Securing your business has never been more important. More and more businesses have made large investments in equipment and technology, vehicles and stock – but frequently they have not updated or invested in their site security. Here are our top security tips for your business.
Cameras
Cameras are not only one of the best ways of identifying and tracking down any vandals or burglars – they also provide a great deterrent. Make sure your cameras can be seen clearly by would-be intruders, but are out of reach so that they cannot easily be damaged or disconnected. You can also use signage to highlight the fact that people are being recorded.
Outbuildings
Use good quality padlocks to secure outbuildings, gates and perimeter access points. If your padlock is going to be outside, make sure it is weather-proof and not prone to rusting – otherwise you will have to replace it more often than you’d like. If you need to share access, you can find heavy-duty padlocks that operate with a combination rather than a key – the added benefit of which is that you can change the combination periodically to ensure access is managed correctly.
It is important to choose industrial swing gates that are suitable for the specific needs of your facility, taking into account factors such as traffic volume, security requirements, and budget.
Locks
Just like when you move house, you need to change the locks on your business premises. You probably don’t know when they were changed last, or by whom, and it is possible that many different people have got keys that fit your locks. Changing your locks when you first move in is best practice – but it is also good to change them periodically over longer periods of tenure, as the keys you have issued to people may have started to go missing or the employees may have moved on and you need to restrict their access.
Alarms
Modern alarms don’t just rely on a noise to alert people in the neighbourhood that something is amiss – you can get alerts straight to your phone and access your cameras remotely to assess the situation before calling emergency services – ensuring that you get the quickest possible response.
Lighting
Your premises are significantly less likely to be targeted by criminals if they are well lit. Make sure that this applies to your car park and the area surrounding your building and leave some internal lights on to further discourage intruders. Criminals don’t want to go about their business if they think that they can be easily seen (and reported) by passers-by – even less so if they think there might be employees or security personnel on site.
Safes
In the event that your business is broken into in spite of all these efforts – you’ll be a lot better off if valuable goods, equipment, documents, cash and data are locked away in a decent safe. Make sure it is correctly installed (otherwise you’re just collecting your valuables in an easy to take away box) and that keys or access codes are closely managed. Above all – make sure you use your safe. It is easy to become complacent when you’ve had sustained periods of trouble-free operations – make it part of your end-of-day routine to lock everything mission-critical or valuable away safely.