b'SAFETY & SECURITYTAKING CONTROL OF JOBSITE THEFTMITIGATING THE RISK OF LOSSES ON CONSTRUCTION SITESBy Matthew BradfordFROM STANDARD TOOLS toAs such, Muc adds, Our customerspotential rewards outweighed the risk of million-dollar machines, everythingroutinely tell us that it is a growing issue,getting caught.is a target for construction thieves. Andand theyre looking for solutions to with industry equipment becoming moreaddress their site containment security. With this in mind, its good practice to valuable to would-be criminals, jobsitestore equipment, tools and materials theft is a risk that isnt going away.Several factors can make sites moreaway from the view of the public. Ample tempting for thieves: dimly lit areas,lighting can also dissuade thieves from Its a very prevalent risk, says Chrisunsecured sites or tools left visibletrespassing onto ones site, particularly Muc, executive vice president andfrom the street are enticing targets forif it is paired with motion-sensing chief operating officer with ModuLoc.thieves. In most cases, thieves aredevices. Visible security guards and In particular, materials and lower-costopportunistic criminals, says Muc. Theyvideo surveillance equipment are equally items are being stolen from jobsites andwill target sites that are remote, poorly litimportant deterrents for potential thieves, are eating into the bottom line. Manyor insufficiently secured. If you make itas is signage stating the companys intent contractors accept losses as part of thedifficult for them to access your tools andto pursue and prosecute criminals.job cost, and for general contractorsequipment, they will be less likely to target working on already tight margins, itsyour site. MODERN SOLUTIONSfrustrating to know these costs are beingTheft prevention technology has come a passed on to them. It ends up costingKnowing this, there are several basiclong way in recent years. In addition to everyone in the industry. measures that contractors can takemotion-sensing alarms and GPS/RFID to discourage or prevent theft. Oneequipment tracking, smart key control The impacts of jobsite theft can add up. Attraditional strategy is security fences orsystems can help track and govern last count, Zurich Canada estimates thatbarriers that make it more difficult foraccess to onsite assets. nearly $46 million in equipment is stolenthieves to access the site and obscure annually, up to $20 million of which isvaluable assets from prying eyes.Video surveillance can also augment taken from Ontario sites alone. Moreover,Anecdotal evidence suggests thattheft prevention. Moreover, it can identify Aviva Canada indicates that only a quarterthieves are unlikely to break into a site ifguilty parties and assess the full scope of all stolen goods ever get recovered,they cant readily see anything valuableof the crime. Surveillance technology resulting in thousands of dollars in lossesto steal, explains Muc. That is basedis an excellent resource in preventing as well as project setbacks, workforceon sound logic; you probably wouldntjobsite theft by providing employers with tensions and higher insurance premiums. break into a site unless you were sure thethe intel and evidence they need to stop 28Quarter 3 2019 BUILDERSDIGEST'