When embarking on a construction project, you want to ensure everything will go to plan, from start to finish. While you might not be able to control the weather or other extremities, you can take steps to avoid any security breaches and theft that may slow down the project.
Every week in the UK close to £1 million of equipment is stolen from construction sites, and only a lucky 10% of individuals who have fallen victim to theft have their stolen items and equipment returned to them.
It’s more important than ever to ensure your construction site is secure against intruders, vandals and theft!
Here are 5 top tips on what you must consider when securing your construction site.
Go Remote
Remote CCTV monitoring allows your construction site to remain secure and can save your business both time and money, all the while ensuring that nothing is damaged or stolen from the site. These systems, like the service we provide here at CCTV Monitoring, can keep track of premises for a long time and have a super-fast response rate should an intruder be spotted – usually without letting the intruder know they’ve been caught red-handed!
Alarms are also great in keeping your site secure too. They give the criminal a good shock, and it is likely that they will be scared away before they are able to cause serious damage to the site.
Installing a CCTV system also provides you with added leverage should your site experience vandalism or theft, as the recording can be used as evidence for the police and authorities to track down the vandal.
Make the most of Obstacles
Sometimes something as simple as a fence or wall around your construction site can be enough to keep out intruders. This is an extra obstacle they must overcome to reach their goal, and as many thieves are looking for a quick fix and an easy opportunity, may be enough to make some reconsider entering your site.
However, there’s no point in having a fence installed if it is not properly maintained. Keep a close watch on the perimeter of your site and fix any gaps or holes in the fencing as soon as they appear, otherwise, your first defensive barrier is useless!
Install Warning Signs
While warning signs may not be a physical obstacle between the thieves and your construction site, they can be a good way of discouraging any intruders who may have ventured further into the construction site.
If would-be thieves see a sign that lets them know they’re being watched, and their actions are going to appear on CCTV, they’re more likely to retreat and move on to a less secure site.
Store Valuables in Unlikely Places
While this is not going to prevent damage to the site, it is a good way of keeping expensive equipment out of the hands of thieves, who may be looking to steal and then sell this on the black market.
Shipping containers are a very secure storage place for expensive equipment and tools. They’re incredibly durable and tough, which means that breaking into them would be difficult. This would take a lot of time and effort to do, and because thieves can’t see the contents inside the container would be less inclined to spend their time trying to break in when they could be risking opening an empty container.
Use Good Lighting
Installing good security lighting on your construction site has a number of benefits.
First of all lights make trespassers easier to spot on camera, especially if they are dressed in dark clothing to try and avoid detection. It also makes them easier to identify should you need to at a later date.
The lights, similarly to obstacles like fences, may also deter criminals from even considering your site in the first place. They may believe that workers are still present if the lights are left on, and may cause them to seek out an easier target without even trying to steal from your site.
