Best Security Products blog

According to the Fire Prevention Bureau, arson is the leading cause of workplace fires.¹  This means if you own or manage a business, you are at risk for being the victim of arson.

What is arson?

Wikipedia defines arson as “the crime of intentionally and maliciously setting fire to buildings, wildland areas, dumpsters, vehicles or other property with the intent to cause damage.”²

Because arson is the main cause of fires in the workplace, setting up precautions against arson should be a high priority in protecting not only the building itself, but also employees, customers and tenants.

How to protect your business from arson

Protecting your business from arson involves two strategy stages:

1.  Early detection of the arsonist
Your first line of defense against arson is to detect the arsonist as soon as he nears your building.  This can be done with outdoor perimeter protection.  Smart technology can alert you of the arsonist’s presence.  Motion detectors, video cameras, security fences equipped with vibration sensors and glass break sensors will let you know that someone is threatening the premises.

Once you are aware of the criminal’s presence, you or your monitoring service can alert local authorities and help can be sent immediately.

You also have the option of alerting the arsonist that his presence has been detected.  Using automatic security lights, sirens and even voice recordings to let the arsonist know he has triggered an intelligent security system might scare him off before he can do damage to your building.

2.  Rapid detection of the fire

If the arsonist does start a fire at your business, you need to know as soon as possible. And this is true whether a fire starts from arson or from another cause. The sooner you know that a fire has started, the sooner the fire can be contained with as little damage to your property as possible.

Make sure your business has top-quality smoke detectors, heat detectors and an addressable fire system.  And addressable system ensures that once a fire starts, your system can tell you exactly where the fire is located so it can be contained quickly and efficiently.

At Best Security Products, we specialize in Honeywell fire systems and can help you protect yourself against arson. Give us a call or email us at 1-800–988–2378 sales@bestsecurityproducts.com.  

^{1 http://www.poudre-fire.org/home/showdocument?id=86
2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arson}

According to this story in the Boston Globe, 4 people died in a Maine cabin recently.  They were celebrating a birthday and a high school graduation.

Evidently, the generator had been powered up and left to run in the basement of the cabin where the friends were staying.  The cabin has no electricity, so the generator was the power source. Even though the only safe place to run a generator is outdoors, there was nothing to suggest that the friends had taken the time to move it outside, and instead turned it on inside the cabin.

Authorities believe the generator had run until the gas ran out.  When the friends were found, they had evidently been dead for several days.  A dog died in the cabin as well.

Each year, approximately 4,000 people die from carbon monoxide poisoning in the United States.  The tragedy lies in the fact that death from carbon monoxide is so easy to prevent.  Simply installing a carbon monoxide detector is the solution.

The Honeywell Wireless Carbon Monoxide Detector is a smart way to keep yourself, your family and your pets safe from carbon monoxide poisoning.  Here are some features of this high quality detector:

Electrochemical Sensing Technology - Electrochemical detectors are the newest, most refined CO detectors available and provide the most accurate measurement of CO concentration obtainable. They can take readings from low levels that may be hazardous over long periods of time to high concentrations that present an immediate danger.

Local Sounder - A built-in piezoelectric horn generates the ANSI S3.41 temporal 4 pattern in an alarm condition. The local sounder will also alert the end-user of other conditions such as low battery, detector trouble and end-of-life.

LED Status Indicators - Dual LEDs provide local visual indication of the detector’s status–including normal operation, alarm, low battery, trouble and end-of-life.

End of Life Timer - When the detector has reached the end of its life, the detector will send a trouble signal to the panel. This indicates that the CO sensor inside the detector has passed the end of its life and the detector needs to be replaced. The detector’s lifespan is approximately six years from the date of manufacture.

Full Supervision - The 5800CO is fully supervised to monitor for low battery, case tamper and trouble conditions.

Test/Hush Button - This dual purpose button allows the end-user to perform periodic testing of the detector. In the event of a CO alarm, this button will silence the local sounder alarm for a five minute period. Note: the Hush feature will not operate at levels above 350 ppm (parts per million) carbon monoxide.

Versatile Mounting - Whether you choose to affix the detector to the ceiling or a wall, mounting is made simple with the enclosed hardware. The mounting base has large mounting ports, which accommodate drywall anchors for easy surface mounting.

Tamper Protection and Tamper Resistant Element - The detector has a built-in tamper switch that can communicate back to the control panel in the event it is removed from the base. For an added level of security, the detector also includes a tamper resistant element that prevents removal from the base without the use of a tool.

At Best Security Products, we specialize in commercial fire systems for your business or industry.  Contact us at 1-800–988–2378 or sales@bestsecurityproducts.com

Sources:
https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/07/18/die-apparent-carbon-monoxide-poisoning/x8FkfvL1ucqukiathGrnSP/story.html#
http://www.security.honeywell.com/hsc/products/intruder-detection-systems/life-safety/wireless-carbon-monoxide-detector/242073.html

(Source:  http://www.security.honeywell.com/documents/L_AHACS_D.pdf)

Since 1948, the Albany Housing Authority (AHA) has been providing good housing in safe neighborhoods across Albany, NY. The agency owns and operates 1,800 public housing units and administers an ongoing public housing rehabilitation program averaging $2.5 million annually.

The Situation:

One of the chief concerns for the AHA is vandalism and the cost that it brings to operations. “Number one, it creates a negative image of the property and number two, it costs money to remove it,” explains Steven Longo, executive director of the AHA.

The Solution:

Since their properties are spread all over the city with about thirteen locations, the AHA
wanted a single, unified platform. To meet these concerns, FES designed a security
solution that deployed Honeywell fixed cameras, PTZs and Performance Series DVRs.

With this powerful combination, they were able to provide AHA with sufficient and
adequate coverage of the areas that they wanted to protect, and tie that back into their
central offices in order to watch all their properties at one time.

The software is Internet-based so that we can watch it from our homes if we’re so
inclined. And certainly the police are able to see the properties at any given time if an alarm comes in. That’s been very useful so that when they’re coming to the scene, if it was vandalism, then they know where to go and exactly what was going on. It’s that
intelligence on the ground, that has given us an advantage,” explains Longo.

The Benefits:

“I think the installation of cameras has been a big help in either dissuading those who
are going to deface our property from doing it in the first place or, if they do, it certainly is a tremendous aid in apprehending them,” explains Longo. In addition to improving security, the new video solution has additional advantages. Jay Cunningham, AHA’s director of security operations explains. “We use the video surveillance not just for criminal conduct, but also for supervisory capabilities. In the winter, for example, the director of maintenance doesn’t have to leave his office to see if they’re plowing the snow. Now, he can check it through the camera system. We’re looking at the holistic approach and there’s more to it than the reduction of crime.

As a result of the new installation, the residents and staff are much more secure. “I
believe that the properties Albany Housing has are safer today with a good security
solution. It’s not just the product; it’s awareness. When the tenants know there are cameras and would-be criminals know that the properties are also protected, it really does make an impact and effect on the lives and the living environment of the tenants,” concludes Tim Collins, director of electronic safety and security, FES Installation.

At Best Security Products, we specialize in Honeywell technology.  Give us a call or email us at 1-800–988–2378 sales@bestsecurityproducts.com