Water company gets Smart
Water company Severn Trent has introduced a hi-tech marking system in a bid to thwart criminals.
The firm, which supplies water to homes across counties including Warwickshire, Leicestershire, and Shropshire has suffered a number of thefts in the past 18 months, with thieves pilfering metal to sell on as scrap. Metal including steel mesh and walkway grids have proved particularly attractive to thieves.
After recording losses of £950,000, the company has installed SmartWater, an advanced marking system, which makes it easy for police to identify stolen goods. Officials at the company hope the product, which is odourless and invisible, will be effective in putting a stop to burglars in future.
Fraser Pithie, senior operations manager at Severn Trent, said: “We have been looking at ways of making our sites less vulnerable and finding better ways of tracking down those responsible for the thefts. All items at our sites are now marked with the SmartWater product, which is invisible to the naked eye but visible under UV lights.”
SmartWater Chief Executive, Phil Cleary said: “SmartWater is well known to the criminal fraternity as it has successfully been used to convict more than 600 offenders to date.”