Security & Counter Terror Expo 2018 at London Olympia

More than 10,000 security professionals from around the globe and 71 international delegations travelled to the Olympia Exhibition Centre in West London over the two days 6^th to 7^th March 2018 for the 10th annual Security & Counter Terror Expo (SCTX).
Three co-located Exhibitions and Conference programmes, similarly under the Clarion Events banner of UK Security Week, were the new People Movement and Management Show, and the well-established Forensics Europe Expo and Ambition – the event for the emergency preparedness, resilience and response (EPRR) community, tackling different scenarios of mass casualty response through technology and multi-agency coordination.

Covering in excess of 13,000m² in the Grand Hall of Olympia, the exhibition was the platform for over 300 companies to showcase their latest products, technologies and services, alongside ten conferences, two live demonstration areas and the showpiece World Counter Terror Congress. The Congress was attended by more than 700 VIPs, delegates and high-ranking police officers and chaired by Richard Barrett, Coordinator of the Al-Qaeda / Taliban monitoring team of the United Nations Security Council.

David Thompson, Event Director of UK Security Week, commented: “The threat posed by terrorists has never been more diverse – from the simplicity of knives and hire vehicles to technologically-advanced cybercriminals. It’s vital that nations, security professionals and the public are fully informed of the most effective methods of protection to mitigate these threats. We specifically tailored this year’s programme to respond to these challenges.”

Former Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon, MP, presenting the first Counter Terror Awards at the event, called on tech industry giants to “help root out” terrorists who are using social media to spread extremism.

In his speech “Tackling the Millennial Terrorist” Sir Michael declared: “The changing nature of terrorism means that digital companies have a duty to help tackle the aggressors behind the algorithms and the enemies behind the encryption. These companies are hiding behind the pretense that they are not publishers: on the contrary, they have created huge ungoverned spaces in which extremism flourishes.

“It’s bad enough that some of them don’t pay proper taxes in the UK: what’s shocking is that they could be doing much more to help our security services forestall these deadly attacks.

“As terrorists adopt more low-level methods, killing with knives and vans, the range of targets increases. 90% of organised terrorism on the Internet takes place via social media, and for these millennial terrorists communication is 90% of their struggle. Facebook, Google and the rest cannot opt out of their responsibility.”

Then, in his final week as the London Metropolitan Police’s Assistant Commissioner, Mark Rowley gave his last public address at the World Counter Terror Congress.

As Britain's most senior anti-terror police officer, Rowley has served in the police for 31 years and is credited with working alongside intelligence services to foil 23 terror attacks in the UK since 2013, as well as doubling the number of arrests by counter-terrorism officers over the past year.

So the event in the Grand Hall at Olympia showcased a wide range of practical solutions, including a host of genuine product innovations from exhibitors. Accordingly, we have picked out below ten of those technologies at SCTX which particularly attracted our editorial interest, featuring them alphabetically for your ease of reference.

We start with the Bradbury Group of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, which has grown since 1992 to become one of the largest UK manufacturers of bespoke-engineered steel security doors, grilles, cages and bar sets. The firm’s founder and Managing Director Tim Strawson is pictured here.

Bradbury’s M2M3 doorset is certified by the LPCB to LPS 1175 Security Rating 3. Having undergone rigorous testing procedures, withstanding deliberate and pre-meditated forced entry attempts, the M2M3 is offered for all possible personnel, fire exit, access control and utility applications.

Extendor Vertex is a certified high-security, emergency escape, crowd control gate specifically designed for high traffic applications. LPCB accredited to LPS 1175 Security Rating 3, the Vertex can withstand attempts at forced entry using bodily force – and has also exceeded load tests conducted by the BRE, specified in BS EN 1991-1-1-2002 and TFL S1053, simulating crowd surge.

Claimed to be the only retractable grille to be LPCB certified to LPS 1175 Security Rating 3, Bradbury’s Extendor Eclipse is one of the strongest and most robust grilles on the market. Approved through the “Secured By Design” initiative, this grille has been successfully bomb blast tested in conjunction with glass backed with anti-shatter security film.

