National media reports show us that threats are constantly evolving. To meet the challenges of modern times, the technology specified for the installation needs to not only deliver, but be appropriate for use in high risk environments. This is where the CPNI can help security systems installers
CPNI (Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure) is the UK Government’s technical authority for physical and personnel security. CPNI’s role is to protect UK national security in reducing the vulnerability of the UK to a variety of threats such as terrorism, espionage and sabotage working in partnership with government, police, industry and academia.
National Infrastructure are those facilities, systems, sites, information, people, networks and processes, necessary for a country to function and upon which daily life depends. It also includes some functions, sites and organisations which are not critical to the maintenance of essential services, but which need protection due to the potential danger to the public (civil nuclear and chemical sites for example).
In the UK, there are 13 national infrastructure sectors: Chemicals, Civil Nuclear, Communications, Defence, Emergency Services, Energy, Finance, Food, Government, Health, Space, Transport and Water. Several sectors have defined ‘sub-sectors’; Emergency Services for example can be split into Police, Ambulance, Fire Services and Coast Guard.
One of the services offered by CPNI is the publication of the Catalogue of Security Equipment (CSE) which identifies physical security equipment appropriate for use when designing and implementing solutions to protect national infrastructure. The CSE lists security products which have been evaluated against specific security standards and achieved a certain performance rating.
CPNI approval signals to installers, consultants and end users that products have been identified as suitable for use in high risk and challenging environments, and are considered for use in a range of top level Governmental and national infrastructure sites. This not only offers enhanced peace of mind, but ensures systems with strict security requirements can be designed and installed to meet the most stringent demands.
According to CPNI guidelines: “In order to achieve success, an adversary will attempt to identify and then exploit any perceived weakness within your protective security measures. Having an effective, proportionate security solution will mitigate the ease with which an adversary can formulate then carry out an attack plan.” A key element of this approach is to identify unauthorised intrusion within the site perimeter.
Texecom has a range of products which have received CPNI approval and are therefore suitable for Governmental and national infrastructure solutions. These include the Premier Elite 168 and Premier Elite 640 expandable commercial-grade control panels. A range of accredited peripherals are also available, including keypads, expanders and power supplies, to allow the design and installation of quality systems for higher risk applications. In addition, each Premier Elite control panel shares the same programming and user platform, ensuring instant product familiarity across the range.
It is critical that installers designing solutions for Governmental and national infrastructure projects select CPNI-accredited systems, and in many other high risk sites it makes sense to specify products which meet the grade.
