E.W. Howe once wrote, “Many a man is saved from being a thief by finding everything locked up.” Unfortunately for many in the construction industry, their sites are making thieves of many men, and losing them billions of dollars in the process. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau and the National Equipment Register’s most recent statistics, construction site theft has skyrocketed to the tune of 300 million to 1 billion dollars. Even more worrying, this amount reflects only the cost of the stolen goods, and not the countless dollars worth of time lost to filing police reports and waiting for replacement materials to arrive. With material costs continuing to climb, construction sites are becoming irresistible targets for thieves, and unsecured sites are the perfect heists. If you don’t want your inventory filling their pockets, it’s time to secure your site.

Construction sites require a variety of security to ensure total protection. To ensure your equipment, materials, and property are protected, you need a comprehensive security plan. Here’s where to start:

  • Lighting—Thieves don’t enjoy operating in well-lit areas. Installing temporary lighting throughout your site, or at least in areas with expensive materials and equipment, will discourage trespassing and offer your video surveillance a better chance of capturing identifying footage of anyone bold enough to enter with ill intent.
  • Video Surveillance—When securing a large property with expensive materials and equipment, you can’t have blind spots. With a robust network of video surveillance, you gain an excellent deterrent against incursions while ensuring the whole of your property is monitored and protected from those who might attempt to trespass.
  • Security Personnel—While security cameras absolutely will deter many would-be thieves, there is nothing better than on-site security personnel to discourage trespassing and theft. The benefits of trained, professional security guards cannot be overstated, and while they lack the omniscient view of video surveillance, their presence is often more than enough to keep your site out of the crosshairs.
  • Equipment Registry and Retention—Accountability of your materials and equipment is one of the most effective ways to maintain loss prevention on construction sites. Markings, tags, and other identifying marks discourage theft, allow greater chance of recovery if stolen, and allow you to maintain a spotless paper trail. Equipment retention encourages the storage or securing of any and all equipment you can to prevent its theft or transportation from the site without a tremendous amount of effort.
  • Fences and Barriers—Limiting access to your site will discourage unauthorized entrance both to those with ill intent or simple trespassers. Fencing will greatly increase the difficulty of entering the property, observing your equipment and materials for theft, and in conjunction with secure entrances and exits, greatly allow you to monitor who enters and exits your property at all times.
  • Secure Entrances and Exits—If a thief or unauthorized person cannot access your site, they cannot steal from it! Limiting the amount of entrances and exits to your sites in addition to installing automated turnstiles or gates will add another layer of security to your site, and allow you to only admit those authorized to enter.

Starting with these key considerations, you can begin to create a comprehensive security plan for your construction site. Trying to think like a thief would suggest that the more difficult and inconvenient your site is to access and burglarize, the less likely a thief is to attempt entry. Unfortunately, thieves are intelligent, adaptable, and increasingly motivated to gain access and possession of your equipment and materials. To stay ahead of the curve, turn to a security company with over 100 years of combined security experience that can create and supply the best security plan for you and your site, JS Security Consulting. Our expert team will ensure you are protected from any and all potential threats, as well as conduct regular audits of our systems, guaranteeing that as your needs adapt, so will your security. Don’t wait for someone to show you where your security systems are lacking by walking out the door with your equipment and materials. Schedule your free consultation with JS Security Consulting today, and let us keep you safe and secure, so you can focus on doing your jobs with the peace of mind only preparation allows.