BrainChip Studio is an AI-powered video analysis software suite delivering high-speed object search and facial classification. It finds faces and objects 20 times quicker than a human operator. The software and hardware accelerated solutions work with existing infrastructure, even with low-light and low-resolution images.

BrainChip Accelerator is a computer plug-in (PCIe) card that represents the world’s first commercial hardware acceleration of neuromorphic computing, a type of artificial intelligence that models the human neuron. It delivers a six-fold performance boost to BrainChip Studio and can process up to 16 channels of video simultaneously. Live demonstrations of the BrainChip Studio software suite and BrainChip Accelerator hardware were given throughout the event.

HGH Infrared Systems’ automatic detection and tracking software Cyclope was named “Best Counter Terror IT product” at the Show’s Counter Terror Awards.  The automatic intrusion detection and tracking software was recognised for its capabilities to detect, track, identify and recognise an unlimited number of threats, on land, at sea and in the air.

Cyclope is the integrated software for HGH’s 360° Spynel thermal sensor. Cyclope’s current version takes advantage of more than 15 years of experience in data processing applied to critical infrastructure protection and infra-red search and track applications, with the development of unique detecting and tracking algorithms allied to a minimal false alarm rate.

Cyclope 5.0 is coming out soon, with a new alarm management module enabling the automatic classification of threats. Spynel sensors and their Cyclope software are and have been used to prevent terrorist acts, thanks to the data accuracy they provide and their ability to detect and track the smallest objects in real time.

Integrated Design Ltd's Fastlane system now integrates with a “deep learning” AI facial recognition system to provide intelligent entrance control. The biometrics tool for entrance control was formerly reserved for those with bigger budgets and viewed as an enhanced security requirement for only the highest security applications. But now biometric integration has become more commonplace, used widely in government and municipal buildings, company headquarters, educational institutions, healthcare facilities and so forth.

An increasing number of customers are seeking entrance control solutions which allow authorised users to gain access without them having to touch anything, whilst still retaining the physical security provided by a turnstile.

UK-based facial recognition pioneer Aurora has developed the Artificial Intelligence-powered FaceSentinel system, which allows registered users to open turnstiles and doors just by looking at a sensor. This Aurora facial recognition technology – when integrated with IDL's Fastlane and Door Detective products – can help to combat some of the potential disadvantages of other “contact-type” biometric verification systems.

One of the world’s most experienced manufacturers of high-precision instruments for chemical analysis, Metrohm AG was founded in 1943 by Bertold Suhner (1910-1988) in Herisau, Switzerland. At SCTX Metrohm’s UK operation in Runcorn, Cheshire, presented the Mira DS (Defence and Security) spectrometer, a new handheld material identification system for use by security personnel, police, hazmat and bomb disposal teams.

At the push of a button the Mira DS identifies illicit substances and explosives. The instrument, developed in close cooperation with professional first responders, assists their decision-making in critical situations by giving them vital information on whatever substance they may be facing. The analyser combines ease-of-use with maximum safety and furnishes results within seconds.

AssetWatcher from Morse Watchmans is a flexible, scalable, and highly capable RFID-enabled locker system that supports more than 10,000 users on a single system and is configurable in three usage modes. Its RFID technology allows you to easily track who is removing or replacing an asset, as well as when and where in the system the asset has been taken from or placed.

Proven features of the flagship Morse Watchmans product KeyWatcher bring the highest security and capability to AssetWatcher, including email notifications, multi-site operation, and multi-user capability.

Alongside the AssetWatcher system, Morse Watchmans is showcasing the remarkable “KeyWatcher Touch” key management system, utilising a touch screen and patented SmartKey system with KeyAnywhere technology that makes it simple to return a key to any key cabinet in an enterprise. Updates to KeyWatcher Touch for 2018 include a new database design, a desktop fingerprint reader that allows users to enroll fingerprints through TrueTouch software, and the ability to utilise multiple KeyWatcher Touch server instances with a single SQL database.

