Birmingham Alarm Technicians (BAT) installed their first SmartWater system for a jewellery wholesalers in the Jewellery Quarter of Birmingham on the same day that two of Britain's most prolific bank robbers faced life behind bars for over one hundred armed raids.
Now other installation firms are being invited to join a list of accredited installers.
BAT became interested in how they could use the innovative detection device after hearing in the national press court reports that the robbers had targeted other premises once they realised that their original target had installed SmartWater.
The Old Bailey trial heard heard that robbers, Sean and Vincent Bradish had originally targeted their attacks on Thomas Cook foreign exchange counters but were forced to switch their attention to banks, building societies and security vans when they discovered that the travel agency had fitted the SmartWater system.
After being sprayed by one of the devices in a raid on a Surrey branch of Thomas Cook, Sean Bradish was said to have been 'horrified' to discover its crime fighting potential and the company was never targeted again.
Electronically connected
Managing Director of BAT, Jim Hill was convinced his customers could also benefit from using the detection device which sprays attackers with traceable and uniquely encoded water.
"We are delighted to be accredited by SmartWater and grateful for their support and to be one of the first installers to connect SmartWater electronically to an existing system in the Quarter and believe that the majority of our customers could benefit from this most powerful deterrent said Hill."
Although the product has been used by police for some years, its impact is now making itself heard throughout the country.
SmartWater Europe Ltd began a six-week campaign in the Jewellery Quarter to raise local business awareness and worked closely with Birmingham Alarm Technicians to get the message across.
Said SmartWater Project Manager, Adrian Kiely: "We chose BAT because they have an excellent reputation for installation of intruder alarms in the Quarter and we are pleased with their commitment. Also we have had a considerable response to our campaign and I am grateful for the encouragement received from many owners who are concerned with the area's crime rate.
Police have installed ‘rat trap’ cars to catch out criminals … a hidden ‘water pistol’ sprays the thieves as they attempt the theft
He worked closely with BAT to ensure the quality of installations matched those of his own commissioning engineers.
Codes held secure
SmartWater is a chemical coding system similar to DNA profiling. Anything or anyone with even a trace can be identified and authenticated. There are millions of combinations, each uniquely encoded and licensed to an individual customer. Each code is held on a secure central database.
Said Kiely: 'After warning signs are added during installation criminals will seldom take on the challenge, such is their great fear of the power of forensic science.'
The British invention, manufactured under licence from the Home Office Forensic Science Service, won the Prince of Wales award for Innovation in 1996. It is designed to identify criminals and their stolen goods with scientific accuracy. The harmless water-based solution contains a combination of coded particles modelled on the principles of human DNA.
The technology is sprayed onto the skin and clothing of offenders via alarms and detection systems.
Every SmartWater spray has a unique code, enabling police to obtain scientific evidence from the traces found on offenders. As each solution is unique to each premises (the DNA analogy), forensic analysis of the traces of SmartWater proves that the suspect must have been in the location at the time of the incident. Each code is held on a secure central database. It is visible only under ultraviolet light, which the police use to examine suspects. Even a minute trace of the liquid is sufficient for identification purposes.
Feared by criminals
Although originally designed as a tool solely for police to use on covert operations, it was made commercially available when it was realised that the criminal fraternity feared it, giving it considerable deterrent value.
Police throughout the country have been preparing for an upsurge in use of the technology by "educating the criminal fraternity about the risk SmartWater represents".
The Metropolitan Police have installed ten ultraviolet detection suites in police station around the capital capable of detecting minute traces of SmartWater. Every arrested suspect brought into the station is checked for signs of the chemical.
On the advice of Greater Manchester Police, a dozen schools in the eastern part of the city said to have been chronically victimised have cut crime by 90 per cent after installing the system.
‘Chronically victimised’ schools cut crime by 90 per cent
"Constant break-ins" have now now been reduced to a handful. They have also adapted the product to provide a paint-on solution to mobile phone theft.
Warwickshire Police are protecting homes and businesses throughout the area by erecting signs and displays on lamp posts in business parks and residential areas warning criminals they are entering a SmartWater protected area.
'Rat trap' car campaign
Sussex police has embarked on a poster campaign in their area and have also announced via the media that they have installed 'rat trap' cars to catch out criminals in crime hot spots – a hidden 'water pistol' sprays the thieves as they attempt the theft. This campaign has seen an 80 per cent drop in car crime.
Nottinghamshire police are advertising the product on the backs of buses.
West Midlands police who used it to protect homes on a Birmingham estate reported an 80 per cent reduction in burglary.
SmartWater can be connected to the alarm system via the spare PA output. A PIR triggers the concealed spray cylinder which is located near the exit to the protected area.
The company is looking to accredit a national list of about 20 installation companies.
Adrian Kiely, Project Consultant for Smartwater, said that merely displaying the SmartWater sign was enough to make potential intruders think twice.
It is available to customers from £7.50 per week including annual licence.
Source
Security Installer
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