WEST POINT, Pa.—As a result of Sept. 11, the world’s No. 3 drug maker, Merck & Co. Inc. of Whitehouse Station, N.J., which produces such prescription drugs as Vioxx and Singulair, recently re-evaluated security at its West Point, Pa., site, the company’s largest manufacturing and research facility.

“After Sept. 11, we assessed the plant site’s perimeter security, lighting around the facility, installing more cameras around the perimeter and proposing improvements, such as enhancements to existing security systems,” says Jack Scott, director of security for Merck’s West Point site.  According to Scott and Security Operations Manager Mike Peters, the installment of electronic security equipment at the facility has been an ongoing process for the past five years. However, “since Sept. 11, the pace has picked up,” says Scott.

The facility’s access card system recently transitioned to a new system by Andover Controls of Andover, Mass. The main access control system installed is the Infinity FX8000 system, which monitors all workstations at the site. The site contains approximately 140 buildings and 10,000 employees. “There’s also thousands of alarms, CCTV systems from Philips, turnstiles from Alvarado [Manufacturing Facility Co. Inc.] and HID prox readers.”

Scott and Peters say that the integrated security system there has affected the way employees work and the way visitors enter the facility. “We have thousands of deputies [employees] that have helped secure our site more since Sept. 11,” says Peters. He adds that the company has increased the searching of vehicles entering secure areas. “We have received outstanding feedback from visitors and employees, thanking us for the security measures,” he says.

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