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Copper Theft Solution

Mar 23, 2011

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Municipalities across the country are suffering huge losses to copper thieves. Copper prices are reaching all-time highs - and with the suffering economy, copper theft has steadily increased over the past year.

The city of Mesa, Arizona, is no exception. In Mesa, pull boxes that store electrical utility lines were being broken into because of the valuable copper wire contained inside. Thieves were able to break into the pull boxes by simply removing the standard fasteners holding down the lids, with standard bits available from any hardware store. Once inside the box, thieves were able to quickly attach the copper wire to the bumper of a vehicle, enabling them to remove up to a mile of wire at one time.

Mark Hopkins of the City of Mesa Streets Department reported that the city lost over $300,000 in 2009 due to the need to replace the stolen copper and to hire contractors to do the repairs. These losses had to be stopped and a solution needed to be found!

After searching the market for a way to secure these pull boxes, Mark decided to use the Penta-Nut™, manufactured by Bryce Fastener, Inc. This 316 Stainless Steel security nut was installed in all of the problem areas around the city.

After the first year of use, theft was reduced by 90%!

Concrete pull boxes still posed a problem however, because determined crooks resorted to breaking the lids with sledgehammers.

To deter such theft, mrSTEEL, Inc., in Phoenix, Arizona, has developed a pull box that cannot be broken open. When tested against a sledgehammer, these boxes held up and were not compromised. Incorporating Bryce Fastener's Penta-Nut™ into the design, these pull boxes will put a stop to copper theft! The city of Mesa is currently testing the design for use in problem areas.

Bryce Fastener, Inc. specializes in solving demanding security fastener applications with their patented technology. Contact Mark Miller at mark@brycefastener.com or visit http://www.brycefastener.com for more information.

mrSTEEL, Inc., specializes in top quality fabricated steel products. For more information contact bill@mrsteel.com or visit www.mrsteel.com.

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