For owners of shipping facilities or warehouse storage, there is no faster way to lose profit than becoming a victim of cargo theft. Through a variety of means, over 200 cargo thefts were committed in the first quarter of this year, costing on average nearly $300,000. If you don’t wish to join the increasing number of cargo theft victims, it will require a comprehensive approach to your security. Criminals are experienced, cunning, and often well-equipped to gain access to poorly secured facilities. Here’s five ways to optimize your warehouse security and help secure your facilities from unauthorized access.
- Security Cameras—You can’t be everywhere at once. Remote security cameras allow you to have eyes across your facility, monitoring every room and hallway at all times. Additionally, the presence of multiple cameras is often enough to deter most criminals, especially when employed alongside other security measures.
- Lighting—Illicit activity thrives in poorly lighted areas. To allow your security cameras and any posted security officers the best chance at identifying threats, you must ensure all exterior and interior areas of your facility are adequately lit so as to prevent criminals from using darkness to gain unauthorized access.
- Alarm System—Alarm systems are beneficial for a variety of security reasons. First and foremost, it allows for rapid notification that unauthorized access is occurring, and can dispatch security or law enforcement to address that access as soon as possible. Additionally, this rapid arrival of law enforcement increases the likelihood that the intruders will be apprehended at the scene, and decreases the time the intruders have to steal your inventory and escape. Posting signs that notify the premises is monitored by a remote security system also is an excellent way to deter unauthorized access.
- Security Officer Patrols—Posted security officers are the best deterrent for unauthorized access. Most criminals are focused on cargo theft, and security officer patrols impede their ability to gain access to that inventory. Frequent, randomized security patrols offer a fantastic ability for physical security to identify anything suspicious or out hazardous, as well as preventing would-be criminals from planning their entry on a routine schedule.
- Access Control—Preventing unauthorized access oftentimes comes down to access control. Strong, reinforced doors and locks are more durable against forced entry methods and increase the difficulty of gaining unauthorized access. Additionally, access control must take other points of access into consideration, such as windows. Ideally, any windows will be located high up or on the ceiling, and will be reinforced to prevent unauthorized access. If the windows are at ground level, several measures may need to be implemented to resist entry attempts, such as reinforced glass, window locks, or steel bars to cover the window.
Maintaining your warehouse security requires a multilayered, comprehensive approach. Implementing a variety of security measures that allow for constant surveillance, robust access control, and rapid response from security and law enforcement make your premises difficult to victimize, and most often, that is all it takes, as criminals enjoy exploiting easy targets with weak or minimal security. With these five methods, you can optimize your warehouse security better than the vast majority of most, but that’s not where your security optimization should stop. To begin building a truly comprehensive security system, contact JS Security Consulting and schedule your free consultation today.