Securing Oil & Gas Facilities : A Comprehensive Guide for Building Robust Perimeter Protection

Oil and Gas sector plays an important role in the global energy space. These vital resources fuel economies across the globe and as India builds its oil and gas infrastructure, securing such critical areas becomes even more crucial.

Perimeter security becomes the first line of defence to protect such critical assets. As intruders develop newer ways to penetrate such perimeter the demand for advanced perimeter security solutions has grown over the years. The traditional perimeter security such as wall top concertina coils or barbed wires can prove to be ineffective in deterring intrusion attempts thereby putting the property and lives of the people in it at a severe risk.

In this blog we delve into the question of how to design a robust perimeter security solution for your oil and gas facility, the different areas that require security both outside and within the facility and how you can prevent an intrusion attempt with the latest advancements in perimeter security.

Understanding the Typical Oil & Gas Facility Layout

Before looking at the perimeter security solutions available let’s take a look at the layout of a typical Oil & gas facility and identify the important areas which are prone to intrusion.

Main Perimeter & Storage Tanks	Main Entrance	Internal Perimeter	Pipeline
The Main perimeter is the first line of defense to prevent an intrusion at bay and protect the property. A well-designed perimeter security solution should be able to detect and defend against an intrusion attempt thereby providing enough time for a reaction	The Main Entrance is the official access point into the perimeter and it manages the entry and exit ensuring authorized access. It’s important to have a strong security at this point	These include the sensitive places inside the perimeter that house important equipment. Such places required medium to high demarcation solutions.	Pipelines, valve & pump stations form an important piece of the Oil & Gas infrastructure. Such areas require dedicated fencing to prevent unwanted intrusion and accidents.

Securing the Main Perimeter:

Security of an oil and gas facility’s primary perimeter is crucial since it acts as its main line of defense against external threats. Historically, wall top security fencing such as concertina coils or barbed wires has been used in conjunction with concrete walls to provide protection for oil and gas installations.

Unfortunately, it is simple to get past these physical obstacles, endangering the safety of such important locations. Anytime can be an intrusion, and being able to identify them can help minimize the harm.

Important factors for Designing security for Main Perimeter

Demarcation Fences and walls serve as physical demarcation, clearly defining the protected area and discouraging unauthorized entry.

Deterrence Deterrence is key to preventing intrusions. Combine physical barriers with anti-climb and electric fence solutions for robust perimeter protection

Detection Real-time surveillance is crucial. Fiber optic sensors and electric fences work together to monitor the perimeter, detecting and responding to intrusions instantly.

A widely used security solution involves precast walls and a robust anti-climb system, typically Concertina coils on Y-angles.

While the traditional solution can provide basic demarcation and deterrence, they can’t provide detection of intrusion attempts making it only a passive barrier. Security measures have been progressively strengthened through the addition of electric fences and fiber optic sensor technology to detect intrusions.

Wall-top security solutions have evolved over the years and are capable of providing the 3Ds (Demarcation, Deterrence & Detection) that are important for a robust perimeter security

RazorSense   A modern alternative to basic concertina coils, RazorSense® offers an outstanding solution to guarantee the highest level of protection for vital infrastructure, such as refineries. RazorSense® is a wall-top fencing solution installed specifically for refinery facilities. It is designed as a concertina coil with a Ny-Pro coated core wire serving as the sensing element. This cutting-edge system of smart coils provides unmatched protection by identifying, lifting, and deforming attempts at infiltration. RazorSense®, with its cutting-edge features, is the perfect wall-top solution for the particular security requirements of refineries.

Electric Fence   Wall-top electric fences are active perimeter security systems that discourage intruders from entering by shocking them with a powerful yet safe electric shock. In addition, if someone tries to scale the fence or cut through it, the system sounds an alarm and sends out visual and audio signals both locally and remotely. With an astounding range of 500 meters per zone, the Electric Fence system is efficient in both preventing unwanted entrance and detecting intruders. It is an excellent option for wall top security in refinery installations.

