Fire Safety Inspection

ISOL 634 – Physical Security

Final Exam

This final exam will be a scenario similar to the midterm project, but with a focus on the concepts learned in the second half of the textbook, with a special focus on intrusion detection and fire safety.

Scenario: The location is a courthouse, a government building with offices, records, and rooms for criminal and civil law proceedings. This courthouse is a very large, two-story building with one main entrance and dozens of small, private entrances. All sorts of people use this building, including professionals, civilians, and a security force. For each of these three groups of people, consider what physical space they are using.

The first type of physical space includes offices for processing records requests related to criminal and civil proceedings. There are file rooms for physical records as well as computer systems for electronic filing, storage, and processing. There are both public areas for citizens making requests and private areas for the civil servants working with private records.

The second type of physical space includes courtrooms of various sizes and private rooms for meeting and negotiating. These spaces also have public and private areas.

The third type of physical space includes large public areas used for informal gathering or waiting, a cafeteria with coffee machines, and the public restrooms.

There are public hours of operation, like 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., but professionals might be in the building very early or stay very late, and there are on-sight security personnel always.

Also in this building is a built-in security force that includes bailiffs and police charged with keeping the building secure. They have already established the building design, access control, surveillance, and lighting.

Part I:

Your assignment is to focus first on alarms and intrusion detection. Using especially chapter 23 from the textbook, choose where to use intrusion detection systems and which systems to use.

· Perimeter Protection—what types of intrusion detection systems would you use on doors and windows? Will you use different types based on the type of physical space? Explain and justify your choices.

· Area Protection—what types of intrusion detection will you use and where? Explain and justify your choices.

· The above alarms might be more for after-hours or for unpopulated areas. What about alarms for populated areas, like panic alarms? Explain and justify your choices.

· How will you use the security staff to monitor and respond to intrusion or duress?

· Besides the security staff, who will be responsible for turning on or off the sensors or using the alarms?

Part II:

Now, focus on fire prevention, detection, and response. Use especially chapter 22 from the textbook.

· Discuss the fire classification most likely for this type of physical space.

· Where would you put fire alarms? What maintenance is required for fire detection alarms?

· Would you use sprinklers? If so, where and why? Where would you locate fire extinguishers? What kind would you use and why?

· Discuss the maintenance required for any systems used for fire safety, and using the fire safety inspection section as a guide, discuss special areas of concern for fire safety in this type of location.