PERFORMANCE EVALLUATION OF A PHYSICAL SECURITY SYSTEM USING A SPREAD SHEET BASED INTEGRATION MODEL ON A PERSONAL COMPUTER (PEPS4IM)

The authors have developed a spread sheet based methodology for evaluating physical security systems. A top down systems integration approach is used to review the system against predetermined parameters to aid in the screening and identification of areas of desired performance evaluation. A physical security system is first defined in terms of separate layers or subsystems and a hierarchical structure constructed. Each level is defined in terms of attributes that can be quantified. Through inspection and evaluation, values are assigned. From the lowest level up, the hierarchical structure is aggregated to a top level summary matrix. The individual subsystems can be modified for sensitivity analysis and impact on the overall system. Advantages are: (1) Flexibility, all or only parts of the system can be evaluated as desired, (2) The evaluation is quantified for comparison purposes, (3) Sensitivity analysis can be performed to model future changes and/or determine strengths and weaknesses of the current system. The current model uses the PC version of Microsoft Excel because each cell of the spread sheet can be \"tagged\" with explanatory notes and equations. This self documenting capability allows a thorough audit trail for future review and analysis.