A two year programme to transform security at Heriot-Watt University campuses around the world, facilitated by CriticalArc’s SafeZone technology, has been recognised with one of the UK’s security industry awards.
The partnership between Heriot-Watt and CriticalArc has been named as ‘Security Project of the Year’ in the 2018 Security & Fire Excellence Awards run in association with IFSEC International and Firex International and is sponsored by the British Security Industry Association.
Two years ago, Les Allan, Heriot-Watt’s Director of Safety and Security Services and his team at the university embarked on a strategy to transform all aspects of their operations with the intention to modernise their service across five campuses, in the UK, Dubai and Malaysia. These results have improved service response times by over 50%, upgraded security department capabilities and raised the job status and remuneration for officers involved.
“SafeZone lets my team communicate quickly with individuals and groups,” said Les Allan, Heriot-Watt, Director of Safety and Security Services. “Using it they can receive alerts and pinpoint the location of anyone needing assistance. They can deploy officers more quickly and keep track of ongoing situations as they develop. It’s really letting them do things they couldn’t have dreamed of before.”
The Heriot-Watt team is also using their new technology to support staff and students on campus, whilst travelling and during fieldwork – they can ‘geo-fence’ additional areas as required. Between 1 August 2017 and 31 July 2018, a total of 5,398 security incidents were attended at the Edinburgh Campus (the first to adopt SafeZone); 3,542 of these incidents (66%) involved assisting or interacting with students (rising from 33% in 2013).
“We are delighted at our incredible success at the Security and Fire Excellence Awards as winners of the Security Project of the Year category,” added Allan “This joint award for Heriot-Watt University and our friends at CritcalArc is a testimony to the power of working in partnership for mutual benefit and delivery of excellence with a world leading solution. We are committed to continuing development and enhancement of our partnership with CriticalArc.”
“I’m delighted that the forward-looking partnership between Heriot Watt University and CriticalArc has been so clearly successful,” said Darren Chalmers-Stevens, CriticalArc, Managing Director, EMEA and APAC. “This major award is further proof of how we work closely with all our customers and are leading the way in providing better protection and enabling more efficient, responsive and capable services.”