The Blast Guard product from architectural glass specialists Pure Vista of Bodmin, Cornwall, provides frameless glass protection for crowds, resident security staff and emergency responders alike. That may be at ports, airports, train stations, sports stadia, shopping centres, and wherever else large numbers may congregate and become a likely target for terrorist suicide bombers. The blast-resistant glass balustrade is retained using only the bottom shoe, so that no uprights or handrails are required.

The glass is held with enough strength to resist an explosion and protect people on the opposite side. Using the Pure Vista Blast Guard glass railing, the glass is able to withstand the blast of a PBIED (Person-Borne Improvised Explosive Device), where the glass remains in situ. The inner panel breaks, however the external panel remains unfractured and keeps the balustrade standing upright, preventing further injury or dangerous fragmentation.

Scanna is a British manufacturer specialising in high-performance X-ray equipment for the detection of concealed weapons, narcotics and explosive devices. At SCTX the company was showcasing its new Scansilc EOD range of ruggedised, high-definition portable X-ray systems, developed with design inputs from security and bomb disposal professionals. With IP-rated protection against dirt, mud and water ingress, Scansilc has also been impact- and drop-tested to provide reliability in the harshest operating conditions.

Unlike other flat-panel X-ray imagers, Scansilc EOD systems do not require any bulky interface components, cables or connectors to do their job. Because Scansilc is an intelligent imaging panel, operators can control and fire the X-ray generator remotely, from a safe distance away, with direct communications between the image panel, generator and laptops.

With the understanding that X-ray users operate in a broad range of applications, Scansilc EOD is available with both C-SI screens for users who require superior high-sensitivity images using low X-ray doses – and Gadox coatings for users operating high-voltage X-ray generators.

Coventry-based Woodway Engineering was promoting its new vehicle-mounted mast and camera solution, now incorporating the latest low-bit-rate video transmission technology, benefiting customers by reducing airtime costs and increasing remote access for security professionals on a variety of platforms, including tablets and mobile phones.

Gary Hall, Managing Director of Woodway Engineering, told us more: “This new video transmission technology installed on a vehicle enables customers to have a virtual presence at a security situation from anywhere in the world where you can make a GSM call. The video transmission technology can operate at levels as low as 5 kilobits per second, and local 1080P HD camera recording of the scene will still ensure that the quality of the video footage is maintained for evidential purposes.”

The server-based architecture is hosted on the client’s own server, and only a standard SIM card is required for the data transfer, reducing operating costs by eliminating the requirement for expensive airtime agreements. Security companies are already benefiting from the flexibility of the system – with its non-intrusive vehicle installation, a 3m extending mast and an extensive range of ruggedised, high-specification (IR, thermal and white light) 40X optical zoom cameras.

Finally, our tenth choice is Yitu Technology, a Chinese company founded in 2012, based in Shanghai with an international office in Singapore, and specialising in Artificial Intelligence research and innovation. Its facial and vehicle recognition solutions are utilised across mainland China for safety and security at ports and airports, transport terminals, shopping malls and sensitive locations. The technology can search over a billion image records in less than a second.

On display at SCTX, FocusBrain is a particular Yitu facial recognition end-to-end solution. Using robust, resilient hardware and state-of-the-art algorithms, it is deployed principally for identity tracking, identity verification at temporary security points and fast-response emergency situations.

And so a very broad array of product offerings for visitors to take in! They will now want to diary the next UK Security Week at London Olympia from 5^th to 6^th March 2019, again comprising the Security & Counter Terror Expo, World Counter Terror Congress, Forensics Europe Expo, Ambition EPRR Expo and the People Movement and Management Show.

Event Director David Thompson, sums up: “The 2018 Show was our most successful yet, and we’re looking to take 2019 to the next stage. We introduced many new features this year to ensure that the Show remains the UK’s leading national security and counter-terror event and at the forefront of strategic discussion and product innovation. This raised the bar yet again, and we’re looking forward to working with our key partners over the coming months to maintain that success into next year’s Show.”