SpotterRF selected by VTI Security as sole radar partner for substation protection

MINNEAPOLIS—MISPYCON—November 8, 2016—SpotterRF, the leader in low cost compact surveillance radar (CSR), has been selected by VTI Security, one of the largest independently owned security systems integrators in the U.S., as a sole source radar standard. After rigorous testing, VTI Security now uses SpotterRF compact surveillance radar (CSR) for all CIP-014 electrical substation protection projects as defined by the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act (CIPA).

“When we came across the SpotterRF solution it really fit everything that we were looking for,“ states Jerry Klapak, Senior Account Manager for VTI Security. “It gave us the ability to use existing structures to mount the system while achieving improved perimeter protection over traditional systems. In addition to protecting the perimeter we could also be notified of imminent intrusions or casing of substations.”

One of VTI’s clients is a large electrical utility who was looking for a perimeter solution to meet the CIPA CIP-014 standards, a federal mandate that requires utilities to protect the perimeter of their critical substations. They sought to augment or replace traditional fence protection systems such as fiber optics, microwave barriers, and video analytics, due to the tremendous amount of infrastructure and deployment costs of these existing traditional systems.

VTI did a cost analysis of several different technologies and solutions, and in just about every scenario SpotterRF was about a third or a quarter of the cost. “It was such a substantial savings that, quite honestly, we looked at this as maybe too good to be true,” says Klapak.

The CSR system was put through a series of field deployment tests in an environment similar to a substation to test the range and responsiveness in different weather conditions. Given high marks, it was moved into an actual substation where it passed all tests with “flying colors.” It is now being rolled out to substations across the U.S.

“We are pleased to work with such an exceptional partner to provide protection for electric utility substations,” states SpotterRF CEO, Logan Harris. “Utility companies appreciate our ability to rapidly address this challenge with a reliable, low cost solution for wide area threat mitigation.”

SpotterRF delivers its award-winning compact surveillance radar (CSR) systems through more than 60 strategic integrators to a global marketplace in 24 countries on six continents. SpotterRF’s award-winning radar will be demonstrated at the upcoming MISPYCON (VTI booth #406).