Security For William Wallace

Our manufacturing and operations base is located in Stirling, Central Scotland. It is an area with a fascinating and colourful history and receives many visitors every year, particularly because of 2 famous, local features:

Stirling Castle
Set high up on volcanic rock, Stirling castle occupies one of the most magnificent settings in all of Scotland and overlooks both Stirling Bridge where William Wallace defeated the English in 1297 and Bannockburn where Robert the Bruce gained a similar victory in 1314.

The William Wallace Monument
Just a few miles from Stirling Castle across the River Forth, the Wallace Monument was built as a memorial to one of Scotland's greatest, national heroes: William Wallace.

There was a dramatic increase in visitors to Stirling following the success of the 'Braveheart' film starring Mel Gibson. People from all over the world were keen to find out more about William Wallace - indeed, inside the Monument is Wallace's own, huge broadsword, a must for 'Braveheart' fans to see for themselves.

The number of visitors to the site grew to such an extent that it was decided that the Monument should be floodlit at night, enabling it to be seen for miles around. The only problem was the the bulbs used for this special lighting were unusual, powerful and very expensive and it was not long before they were stolen. This was when Advanced Perimeter Systems was asked to help with the provision of a security system that would protect the bulbs from further theft.

We were privileged to have the opportunity, not just because it was a famous, historical monument but because it was local to us and we know only too well the value of the Wallace Monument to the local people and the people of Scotland as a whole. Thankfully, since the installation of one of our perimeter security systems, the floodlights have not been under threat and the monument can be readily seen illuminating the skyline at night for miles around.

Parrot Perimeter Security at Edinburgh Zoo

One of the more unusual security problems we were asked to solve was when, some years ago, Edinburgh Zoo had a serious problem with intruders stealing their rare parrots, worth thousands of pounds. The Zoo contacted a security company in Edinburgh and they in turn came to us as we are well known for our expertise in high level perimeter security installations.

We knew our Flexiguard perimeter security system was probably the answer but we were told there might be a problem - these parrots loved chewing through things! This meant that if we installed the sensor cabling in the standard way, it was probably going to prove a tempting challenge for the parrots and therefore would not last very long!

So we gave the matter some thought and had further discussions with the Zoo. Amongst our questions was what the parrots could not chew through! Bingo ... we came up with the solution: stainless steel. So to protect the sensor cable from being damaged by the parrots we encased it in a special stainless steel tubing. Using this tubing, we were able to attach the cable around the sides and over the top of the parrots' cages and their security was complete.

Read more of our security case studies

Solar Power Electric Fencing

Solar power is used more extensively than ever before but not many people realise that it can be used very effectively to power perimeter security systems. Situations where this is a necessity and the only real security solution include border controls in remote areas, wildlife protection in game reserves and equipment protection for industrial operations working in remote locations.

How does it work? Bascially, during the day solar panels power the equipment directly and at night the equipment is powered by battery, previously charged by sunlight. Advanced Perimeter Systems Ltd can supply both the electric fencing and the solar power system.

We had an interesting case study involving solar power a few years ago when English China Clay asked us to provide perimeter security for explosives stores in a quarry located in a remote area of Cornwall, SW England. We rose to the task and provided an effective perimeter protection which was solar powered, thus saving them a lot of time, effort and money that otherwise would have been spent in laying electric power cabling to the site. Read the full story.

To learn more about Solar Power visit Wikipedia's dedicated page.

Racing Legend's CCTV Security

As a manufacturer of British Government approved, high security systems, we usually find our products going to protect key industrial, economical, historical and military sites around the world. Anything from the Great Pyramids of Egypt to Lloyds of London. So to be able to say that we provided security for the legendary racehorse Red Rum may sound a little 'off the wall' but it's perfectly true!

Some years ago, Red Rum's owner, Ginger McCain had a used car business in Southport; he also lived on the premises and had stables at the rear. Advanced Perimeter Systems Ltd's Technical Director Andy Moon used to work opposite the premises and would watch Ginger's team take Red Rum out every morning for exercise on the local Southport beach. Ginger wanted to be able to keep a close eye on the yard from within the house, and in particular on Red Rum himself, so he asked us to install some CCTV cameras. Some were installed in the yard and one was installed in Red Rum's own stable. The cameras were wired back to a control unit and monitor back in Ginger's kitchen. He was delighted with what we did and, for our part, we're more than proud to have been able to help and deliver greater peace of mind for the safety of what has become one of the best loved British racing legends of all time.