Critical infrastructure sites like power stations and transport hubs are the foundation of national safety. As a security manager, you're facing a shift where physical risks now merge with sophisticated cyber-enabled attacks. Safeguarding these assets requires a move away from isolated systems. At Gallagher Security, our integrated access control, intruder alarm, and perimeter security solutions are designed to provide the robust critical infrastructure protection you need to secure your network as tightly as your physical site.
Key Takeaways:
- Contact Energy cut emergency accounting times from 20+ minutes to just a few minutes by replacing manual tag boards with Gallagher's digital visitor management.
- Gallagher enables proactive critical infrastructure protection by linking real-time competency checks to access control, ensuring only 100% qualified personnel enter.
- The transition to a cloud-first identity strategy is backed by Microsoft Entra ID Sync and SSO, allowing IT teams to manage operator access via secure MFA policies.
Why Critical Infrastructure Is a Target for Security Threats
Critical infrastructure sites face a growing range of threats that can cause serious damage. Physical risks remain a constant concern, including:
- Theft of essential equipment and copper wiring.
- Vandalism and protest activity.
- Insider threats from individuals with authorized access.
- Terrorism aimed at disrupting national services.
Cyber-physical attacks represent a growing danger. Ransomware can lock down operational systems. Data breaches can expose sensitive site layouts or employee details. If an attacker gains remote access to a control system, they could potentially shut down power grids or contaminate water supplies. These cyber-enabled threats often target the increased connectivity between IT networks and operational technology.
Successful attacks lead to more than just financial loss. Here’s what’s at stake:
- Major operational disruption and reduced uptime.
- Hefty regulatory penalties for non-compliance.
- Severe damage to public confidence in essential services.
- Supply chain vulnerabilities where attackers target contractors to reach the main network.
5 Key Challenges in Securing Critical Infrastructure
Securing large-scale infrastructure presents unique hurdles that traditional security models often fail to address. Here’s why it’s a significant operational challenge:
- Massive Geographical Footprint: Assets like power networks and transport systems often involve hundreds of remote sites. Protecting these locations 24/7 with limited on-site security teams is difficult.
- Disconnected Security Systems: Many facilities rely on isolated setups. When video, access control, and alarms don't communicate, it creates gaps in monitoring. This leads to slower response times as operators manually switch between screens.
- Legacy Limitations: Relying on older systems makes it harder to maintain modern standards for encryption and authentication, leaving sites vulnerable to cyber-physical compromise.
- Compliance and Regulatory Pressures: Standards for critical infrastructure protection are frequently updated. You need systems flexible enough to align with new laws without disrupting daily productivity.
- Operational Coordination: Security teams must work closely with IT and operations. Balancing strict security measures with the need for smooth, continuous asset operation is a constant tension.
How Gallagher’s Integrated Security Solutions Address These Challenges
We use an integrated approach to provide comprehensive security solutions for critical infrastructure. Our Command Centre platform unifies access control, intruder alarms, and perimeter security into a single management platform. It can also integrate with video management systems and existing IT infrastructure.
This integration supports real-time monitoring of events across your entire network. Instead of managing separate tools, operators see all alarms and activity in a single view. This provides a clearer picture of what’s happening at any location. It allows for a faster and more accurate response to incidents.
Gallagher solutions are highly scalable. They can be deployed at different types of facilities:
- Small, unmanned utility assets.
- Massive national transport networks.
- High-security data centers and server farms.
We help you tailor the configuration to your specific environment. This ensures the system grows as your operational requirements change.
Why Integration Is Critical for Critical Infrastructure
Integrated systems help support faster incident response by automating the flow of information. When an alarm triggers at a remote perimeter fence, Command Centre can automatically pull up the nearest camera feed and lock down nearby access points. This reduces system complexity for the operator.
Also, integration improves data consistency. By coordinating alarms, access events, and plant status in one view, you can enhance operational efficiency. It allows security teams to work alongside IT and operations with a shared understanding of the site status.
Strengthening Perimeter Security for Critical Sites
Our perimeter security solutions include monitored fencing, intrusion detection, and integrated vehicle access control. These technologies form part of a broader perimeter defense strategy. They’re designed to help deter and detect unauthorized access. By identifying a threat at the fence line, security teams can respond to potential intrusions before risks escalate.
Reliable perimeter detection is vital for remote sites where security personnel aren't always present. Gallagher’s sensors provide early awareness of an attempted breach. Our monitored pulse fencing detects climbers or cuts and acts as a powerful physical deterrent. These systems help mitigate the risk of intruders reaching sensitive internal equipment.
