Cleveland Electric Laboratories (CEL) Fiber Optic sensors, Platinum Award Winner for Best Motion Detection System in the 2017 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program, are used in security applications to monitor arrays of cameras and other sensors, or to monitor perimeters for intrusion detection.

FiberStrike: An advanced fiber optic sensing platform that is flexible and scalable.

For example, when dignitaries or high-profile individuals visit cities, municipal crews often weld manholes shut in vulnerable locations to ensure safety, costing tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars each time they must be welded and then cut open again.

Manhole covers and similar access points related to sensitive areas as well as critical infrastructure locations have proven to be a source of significant vulnerability, and many malicious acts such as vandalism, material theft, and even terrorism have occurred due to ease of access through manholes that generally are unprotected.

Utility companies, telecom providers, and municipalities are increasingly installing cabling and other components of their physical infrastructures underground.

Power is carried over metal cables, but most data and telecommunications infrastructures utilize fiber optics, and these vital links commonly pass through underground vaults.

The data and telecom traffic carried on these lines is sensitive at a minimum, and the access points to such lines need to be secured to help maintain both the integrity of this vital infrastructure and the security of the information carried by it.

At the lower end of the threat continuum, thieves frequently enter manholes to cut power cables in order to steal metals to be sold for scrap.

For these efforts, they may gain a few hundred dollars from a scrap yard, while causing thousands of dollars’ worth of damage and the loss of critical public safety services, power, and telecommunications to nearby industry, the surrounding community and its citizens.

Soft targets

At the higher end of the threat continuum, literally hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of manholes around our nation give easy access for a physical attack against vital components of our infrastructure.

In addition to access points for vital components of our national infrastructure, manholes in and around city centers, stadiums, coliseums, hospitals, campuses, government agencies or similar public venues where large numbers of people gather at one time may also be points of vulnerability.

The FiberStrike advanced fiber optic sensing platform’s system architecture facilitates configuration for virtually any security monitoring application, and multiple sensor types address a broad range of intrusion detection applications.

Distributed Sensing Systems

Information Security

• Monitor communication line trays and conduits, helping to ensure information security 
• Sensing fiber installed alongside communications lines, provides information on location of disturbances at any location along a pathway
• Strategically installed such that any physical disturbance of communications line will be detected
• The monitoring fiber is a physical movement detector, sensitive everywhere along its entire length
• Detection probability and location accuracy may be increased by use of multiple sensing fibers

Perimeter Security

• Distributed sensing fiber is directly buried, helping to ensure physical perimeter security
• Sensing fiber detects vehicular and pedestrian traffic, provides information on location anywhere along fiber
• Sensing fiber may be 25+ kilometers long
• Burial depth of sensing fiber customized based on local conditions, property configuration, and sensing requirements
• Multiple parallel spaced sensing fibers increase probability of detection and location accuracy

Discrete Sensor Systems

• Switches monitor and provide status information at specific points such as doors, access hatches, floor sections, etc.
• Available in multiple actuator configurations
• Standard size package and mounting centers
• Passive, optically-based, cannot be electrically bypassed
• Rugged, corrosion-resistance packaging available User Interface

User Interface

• CEL’s advanced API provides a .net event output that allows easy integration with other existing Command and Control systems
• Monitors and provides alerts, location information and data logging when discrete or distributed sensing systems are triggered or disturbed; remotely accessible
• CEL offers the ICS SMS EnterpriseTM C3I Command and Control solution including customized graphic user interface; intuitive and designed to be used by anyone without a need for detailed training.

Advantages of FiberStrike intrusion detection systems:

• All FiberStrike sensors (both distributed and discrete) are passive, have no electronic components, emit no signals and require no electrical power
• Nonconductive optical fiber is immune to electrical interference and degradation due to chemicals or environmental factors
• Multiple optical fibers are easily deployed for redundancy
• Sensors may be 25+ kilometers from head-end monitoring equipment, no booster amplifiers required.

CEL’s Fiber Optic sensors are passive devices requiring no power and are immune to EMI.

Fiber Optic sensors have a proven record of providing extremely accurate and repeatable data over a long period of time.

Single systems can be designed to monitor multiple application simultaneously such as equipment wear, operational efficiency, leak detection and security.

Multiple sensors can be installed on a single fiber and networked into one piece of monitoring equipment.

This multiplexing capability drastically reduces cabling and equipment requirements, thereby reducing cost.

Cleveland Electric Wins in 2017 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program

AST focuses on Homeland Security and Public Safety Breaking News, the Newest Initiatives and Hottest Technologies in Physical & IT Security, essential to meeting today’s growing security challenges.

The Annual ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program, is organized to recognize the most distinguished vendors of Physical, IT, Port Security, Law Enforcement, Border Security, First Responders, (Fire, EMT, Military, Support Services Vets, SBA, Medical Tech) as well as the Federal, State, County and Municipal Government Agencies – to acknowledge their outstanding efforts to ‘Keep our Nation Secure, One City at a Time.’

To Learn More about the ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program, see 2017 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Award Winners Honored at ISC East.

Over 100 distinguished guests from National, State and Local Governments, and Industry Leading Corporate Executives from companies allied to Government, gathered from across North America and the Middle East to be honored from disciplines across the Security Industry in their respective fields which included:

• The Department of Homeland Security
• The Department of Justice
• The Security Exchange Commission
• State and Municipal Law Enforcement Agencies
• Leaders in Private Security

Recognized for their Innovative Training and Education Programs, Outstanding Product Development Achievements and Exciting New Technologies to address the growing Homeland Security Threats our Nation is facing.

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2018 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards at https://americansecuritytoday.com/ast-awards/.

American Security Today will be holding the 2018 ‘ASTORS’ Awards Presentation Luncheon to honor Nominees, Finalists and Winner in November 2018, in New York City.

To learn More about Cleveland Electric Laboratories FiberStrike for security at http://www.clevelandelectriclabs.com/products/fosensors/security-services/.

For ‘ASTORS’ Sponsorship Opportunities and More Information on the AST 2018 ‘ASTORS’ Homeland Security Awards Program, please contact Michael Madsen, AST Publisher at: mmadsen@americansecuritytoday.com or call 732.233.8119 (mobile) or 646-450-6027 (office)

Learn More…

(See FiberStrike Application for Leak Detection System for Gas, Oil, Water and anything else that runs in a pipe that needs monitoring, quick response time and attaining leak within 5 to 10 meters. Courtesy of CEL and YouTube)