Traditional Concertina coils can also be clubbed with perimeter intrusion detection systems such as vibration sensors that detect the disturbances on the wall during an intrusion attempt and generate an alarm to alert about the intrusion. Such solutions can also be integrated with existing camera softwares to help provide a visual confirmation of the intrusion.

Here’s what A-1 Fence has to offer

Liminal-F   Improve your refinery’s perimeter security with a cutting-edge, practical solution. You can greatly improve the security measures in place by combining the sophisticated intrusion detection capabilities of the Fiber Optic Sensor (Liminal-F) with the conventional deterrence of Concertina coils on wall tops. Refinery security benefits greatly from the high sensitivity and 500-meter detection range of the Fiber Optic Sensor (Liminal-F). This sensor can be buried to detect tunneling attempts, positioned on Y-angles for concertina detection, and placed on walls to detect break-through attempts. Use Fiber Optic Sensors’ cutting-edge technology and Concertina coils’ powerful barrier to protect your refinery.

Securing the Main Entrance:

Main entrance is the most used access point on the perimeter. Securing this critical point is important as it allows authorized access to the perimeter.

	Track Sliding Gate: Track Sliding Gates are best suited for wide entryways (more than 6 meters) and are designed for light industrial applications. Standard lengths are available in 3 to 12 meter increments, with customization possible upon request.
Cantilever Sliding Gate: Cantilever gates, also referred to as hanging or trackless gates, operate without wheels by using hidden mechanical bearings. They require minimal maintenance because there is no need for a track because they are balanced on two hangers. Standard lengths are available in 3 to 12 meter increments, with customization possible upon request.

Securing the Pipeline:

FenSense   An innovative integrated perimeter security system where the fence functions as a sensor. FenSense utilizes the patent-applied FICID (Fence Impedance Characterization for entry Detection) algorithm, which continuously monitors changes in the signal through the fence to identify any entry attempts, including cutting or climbing. This innovative design makes it entirely covert since no extra sensors are apparent because the fence structure—the mesh and razor coils—is a part of the sensing system itself. FenSense can be easily installed and tailored to meet the unique needs of a given location. FenSense offers comprehensive coverage for safeguarding commercial, industrial, and residential properties.

Liminal F on Pipe   Oil and gas pipelines are extremely vulnerable regions and need strong perimeter security. The installation of a Fiber Optic Sensor (Liminal-F) directly on the pipeline can significantly improve security measures. Refinery security can be strengthened with the Fiber Optic Sensor (Liminal-F), which has a remarkable 500 meters per zone detection range and high sensitivity. You may increase the security of gas and oil pipelines, reducing potential dangers and guaranteeing a safer refinery environment, by putting this cutting-edge technology into practice.

Seismic Sensor An underground intrusion detection tool that is excellent at spotting intrusion efforts and can distinguish between digging and tunneling activities because of its remarkable range of up to 100 meters. Seismic sensor installation is a dependable and preventative perimeter security solution around oil and gas pipelines.

Securing Internal places:

	Honeycomb + Razor Barbed Tape + Swing Gate   Internal areas require a separate demarcation offering low to medium security and easy authorized access. Honeycomb fence with its unique triple twist mesh offers durability & good visibility. Combined with fence top razor barbed tape, the fence makes it difficult to climb thereby increasing the security.
Chainlink + Razor Barbed Tape + Swing Gate   Chainlink fence offers basic protection to demarcate the internal spaces and avoid accidental access. Combined with razor barbed tape this fencing solution provides medium security.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, to secure critical assets like oil & gas facilities, a well-planned and multi-layered approach provides an assured protection against significant harm from different types of intrusions. Incorporating the 3D’s of perimeter protection can help you build a formidable defense solution to stop unwanted intrusions and protect your critical assets. A-1 Fence offers tailored solutions that not only safeguard the external perimeters but also the sensitive internal areas and pipelines, ensuring comprehensive protection for oil and gas facilities.