The Technical Advantages of SPC

Since its launch in 2013, the SPC intrusion alarm system has quickly grown to be among the elite intrusion alarm systems used in multiple high-end security projects. Installed in major retail chains, banks, government projects, commercial businesses, and private homes, SPC is a flagship Vanderbilt product.

Nick Pegtol, Region Manager International Sales & Global Accounts at Vanderbilt, gives his thoughts on the product’s success with customers. “To win security projects, one must be able to convert customer wishes into workable processes that are sometimes not part of the standard feature set of a system.

“SPC can be custom programmed using triggers, virtual inputs, and mapping gates controlled by a single or combination of system events, status, calendar, time of day, or duration timer. Being able to say ‘yes, we can program that with SPC’ has won our customers many projects already,” says Pegtol.

Nick Cuthbert, a Commissioning Engineer at NCMN and is a regular user of SPC.In Cuthbert’s view, SPC is professional and designed to meet the needs of a high-security system. He cites an example of his experience using SPC, stating, “We needed to link 20 plus circuits to outputs. On other systems, it’s quite complex. It took me 5 minutes on SPC."

Alexander Scheffold is the Senior Product Manager for SPC and thus has an intimate knowledge of the product’s strengths. “There are several key features to SPC’s success and longevity,” believes Scheffold. “The double RS-485 X-BUS of the SPC alarm system with its unprecedented maximum range of more than 50 kilometers and optional ring topology allows for re-use of existing cabling in many cases. This makes the SPC intrusion alarm system a cost-effective and competitive choice.”

M'Fitel Yassine, Commercial Technician at Serviacomm, hums a similar tune to Scheffold, noting the benefits of SPC’s RS48 BUS. Yassine begins, "I would describe SPC as professional. My favorite feature is the scope and reliability of the RS485 BUS. The main benefit I experienced using SPC is access control with a connection of any reader." 

Integration into and collaboration with other security and building management systems has been a strategic pillar for Vanderbilt for many years. The IP communication paths of the SPC intrusion alarm system are a vital contributor to its success. This allows for integration into VMS systems like Milestone’s XProtect, Genetec Security Center, and Qognify NICEvision, PSIM systems like Advancis Winguard, Prysm App control, Entelec Skywalker, Siemens Desigo CC, Sympatron Patronum, and access control systems like Vanderbilt’s ACTpro, AMAG Symmetry, and LenelS2 OnGuard.

Vanderbilt sells the SPC intrusion alarm system in most European countries, and with that comes the need for local approvals. Pegtol describes the level of detail Vanderbilt has covered here to ensure that SPC has reach into all markets. “The SPC intrusion alarm panels are certified for EN50131-1 Grade 2 and Grade 3 and hold the local certificate equivalents for Germany (VdS), U.K. (PD6662), Belgium (INCERT), France (NF A2P), Italy (IMQ), and Sweden (SBSC SSF114),” he says.

“This allows the security integrators and end-customers to use a single intrusion alarm system across borders, still meeting local insurance and government requirements. In 2019 the SPC alarm system was accredited to Europe’s first Cyber Security certification for intrusion alarm panels, the French NF A2P Cyber RTC certification, which tests on robustness to cyber-attacks,” concludes Pegtol.