Synthomer is a chemical company with headquarters in London, U.K. The corporation is one of the leading suppliers of water-based polymer solutions worldwide. With a presence spanning the globe, the company has an extensive portfolio of chemical products.

There was one pressing issue for the company, though. Synthomer’s operational centre in Sokolov, Czech Republic, had significant security risks to address. When new management was brought in, it recognised the risk of potential attacks on the location. There was a high level of weakness in the existing security system that posed a large risk. Any chemical site holds a specific risk of terrorist attacks, and the results would be devastating for Synthomer.

At the time, Synthomer also experienced many unauthorised entries, a lack of control over the area, and material losses. The monitoring of traffic in and out of the centre was not optimal, which posed additional risks to the location. Addressing this would need to be one of the top priorities. Synthomer brought these challenges to several security companies, and in the end, G4S was chosen to address these challenges because it provided the best proposed solution.

The Goals

The primary goal was to heighten all-around security at the Sokolov operations centre. Due to the high level of risk, this required a large overhaul of the existing security solution. In the end, the risk of specific targeted attacks would need to be mitigated above all else.

In addition, better management of visitors entering the facilities was needed. The number of unauthorised entries was a concern in addition to the loss of materials. This would add the goal of more closely monitoring every person entering and leaving the facilities. Finally, G4S would need to provide this service at a price that works for Synthomer’s budget. With a high stakes security situation such as this, the safety of the site was, of course, objective No. 1, but the budget was a factor as well.

The Solution

With specific goals in mind, G4S used a Risk-Based Approach to identify the security threats at Synthomer’s Sokolov location. Due to the high-risk nature of the security weaknesses, there were many components to the integrated solution put in place. This would be a combination of guarding and several different security technology solutions. Some of the key implementations included:

• Risk Consulting and the G4S Academy – In order to identify the specific areas for deployment of optimal security solutions, G4S used a Risk-Based Approach. This would prove to be a pivotal long-term strategy.
• Manned Security – Technology plays a crucial role in the integrated security solution G4S implemented, but manned security was also required in specific areas.
• VSS/CCTV – A video surveillance system and closed-circuit TV system were implemented for complete visual coverage of the facilities.
• LPR – A license plate reader (LPR) was put in place to solve the issue of visitor monitoring and preventing unauthorised access to the centre.
• Mechanical Barriers – Barriers were put in place to filter all incoming traffic through specific entrances.
• Visitor Management – In addition to the LPR, a guarded visitor kiosk was installed to closely monitor anyone entering or leaving the facilities.

These solutions were promptly put into action, and the results were immediately clear.

The Results

The G4S integrated solution proved to be a tremendous improvement in overall security. The risk of attacks was mitigated with the reorganisation of security guards, in addition to the technology-based solutions.

Detection of individuals was drastically improved due to the video analytic functions of the surveillance systems. This greatly reduced risks and unauthorised access to the facilities. The improved systems placed a high emphasis on preventative measures to identify risks early.

The solution was so successful that G4S still maintains an ongoing contract with Synthomer with no end date in sight. The G4S Risk Assessment is a large part of the solution, and this will continue to be put into action to determine when security updates are needed. To date, a strong partnership between Synthomer and G4S has existed for more than 15 years.