We don't suggest that perimeter solutions alone prevent all breaches. Instead, they help reduce the likelihood of an intruder going unnoticed. When used as part of a layered approach, they provide the time needed for security teams to intervene effectively.
Protecting People and Ensuring Compliance
Beyond keeping intruders out, a primary goal is fulfilling your duty of care to staff and contractors. Gallagher's access control manages the safety and competency of every person on site.
- Check Competencies at the Door: Ensure personnel are capable and qualified before they enter a hazardous zone. You can monitor inductions, licenses, and training in real-time.
- Automated Compliance: Command Centre can automatically check HR and SMS data to ensure cardholders meet organizational policies or government regulations like electrical licenses or first aid certifications.
- Random Selection: Use random cardholder selection at turnstiles for drug and alcohol testing or licensing spot checks, ensuring ongoing compliance without slowing down the entire workforce.
- Mobile Credentials: Use Bluetooth-enabled mobile credentials to allow staff to access gates and high-security areas without handling physical cards, which is ideal for remote utility workers.
These features ensure that access isn't just about security, but about safety and operational efficiency. By automating these checks, you reduce manual administration and the risk of human error.
Integrating Physical Access with Wider Cyber Security Measures
Linking physical access controls with cyber security measures creates a more unified defense. This approach provides several significant benefits:
- Modern Identity Strategy: Gallagher now supports Microsoft Entra ID Sync and Single Sign-On (SSO). This allows your IT teams to manage operator access centrally, reducing reliance on legacy infrastructure.
- Logic-based access: A site might require a user to badge into a building physically before their IT login will work.
- Unified defense: It helps protect against both physical and cyber-enabled threats.
- Strict asset control: You can enforce policies for network cabinets and operational technology interfaces.
Simply put, if an attacker can't get physical access to a server, they have one less way to compromise your network.
Real World Applications of Gallagher Solutions in Critical Infrastructure
Contact Energy provides a clear example of how Gallagher helps manage high-stakes energy assets. With over 20 years in operation, Contact manages a expansive portfolio including 11 power stations, producing 80-85% of their electricity from renewable hydro and geothermal sources.
The Problem: Slow Evacuations and Safety Gaps
Operating across remote hydro plants and geothermal sites, Contact Energy needed to solve two key safety issues:
- Evacuation Speed: Their physical tag-board system was too slow. In an emergency, it could take 20 minutes or more to locate everyone on site.
- Authorization Control: They needed a robust way to ensure only qualified personnel entered hazardous work zones across their nine power stations.
The Solution: Integrated Command Centre
Contact Energy has used Gallagher for over 18 years, recently expanding the system to cover all nine power stations, corporate offices, and call centers.
- Competency Linking: By linking site access to specific qualifications in Command Centre, they ensure only those with the correct training can enter high-risk areas.
- Visual Verification: Integrated cameras show exactly where breaches occur. When a fence-jumping incident happened recently, the system immediately pinpointed the location.
- Emergency Management: The manual tag boards were replaced with digital visitor management.
Data-Driven Results
The shift to Gallagher transformed their operational safety metrics:
- Evacuation Response: Reduced from 20+ minutes to just a few minutes to account for every person on site.
- Site Coverage: Expanded from two initial generation sites to a unified network of 13 key locations.
"With Gallagher’s visitor management capability, we can account for every person on site within a few minutes and make sure everyone gets out safely," says Lee Paterson, Technical Lead at Contact Energy. "It’s easy to pre-register visitors and keep track of who’s on site. Our plan is to connect all our sites to the system."
The Future of Critical Infrastructure Security
Gallagher solutions are designed to be scalable and adaptable. As threats change, our technology evolves. We focus on innovation and continuous improvement to help you respond to emerging risks. This might include:
- Using advanced analytics to identify unusual behavior patterns.
- Increasing automation to handle routine security tasks.
- Deeper integration between IT and operational technology systems.
We’re building the tools to help you manage this transition safely. By focusing on robust encryption and strong authentication, we help ensure your security system remains a strength rather than a vulnerability.
Take Action: Protect Your Critical Infrastructure Today
Securing vital national assets requires a partner with deep expertise in high-risk environments. Gallagher can help you move away from isolated systems toward a modern, integrated strategy for critical infrastructure protection.
We encourage you to engage with Gallagher for a consultation or a site review. Our team can demonstrate how these solutions support your specific safety and compliance goals. Contact Gallagher or a Gallagher channel partner today to discuss your critical infrastructure security and take the first step in enhancing your site's resilience.