure the system according to their current needs, safe in the knowledge that they can expand the system at a later date, adding additional modules and controllers as businesses or security requirements change or grow.
John Thacker, Bewator's Vice President, Technology, said; "The Antwerp Port security contract illustrates a number of Bewator's competencies. We can be very responsive in supporting a senior partner such as Fabricom GTI, and the flexibility offered by the Bewator Granta system can be used to meet the requirements of the most demanding applications. The core technology has proven over time to be both robust and reliable."
Where less sophisticated access control systems simply read tags and unlock access points, Bewator's Granta system provides an integrated INPUT/OUTPUT system, CLIC (Configurable Logical I/O Control), fully integrated into Icaros. CLIC allows complex Inputs / Output events to be readily programmed in order monitor and control other systems required within the overall solution.
The Bewator Granta modular concept, applying to both hardware and software, is completely "forwards compatible". Users can scale-up their security systems as required, adding readers and controllers to increase the system size. Additional access security elements such as CCTV cameras and Digital Video Recorders (DVRs) can be installed and still be controlled from the Bewator Granta software.
