The folks over at Chemical Facility Security News make an important comment on using Google Maps for designing a perimeter security layout.  We certainly agree that walking a site is the best way and only way to understand the nuances of a perimeter’s terrain. Ultimately, a good security design requires a real-world, on-site evaluation. It’s a good point and we thank them for making it.

Even so, SightSurvey is helpful for building good security concepts into a final site design. For instance, it can highlight the need to address the area under the pole — the so-called “dead zone” — which remains a security concern regardless of real-world terrain conditions. This is particularly important for securing large areas, such as chemical storage facilities, refineries, or transportation assets, because as you narrow the camera’s field of view to cover longer distances, the blind spot under the camera grows.

Importantly, each camera in a perimeter layout must address the dead zone of the next camera along the perimeter, and this area only increases as the distance covered by each camera expands.  Consider that a camera twenty feet off the ground using a seven degree field of view may have a blind zone as long as 60 meters.

A modeling tool like SightSurvey — while not a replacement for a real-world evaluation – can still play an important role in making sure that these important design gaps are appropriately addressed.

 Print |  Email