Sunday 25th October will see the official end of British Summer Time and the commencement of much darker nights. As such, with the vulnerable nature of the construction industry it is essential that these organisations are aware of the risks they may face on a daily basis. James Kelly, Chief Executive of the British Security Industry Association (BSIA), takes a look at some of the factors that construction companies should be considering in order to ensure maximum protection of both property and personnel.
Construction sites can be an extremely attractive target for thieves, particularly as they are often left secluded outside of hours with many valuable materials and equipment having to be stored outdoors unattended. If these valuable materials are stolen, it can have detrimental consequences for a business, causing significant delays in building work and not to mention financial losses. In addition to this, there are also potential threats to the personnel working both on these sites and off-site. As such, new security techniques are regularly evolving in order to tackle these threats and mitigate losses.
Recognising the Risks
Every single construction site, big or small, will have its individual risks and security requirements, with many sites playing hosts to a number of contractors entering and exiting at different times during the day. As such, it can be beneficial for those responsible for procuring a site’s security to carry out a risk assessment of an impending site before work begins. Mike O’Neill, Chairman of the BSIA’s Specialist Services Section advises that “as a business, it is absolutely essential to know what you’re protecting yourself against.” At the heart of any businesses security and its resilience to threats is the risk register. This is a key risk management tool that helps a business identify the day-to-day risks that it faces and the best ways to counteract them.
However, it can sometimes be difficult for a business to adequately identify its risk register on its own; as such, outsider knowledge provided by professional security consultants can be invaluable. Security consultancies provide independent professional support to ensure that measures required by clients correspond to both existing and emerging threats, whilst complementing a business’s environment and operation. Working closely with the business, consultants help design a holistic security strategy that complements the business’s operation in order to address the protection of people, building, assets and ultimately, reputations. Security consultants can also act as project manager, overseeing the implementation of security controls and ensuring that all the necessary procedures are carried out.
Protecting Personnel
Moving away from the topic of construction sites in general, while it is extremely important for construction companies to protect their premises, it is just as important for them to be protecting their employees from any potential risks. Construction personnel can be required to work alone either on-site or off-site, with some companies having workers who provide building maintenance to a number of different facilities. These workers are often required to work alone at unfamiliar locations during different times of the day or night, putting them at a number of potential risks including violence or aggression from intruders, occupational risks such as trips or falls or even risks to their wellbeing in general.
Increasingly in the workplace, personal responsibility is seen as the job of the organisation rather than the individual. However, it must be a combination of both the organisation and the lone worker to ensure that this happens, the lone worker must be looking out for themselves, but the organisation has a Duty of Care to their workers to give them the tools to do so. It is a big responsibility for both, because while the individual stands in the way of harm, the organisation may lose a valuable employee, at least for a period, and stand accused of failing in its duties. This can have potentially devastating consequences with the threat of legislation and litigation.
To mitigate these risks there are a number of security solutions available to ensure the protection of lone workers. Usually, these systems, such as personal alarms, are linked directly to the Police or an Alarm Receiving Centre, allowing for a fast response should a potentially harmful situation arise. However, when choosing a device, it is most important that it meets with the British Standard BS8484, a Code of Practice for the provision of lone worker services. This standard is employed and adhered to by any credible supplier in the industry and forms the basis for police response to lone worker systems.
VINCI Facilities, part of VINCI – a big player in the construction industry – is one company that has been using lone worker security to protect personnel, adopting BSIA member Skyguard’s personal safety service to mitigate potential risks to all of their lone workers[1]. They used Skyguard’s MySOS, a small and light BS8484 approved personal alarm which allows lone working staff to call for help at the touch of a button, wherever they are, 24 hours a day. If an alarm is raised it is immediately sent to Skyguard’s own purpose-built Incident Management Centre (IMC) where controllers will listen in, locate the user, assess the situation and take the appropriate action – such as escalating the call to the emergency services. This allows for the lone worker to feel secure in unfamiliar situations and gives the employer peace of mind that their employees are as safe as possible.
Sourcing a Supplier
Ultimately, the most important factor in choosing any security product or service is that you are choosing from a reputable supplier that meets with the relevant British and European standards. BSIA members are inspected to the highest standards and offer a reputable service. To locate a BSIA member near you, visit http://ift.tt/1Njk37g.
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