Public buildings and company campuses and offices may sometimes be the target of criminal activity, and criminals in a commercial building may be rivals from another company looking to steal sensitive information, or they may be burglars looking to steal valuable items or even physical cash. Such crimes can cripple a company’s finances and shake their employee’s sense of confidence and security, so to prevent break-ins and robbery or corporate espionage, commercial security systems can be installed in an office building or any other business campus to prevent crime, or at least capture evidence of a crime for insurance purposes and to help police identify and apprehend the criminals involved in the act. Commercial security systems of all kinds can help keep a business safer by various means, and alarm systems, burglar detection cameras, access control systems, and more can be installed to ward off burglars.
Effectiveness of A Security System
Just how effective can commercial security systems be? Statistics are often gathered to record how often crimes take place and what can be done to prevent them. The numbers often show when criminals choose to act, and how effective commercial security systems can be to deter them. What are the losses from crime? The Global Retail Theft Barometer, published by the Center for Retail Research, shows that North American retailers may lose around $45 billion worth of inventory each year due to crime of all kinds varying from burglaries to employee theft and simple shoplifting, often known as “inventory shrink.” It is not just burglars that these security systems will watch out for, but also the store’s own employees or shoplifting patrons during broad daylight.
What about the effectiveness of commercial security systems like alarm systems and security cameras? Estimates show that around 67% of burglaries can be avoided entirely if video surveillance hardware is installed, and a study of convicted burglars shows that 83% of respondents would want to check if a building or business campus had an alarm system in place before attempting a burglary. What is more, even if a burglary is impulsive and unplanned, more than 50% of intruders have said that they would cancel their burglary efforts if they found an alarm system.
Getting a System Installed
Security can take many forms, and may involve several different types working together. For one thing, an office building or a campus can have a fence or wall set up, such as a brick wall or tall wrought iron fences, to make intrusion onto the private grounds much more difficult, and this alone may deter many would-be burglars. But a fence alone will not keep a shop or office entirely safe. Alarms can be set up everywhere to alert anyone nearby of a break-in, and these alarms also send messages to nearby police departments, and officers will be dispatched to investigate alarms. What is more, employees at a workplace can set off alarms manually if they witness criminal behavior, such as a front desk clerk pressing a button covertly when a robber demands money at gunpoint.
Security cameras are another major step that can be taken to boost security. Such cameras can be monitored live by security crews, and this allows them to set off alarms as soon as they spot intruders on the camera feeds and even capture footage of the crime to use as evidence against arrested suspects. Such cameras may also spot the criminals’ faces or other distinguishing features, as well as the appearance and license plates of any getaway vehicles involved. Often, the mere presence of such cameras may drive away criminals, who would not want to risk the heightened odds of an alarm being set off, and criminals would definitely not want their faces or car license plates recorded during a crime.
Armed security officers can be hired from various agencies to patrol an office or other workplace, and they may also guard certain doors leading in and out, and they can question or drive away anyone who gets close. Finally, safes can be used to store valuable items such as laptops, documents, jewelry, and cash. Even if a burglar gets past the cameras or guards, they may have a hard time actually getting their hands on valuables when a safe is involved.