SJUK hears from Martin Vojtek, Business Director 3D Surveillance, Hexagon’s Safety, Infrastructure and Geospatial division about improving substation security.
In the wake of the recent large fire at the North Hyde electricity substation in the UK, renewed attention is being placed on critical infrastructure and the consequences of downtime.
Thankfully, major substation incidents are rare occurrences. This is due to the rigorous monitoring, maintenance, safety and security measures that energy companies have in place.
In the past year, energy infrastructure providers in Europe have begun to look at how new technology can make their substations even safer and more secure.
Typically, substations are unmanned and remotely monitored.
Access is controlled through a combination of traditional perimeter protection including fencing (steel and passive infrared sensors), a gate or door (often operated via a card or biometric), an alarm and cameras, which may utilise some form of video analytics.
Now, energy companies and other operators of national critical infrastructure have begun testing and implementing new safety and security environments.
A good example is a major energy company in mainland Europe that has introduced a 3D surveillance system, based on volumetric LiDAR detection technology.
The system uses strategically placed LiDAR sensors that enable virtual secure, safe and sterile zones to be created (including the perimeter fence).
Crucially, these zones can be switched on and off or changed at the click of a button or drag of the mouse.
For example, when maintenance is being carried out, the zone in which the work is taking place can be deactivated.
Meanwhile, other areas remain live to prevent workers from straying into an unauthorised and potentially hazardous area.
Authorised personnel and trespassers can also be automatically monitored and tracked via a live real-time feed into the control room.
Furthermore, the system recognises the number of people, their precise position, their speed and direction of movement (if walking or running) as well as their projected trajectory.
This can be augmented further with PTZ cameras, alarms and speaker systems to communicate with the person/s in question.
Another significant advantage of this type of system is the ability to create a digital twin for every substation.
In doing so, scenarios can be played out virtually to test the resistance and resilience of safety and security measures.
Essentially, it creates a 3D representation/map of the entire facility you can interact with.
It enables the positioning of LiDAR sensors and cameras to be optimised to mitigate potential blind spots or poor viewing angles before an installer steps on site.
You can even specify the type of camera and its location and then view a virtual stream from it.
Such a system can be enhanced further still with the addition of thermal sensors and cameras that are able to monitor the temperature of designated areas and raise the alert if it deviates from the norm.
This is valuable both for intrusion detection (whether human or animal) and to detect the early signs of a fire before it begins to smoke or burst into flames.
The project in Europe has been so successful that the company is planning to roll the solution out nationally.
It is also sharing its knowledge with competitors to help secure the country’s electricity distribution network.
The initiative has piqued the interest of energy companies in the US and Asia-Pacific region, who view this new approach as the gold standard for modern substation safety and security.
In March, the International Energy Agency (IEA) reported that global electricity consumption surged by 4.3% in 2024, driven by a wide range factors – from demand both in the home and across industry.
Our greater reliance on energy makes its more of a target, highlighting why critical pieces of infrastructure need to be afforded the highest level of protection.
