Construction sites in North America house valuable assets like tools, machinery, copper wiring, as well as other costly supplies. Managers and general contractors should consider creating a construction site security plan to help protect their properties from vandals, thieves, and trespassers.
What Should You Include in Your Construction Site Security Plan?
1)Increased Lighting
Construction sites are very attractive to thieves looking for materials. These locations are typically large, open, and not well lit at night. Thieves take advantage of these circumstances and sneak onto a project site when workers leave for the day.
Installing additional lighting near entrances, building materials, and expensive machinery is a simple solution to deter criminals. Effective lighting eliminates hiding places. For an even bigger impact, install motion-activated lights that turn on automatically when motion is detected.
2) Fences and Locks
Perimeter control is one of the most common, yet under-utilized tactics to deter theft. Fences around the perimeter of a construction site are generally inexpensive. The mere sight of a fence sends a message that the area is unauthorized and entry is off-limits. However, by itself, a fence often won’t deter a determined thief who can easily jump it or cut a hole in it.
Traditional physical locks can deter access for criminals, but a better alternative is a digital access control system. This electronic locking solution uses key cards or code locks which can increase construction site security exponentially.
3) Security Guards
Security guards are one of the more expensive construction site theft deterrent solutions. They can increase protection by adding a human presence on-site.
There are disadvantages associated with a security guard service. On average, a guard can earn between $18,600 – $38,700 annually. The price will increase if there are multiple guards on-site. Security guards can only be in one place at a time and can get easily distracted or worse, have their safety jeopardized.
4) Remote Video Surveillance
Traditional video security involves outdoor security cameras that record activity on a construction site. The disadvantage is the cameras cannot deter or stop theft or vandalism by themselves. At best, recorded security video can only serve as evidence after the theft has occurred.
Remote video surveillance is a modern alternative. Trained construction site security operators watch a property in real time. If suspicious activity occurs on a construction site, the security operator can activate a speaker warning to deter the thieves. If the situation escalates, the operator can call the local police.
Insurance may offset some of the financial costs of equipment theft. Many uninsured costs like deductibles, equipment replacement and production delays are paid by contractors. A good construction site security plan can help deter theft of valuable materials.
To learn more about about you can secure your construction site, please visit our construction security solutions page.
