Travis Perkins PLC, a major supplier to the building and construction market, is using sophisticated external detection technology from Optex Europe with some of the highest capture rates and lowest false alarm rates currently available to help secure a number of its premises nationwide.

The company, which has a branch network of some 1,100 sites making it one of the largest timber and builders merchants in the UK, is using REDWAVE detectors that combine several technologies in a single unit to reduce false alarms even in the most demanding environments.

The product has been designed specifically to counter the three major headaches for installers, remote monitoring centres, and end-users associated with false alarms in outdoor detection: repetitive movement - ie from objects such as trees, flags, advertising bunting etc; small animals - from foxes and other mammals to insects flying in front of the detector; and ‘over-ranging' - alarms triggered by activity (eg from passing vehicles) beyond the perimeter being protected.

Given the type of business, and its locations, all of the above were factors that Travis Perkins needed to address, as Travis Perkins' Bob Marsh explains: "Because many of our sites are on industrial estates often near open land, we do get quite a number of alarm activations caused by animals, primarily foxes and rabbits, but also domestic pets. Animals aren't the only problem. Alarms are also triggered by traffic, environmental conditions and the weather, both sunshine and rain. We needed a detector to help reduce false alarms and looked at what products were available to us before opting for Optex' REDWAVE."

In addition to using passive infrared (PIR) and microwave technology as in conventional combination detectors, REDWAVE has Adjustable Microwave Range Limiter (AMRL) technology that allows users to adjust the detection distance, and a Dual Quad Zone Logic (DQZL) PIR that uses two PIR detectors to increase detection density and eliminate undetectable areas.

With conventional outdoor combination detectors, microwave transmission distances are not easily adjusted, resulting in many false alarms being triggered from outside the detection area. AMRL technology incorporated within REDWAVE, however, enables installers to choose the real detection distance required with a dial setting that offers seven, five meter intervals between zero and 30 meters.

REDWAVE also uses two, vertically configured PIR detectors that create two different, highly dense detection areas, one near and one far. The dual coverage essentially eliminates dead detection spots, preventing the likelihood of ‘missed' alarms. Furthermore, the sensitivity of each area can be adjusted separately.

Each PIR uses Quad Zone Logic providing multi-segmented detection zones throughout the detection area and an alarm signal base on the cumulative energy of each zone. This greatly reduces false alarms, particularly those caused by sudden small temperature changes from light reflections or small animals.

The result is a detector with the highest levels of detection performance Optex Europe's Divisional Sales Director Nigel Hackett concludes: "REDWAVE is a ‘win win' product for everyone involved in providing external protection.

"Customers have a system that is more reliable than any other product currently available; installers have a detector that satisfies their customers' needs; and the Remote Video Response Centres (RVRCs) have a detector that helps improve their operational efficiency, reduces costs, and that their operators can trust in the event of an alarm activation as being genuine."

Born out of the merger in 1988 between Travis & Arnold and Sandell Perkins, Travis Perkins can trace its roots back over 200 years. It now supplies more than 100,000 product lines including everything needed to build a house from the foundations to the roof.