Critical Infrastructure Security
Jun 21, 2024
Utility manholes, pull boxes, equipment enclosures, panel vaults, access hatches, and light pole base covers hold critical infrastructure requiring protection and regular maintenance.
The risk of public harm and economic loss to a city from theft/tampering should be highly considered by anyone responsible for the management of these assets and systems.
Out here in the West, electrical wires including copper wire are stored underground, when the price of copper goes up, that’s when cities experience the most theft and tampering.
Cities began calling us back around 2006 when the price of copper significantly rose. We initially worked with the City of Tucson in an effort to come up with a good security solution for potential threats. Eventually there was even a case study written about their experience with copper theft in the 2014 IMSA Journal.
The Best Security Solution
We still work directly with different cities, but we also highly recommend finding a good enclosure manufacturer who uses our services to supply the security fasteners.
We’ve found the best solution to copper wire theft is retrofitting your city’s lids in the areas most likely to be subject to theft with galvanized steel lids secured with our security fasteners. Most cities won’t have the budget to retrofit security measures for all their pull boxes.
Start with the lids that are the most at risk of attack or already have been tampered with.
When are the Extra Costs of Preventative Security Bolts Worth It?
Remember, standard Hex-head and Penta-heads have removal tools available to anyone. If you’re responsible for any type of critical asset or system worth more than $100.00, a better security fastener should be considered.
City governments have found the cost of repairs will be much greater than the equipment that was stolen.
It’s a simple, low cost, but highly effective security solution where risk can be reduced and a theft/tampering problem can be stopped immediately.
Custom Protection for Public Utilities
Utility enclosures come in all shapes and sizes and so do the fasteners used to secure them. We can make any standard or metric screw, bolt, or nut from 2/56-5/8-11. Bryce Fastener specializes in oversized heads, unique lengths, threads, and tries to meet the demand of any spec.
Cities should be paying attention to the vulnerability of critical infrastructure, such as water, gas, and communications systems supplied by their public utility departments.
We’re here to help cities prevent unauthorized personnel from accessing points of entry on all utility enclosures.
Reduce Risk and Eliminate Threats
"Love the fasteners! We actually caught a guy with our security cameras putting in a lot of effort to get into one of our light poles for the copper wire. Five minutes later he was gone, and unsuccessful. The light pole was relatively free of damage."
- A past email sent to us from a city out of California