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RemGuard combats metal attacks

As the theft of metal continues to hit the headlines on a daily basis, with everything from statues to church roofs in the firing line, one company - Oldbury Aluminium Alloys, is fighting back.  This is thanks to the remotely monitored, detector activated, CCTV service provided by RemGuard Visual Management, part of AD Group, and its BS8418 compliant Remote Video Response Centre (RVRC).

West Midlands-based Oldbury Aluminium Alloys is applying this sophisticated event-driven CCTV technology to help protect its Halesowen premises against the dramatic explosion in attacks across the country, as metal of all types are firmly in the sights of opportunists and hardened criminals.

Comments Jonathan Gadsby, Oldbury Aluminium Alloys' Managing Director, "The nature of our business, processing valuable metal, means that we are an attractive target so effective security is of paramount importance."

"Sadly in our local area there is a high theft rate for scrap metal and metal theft of all types is up 112% year-on-year.  Without measures such as remotely monitored CCTV to deter them, in an industrial estate like ours, criminals are more than willing to attempt to climb over a fence onto site and grab specific items - often stealing to order and then selling these on for cash."

The solution in place at Oldbury consists of cameras and detectors placed strategically around the site, linked by specialised transmission equipment to a BS8418 compliant RVRC (Remote Video Response Centre) operated by RemGuard Visual Management.  At the RVRC specially trained operators provide event-driven monitoring of the area.

"The key factors for us at Oldbury Aluminium are both the immediate response by the remotely monitored, detector-activated, CCTV system and, equally, as important, the customer relationship management offered by Kerry Jones (RemGuard's Customer Services Manager) and her team which has consistently delivered a quality service," said Jonathan Gadsby, Oldbury Aluminium Alloys' Managing Director.

According to Mr Gadsby a number of incidents have underlined the value of the remotely monitored CCTV.  "In one case a gang broke into our site during the night by climbing an external fence.  Thankfully two individuals were spotted by operators at the RVRC who alerted the police and one of our key holders."

"The police were then able to bring their dogs onto our site to track down and detain one of the intruders at the scene.  Without prompt action we could have faced considerable losses and disruption to business," said Mr Gadsby.

Said Kerry Jones, Customer Services Manager at RemGuard Visual Management, "Oldbury Aluminium Alloys is an excellent example of the ability of remotely monitored, detector activated, CCTV to make a real impact on the ground in terms of stopping attacks - even in the most challenging of environments such as metal recycling, and also to provide the police with visually confirmed information that can help them to make arrests at the scene."