As part of a new centrally controlled vehicle security system, The North West Ambulance Service has recently updated the security of its premises at its Lancashire regional headquarters using the Nortech stainless steel bollards that house Nedap ANPR cameras.
The North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) NHS Trust operates around 1,000 vehicles to provide 1.1 million emergency and non-emergency patient journeys. It was established in 2006 by the merger of ambulance trusts from Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Merseyside, Cumbria and Lancashire. The Lancashire regional HQ is based near Broughton in Preston.
The trust needed to secure the perimeters of their premises at the Lancashire regional HQ and appointed Expert Security UK, Frank Whittle Partnerships and W. Monks Ltd to design and install the new centrally controlled vehicle security system.
Expert Security UK approached Nortech in order to integrate the Nedap Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) into the system and new automatic barriers were installed to secure the perimeter and prevent unauthorised vehicles. Nortech supplied the ANPR camera housed in a robust stainless steel bollard to protect the camera from any potential vehicle knocks.
As vehicles approach the new barriers, the ANPR reads the number plates and converts each valid number plate into a Wiegand ID string, which it sends to the access control panel in the same way as a standard card reader. The Wiegand number can then be checked centrally for access rights so that vehicle access can be granted or denied accordingly.
Danny Scholfield, Sales Director at Expert Security UK, commented: 
“We are all delighted with the final result. The system is very fast and ticks all the boxes for us. As we are already using the Net2 system here at the HQ, it is great to see the ANPR integrating into the system without complication. The barrier system is a great security measure for us and has prevented unauthorised parking.”
The benefits of the Nortech ANPR system is that it integrates with most access control software, avoids the need for manned gates or vehicle tags, allows automatic vehicle identification at between three and six metres and prevents unauthorised vehicle access.
Nortech has supplied products and solutions to the security industry for over 25 years as an independent British company. The company uses extensive experience and expertise to create new security products to fit their clients’ needs and designs everything with the customer in mind.
