Security

The market for security and fire protection products and services in the UK is estimated at £4.89bn for 1999, rising to £5.06bn in 2000, according to research organisation Key Note. This is the value at end-user prices, allowing for any installation and maintenance costs of the equipment.

The market can be divided into five sectors: manned security, electronic security, physical security, vehicle security and fire protection.

Manned security
The manned security sector accounts for 39 per cent of the market, or an estimated £1.95bn in 2000. It includes manned guarding, cash services and custodial services. Recent employment legislation on pay and hours of work, coupled with labour shortages in some parts of the country are causing wages to rise faster than usual. In research carried out by the British Security Industry Assocation (BSIA), four-fifths of the respondents estimated that manned security accounted for 75 per cent or more of their total security budget (see graph).

A good wage in this sector is £6-7 per hour. Due to increased costs, some companies are cutting back full-time, on-site guarding and instead favouring electronic security. Some manned guarding companies now offer monitoring of electronic security systems, particularly CCTV, from remote receiving centres.

Securicor estimates that there are 2,250 guarding companies in the UK in 2000. The top five account for about half the market. Most of the leading companies are registered with the BSIA and/or the Inspectorate of the Security Industry (ISI).

Electronic security
Electronic security is worth around £1.35bn in 2000, accounting for 27 per cent of the total market, according to Key Note. This sector includes intruder alarms, access control, CCTV, electronic article surveillance (EAS), personal security and other electronic products and systems integration.

Until recently this was the most dynamic sector, but falling prices of CCTV equipment and maturity in the alarms sector have held back growth. The major electronic security installers are: ADT Fire and Security, Initial Electronic Security Systems, Chubb Electronic Security, Bell Group and Group 4 Technology.

In 1996 the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) introduced a stricter policy on false alarms — priority is now given to remotely monitored alarms installed by approved installers. The largest inspectorate is the National Approval Council for Security Systems (NACOSS) and the Security Systems and Alarms Inspection Board (SSAIB). In 1995, before the policy was introduced, there were 1.1 million false alarm calls. In 1999 there were 871,519.

Other security
Physical security products account for 11 per cent of the market or an estimated £552m in 2000. These include locks, safes, grilles, screens, security fences and door chains. Locks account for 39.5 per cent of the market, safes for 14.3 per cent and other products for 46.2 per cent. Supply is very fragmented. Many lock manufacturers offer other types of physical security devices but there are also specialised manufacturers including some small niche players.

Vehicle security accounts for seven per cent of the market and an estimated £324m in 2000. Such products include locks, other mechanical devices (mainly immobilisers, but also security clamps), security marking, tracking devices, other electronic devices. Motor vehicle theft has shown a steady decline, due to improved security measures and CCTV. The Home Office Statistical Bulletin 1/00 shows that in England and Wales the number of offences reported during 1999/2000 was 374,700 compared to 391,800 the previous year.

Fire protection accounts for 16 per cent of the market. This includes detectors and extinguishers and also takes into account the cost of supply, installation, maintenance and refilling — it does not include passive fire protection products such as fire doors, and fire resistant wallpaper.

There is no discernible upward or downward trend for the incidence of fires. Only about a quarter of fires are within buildings, and figures for these remain at roughly the same level from year to year. Provisional figures from the Home Office Statistical Bulletin: Fire Statistics Estimates United Kingdom 1999, published 9 August 2000 show that the fire brigade was called out to 468,000 fires and about the same number of false alarms, 116,000 of the fires were in buildings.

Suppliers
The market supports several thousand firms, however Key Note estimates that around half the market rests in the hands of 12 large corporations.

In November 2000, Williams demerged into two separate, publicly quoted groups: Chubb Security will concentrate on security services and Kidde will concentrate on fire protection.

Group 4, which is based in the Netherlands, has also undergone changes and in May 2000 merged with Falck Group (which is based in Denmark). The new company is called Group 4 Falck and is the world's second largest provider of security, safety and related services. In the UK the group employs around 16,000 staff.

In September 2000 Securitas SA of Sweden acquired Burns International Services Corporation.

Trade organisations
Association of Specialist Fire Protection
tel:01252 321322, fax: 01252 333901,
www.asfp.org.uk

British Security Industry Assocation
tel: 01905 21464, fax: 01905 613625,
www.bsia.co.uk or info@bsia.co.uk

National Approval Council for Security Systems (NACOSS)
tel: 01628 637512, fax: 01628 773367,
www.nacoss.org.uk

International Professional Security Association
tel 01803 554849, fax 01803 529203,
www.ipsa.org.uk

International Institute of Security
tel: 01803 663275, fax: 01803 663251.

The UK Security market report 2000 can be bought from Key Note for £515 in hard copy or £465 via email. Contact Key Note, Field House, 72 Oldfield Road, Hampton, Middlesex TW12 2HQ. Tel: 020 8481 8750, www.keynote.co.uk