Site security in a construction project location can sometimes be neglected by the project management. They’re not really completed structures yet so they’re often left open with all sorts of tools scattered around. Strangers walking in and out of the site are just ignored and disregarded. Often, they don’t have electricity and water yet so they assume that there’s nothing to lose inside a project site.
However, there are a lot of construction tools and valuable equipment often lying around a project site. These tools are quite expensive and the construction company spent a fortune to acquire them for use in their projects. In recent years, construction firms have become more conscious of securing a building site and everything inside it after a series of thefts have happened and billions of losses took a toll on construction companies because of these criminal acts.
Fortunately, there are steps you can take to boost your construction site’s security and safety for the long haul. Here are some of them:
- Secure The Perimeter
One of the most basic and essential tasks that need to be done to boost construction site security is to secure the perimeter of the project location. The best way to keep people out of your property is to fence them out to keep your site safe and secure. Fences and gates are great deterrents for potential thieves and trespassers because they consider enclosed areas an obstacle.
It’s advisable to also put locks and chains to seal the entrances and exits to and from your property. In addition, you may also want to consider putting barbed wire around the top area of your fence to prevent people from climbing over.
To make the most of your perimeter fence, you can also think of ways to use the posts and fences to secure the immediate surroundings. You can install a motion sensor outdoor light in every perimeter post to dissuade unlawful individuals from entering the site’s premises.
- Install Surveillance Camera System
The most effective way of boosting security in and around your construction site would be to install a site CCTV surveillance system. Surveillance cameras can help prevent would-be intruders from trespassing into your site. The mere presence of these video cameras will deter potential intruders. When potential intruders see the cameras, it would make them think twice whether they should go on with what they’re planning to do because there are eyes all over the place.
If you want to have the highest level of security monitoring for your entire construction site, then you should consider having surveillance video camera systems installed. Current technology of surveillance video camera systems allows remote control and monitoring.
This means the people in charge of operating your surveillance cameras and monitoring what’s happening don’t have to be onsite to see what the cameras can see. They can be at home or even on the field. They can monitor the cameras using tablets and other devices. This can save time and money for your company since you won’t need a lot of people going around the project site at night to monitor.
- Use AI Applications And Alerts
You can even take your surveillance video camera system to the next level by deploying more advanced surveillance and threat recognition technologies. Data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) systems have now been integrated with surveillance camera systems. With AI software applications, the surveillance cameras can be trained to focus on irregular events and activities.
For example, AI could tell the cameras to ignore harmless motions such as pieces of paper or plastic bags being flown by the wind. But the AI application could be put on alert if somebody tries to approach the perimeter fences or locked gates of the project site. If someone takes a peek inside, the AI can send alerts to the monitoring team that there’s someone who might try to get in.
The AI application can also zoom on the faces of potential intruders to capture and document their identities. These images will then be sent out to the monitoring team. When the monitoring personnel receive video verified alarms, they can decide whether this is just a curious but harmless passerby, or whether it represents a serious threat. They can immediately contact the law enforcement authorities and ask for help.
- Light Up Dark Areas
Lighting is another important aspect of construction site security that you should look into. You might want to inspect the dark areas and farthest corners of your construction site. Intruders like to make their move at night because darkness is a natural cover for whatever they’re planning to do. Most construction sites are quite spacious, since some of the areas meant for lawns and parking are part of the site. Even in construction sites with smaller areas, it’s common for the corners to be unlighted at night.
You can boost security on your construction site by putting more lights around the perimeter and in dark corners. Try to identify which areas are darkest at night and which areas are possible hiding places for any intruders or lurkers who might be planning to steal something from the construction site. By putting in more lights, it would deter potential intruders since they know it would be more difficult to move in and hide even at night.
- Limit People Who Can Come In
Even though most burglars and intruders like to barge in at night, it doesn’t mean your site is completely safe during the day even if you just leave things lying around. It’s not advisable to let your guard down during the day because some intruders know this and might take advantage during those times when you slack off.
You can boost the security around your construction site further by putting in place some controls on the ingress and egress of people in and out of the entire area. In the past, what they did was to put fences around the perimeter of the project site. The fences were typically made of aluminum sheets stacked against steel frames. Entry was limited to certain entrances which were locked when not in use. Only authorized workers and personnel were given keys to the locks. Nowadays, these have been replaced by access cards due to advanced technology and for an added layer of security.
Conclusion
Construction site security has already become a major concern of construction project management teams. Unauthorized intrusions to the project site tend to cause lost items and disruptions to the working environment. This is why it’s important to think of ways of boosting the security of your construction site. Keep in mind the viable steps that were mentioned in this article to guide you through efficiently securing your construction project’s site.