Corrections / Justice

Project Profile: San Francisco Jail, San Bruno, California

Project: Forensic and Commissioning

Scope of Work: Professional Systems Engineering, LLC (PSE) provided an independent third-party professional review of the security system and special wired and wireless communication systems, to determine whether the systems were fully operational, met current industry standards, and complied with the contract documents.

PSE aided the client in closing a protracted litigation situation that pitched the district attorney’s office against an embittered, long-delayed, construction management team. PSE provided rigid support to the construction team, which led to a stronger negotiation position, yielding millions in withheld payments to the contractor.

This also required PSE’s staff to evaluate the operational vs. equipment provisioning of the design/builder. PSE’s “frontline” knowledge of justice and enforcement procedure added significant credibility to the team’s success prevailing over arduous circumstances.

PSE’s services included review and analysis of relevant drawings, specifications, documents, on-site field review and inspection, and testing/commissioning of systems. PSE documented its findings in written reports and photographic evidence.

The City and County of San Francisco Jail #3 is a Replacement Project of approximately 375,000 sq. ft., containing 768 beds, grouped into 8 split housing units, with a construction cost of $115 million.

The following security systems were reviewed and commissioned by PSE:

• Door control and monitoring system
• Security intercom and zoned paging systems
• Digital CCTV and archival recording
• Duress alarm system with wireless paging
• Central control console

• Noise monitor alarm system
• Visitor telephone system
• Graphic control panels
• Console layouts/accessibility
• Wiring/dressing/interconnections
• Programmable logic control
• Utility and take-over control