With over 25 million valuable items marked worldwide, numerous crime reduction initiatives in operation, and an expanding international market, Selectamark plc has seen 25 years in business.
The Kent-based company, which has been providing property marking solutions since 1985, reports it’s busier than ever with crime prevention projects in development.
The early years
Twenty five years ago, it was a very different story. The company’s founder and chairman, Jim Brown, was introducing his new product Selectamark to local police forces who were trying to reduce household burglaries.
Recalling the early years, Jim said: “Back then, we honestly didn’t know how things would progress, we just wanted to help the police do their job by offering them a product that was new to the market, but which we were confident would help reduce crime.
“At the time, it was difficult to persuade some of the senior police officers to back the idea of property marking which was new and unproven, but we continued to work closely with Crime Prevention Officers who had faith in the concept. We had a lot of early morning starts and late night finishes helping the CPOs with their crime prevention campaigns, and after a while, the crime statistics started to fall.
“This was when things really started to take off for us. It was not just the fact that property marked with the owner’s details was proving a deterrent for burglars – but the fact that it makes the job easier for police when a suspect is arrested with property that is easily traceable to its rightful owner.”
Jim is still at the helm of the company, with Andrew Knights as managing director, and Jim’s two sons Jason and James working as head of business development and sales director respectively, making it a true family business.
The original product
Selectamark (www.selectamark.co.uk) is the company’s original marking product and involves a chemical compound and a customised stencil. It is still a visible theft deterrent today, often being used with tamper proof labels. Six hundred schools in Melbourne, Australia use Selectamark to protect valuable IT equipment, and in Hong Kong all universities and hospitals use the product as well.
Selectamark also uses state-of-the-art RFID tags with traditional property marking to deter theft of caravans and marine craft. A scheme using a Selectamark marine kit is currently in operation in the British Virgin Islands to protect expensive boats that are moored there. Other products include a range of asset and security labels, the national cycle registration scheme Bikeregister and the popular Chelsea Clip, which is being used to secure bags and valuables in hundreds of bars, restaurants and hotels all over the UK.
Forensic science
Selectamark has over the last 25 years carried out extensive research into new products to keep ahead of the market, updating its range to include the latest in DNA forensic property marking systems. SelectaDNA (www.selectadna.co.uk) was launched in 2004 and like the Selectamark system holds the Police Preferred Secured By Design accreditation. The product covertly marks items of value or criminals to uniquely identify them by using synthetic DNA to link them to a crime.
It has already proved to be a crime reduction tool by numerous police forces throughout the UK and internationally, with theft reduced by up to 85 per cent in some areas. SelectaDNA has been successfully used by large companies such as GlaxoSmithKline to protect their IT equipment, as well as deterring theft of unique and valuable vehicles in the world-famous National Motor Museum at Beaulieu. The product has also been issued by police to residents whose homes were affected by flooding in Cumbria.
Schools have used SelectaDNA to protect their computers, interactive whiteboards and even musical instruments. The £250,000 cost of theft of computer equipment from schools in the London Borough of Havering over an 18-month period was dramatically cut, with only one burglary reported after SelectaDNA was introduced.
All 300 schools in Oxfordshire are now using SelectaDNA kits to mark computers and other IT equipment; and all 170 schools governed by Dorset County Council are doing the same.
Following police-backed crime prevention schemes using SelectaDNA across London, residential burglaries in Westminster were reduced by 65pc in the Queensway area; in East Dulwich burglary fell by 55pc; and a 70pc drop was achieved in North Devon.
Ealing Hospital, in Middlesex, marked over 1,000 items including monitors and computers, and enjoyed an 18-month period when not one piece of equipment was reported stolen. Overseas, rail track and vital electrical equipment belonging to ProRail, the national rail operator in the Netherlands, is being protected by advanced SelectaDNA technology.
The link
SelectaDNA also comes in a grease solution to prevent and deter metal theft of items such as lead roofs, copper piping and manhole covers, and in a gel for the protection of indoor materials.
The gel is also being used in police ‘sting’ operations in which, for instance, a car thief’s hands will carry traces of the gel, enabling the police to trace the suspect back to the original crime scene.
The latest Hydra intruder spray has been deterring retail burglary and smash-and-grab raids in the UK and overseas. It has been installed in every branch of the Bank of New Zealand to deter would-be bank robbers and is also being used in McDonald’s restaurants in the Netherlands, and selected retail stores the UK.
As a burglar enters the protected building, they are sprayed with the unique DNA-coded liquid that remains visible on skin for up to a fortnight, and on clothing for up to six months – providing a clear forensic link to that particular break-in.
Breaking the cycle
Hand-in-hand with property marking, Selectamark’s quality-assured BikeRegister database (www.bikeregister.com) was developed in 2001. BikeRegister is known as the online ‘log book’ for bikes, and enables owners to mark their cycles with a unique mark, a job that takes less than a minute to do.
The bike is then registered on a police-approved online database, which can be accessed if the bike is stolen and recovered, resulting in bikes being reunited with relieved owners.
Since introducing a BikeRegister scheme in Chichester, the rate of cycle thefts has fallen by 44pc in the city centre. Meanwhile, over 30,000 bikes have been security-marked using BikeRegister kits over the last five years in the London Boroughs of Richmond, Westminster, and Kingston.
According to the latest figures from British Transport Police, bike thefts from railway stations in Richmond are down from 130 in 2008-9 to 85 in 2009-10, a drop of nearly 40pc.
A free online registration service is now available to users of bikeregister.com
Selectamark serves its customers both directly and through a growing network of distributors. Selectamark’s security systems are patented and distributed to every Continent in the world. The company’s success has a lot to do with its focus on customer service. Andrew Knights, Selectamark’s Managing Director, said: "Every company will tell you about their commitment to customer service, but actually delivering on that commitment is a different matter altogether. Our business has grown over the years because we pride ourselves on top quality products, the best customer service and exceptional value. In fact, repeat business is growing as more and more satisfied customers return to us year after year.”
Secured by Design
Selectamark products have Secured by Design status and many insurance companies actively recommend the Selectamark system to their policyholders, with some making it a condition of insurance cover.
Looking forward
Selectamark chairman, Jim Brown concluded: “Everyone who owns property needs to have it identified to prove ownership and prevent and deter theft. I am proud to be able to say that Selectamark’s products are exported to some 30 countries around the world, and that our ingenious development team continues to come up with new products and systems to maintain our lead in the property marking sector.”
Selectamark Security Systems plc, 1 Locks Court, 429 Crofton Road, Locksbottom, Kent, BR6 8NL. Telephone: +44 1689 860757. Fax: +44 1689 860693.
E-mail: [email protected]
