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Hauliers can play their part in beating crime by ensuring security begins in the depot
Modern security methods are a far cry from an elderly night-watchman dozing in an overheated room or making his rounds with the aid of only a torch. The security-conscious company will be well aware that the risks are many and various with even the standard problem— theft of goods—having many variants from petty pilfering to the large scale abduction of high-value products
But it is not only goods which are at risk from poor security. Increasingly, it is vehicles, buildings, machinery, money, even information in the form of documents or computer records.
Not all offences will be visible; some will be recognised but not prevented, others prevented only to re-appear in a different form. To take effective measures against these risks, it is essential first to acknowledge that they exist and second to relate them to your own company's operations.
Analysis of movements may disclose when and where thefts are occurring even if not how they are being done. It is a start.
Prevention, however, is better. Four key areas where action is recommended are people, buildings, vehicles and procedures.
Central to the provision of effective security is accepting it as a dynamic process which involves continuously adapting to change. Security waits for no man.
1 PEOPLE
No ingredient in risk/security has a greater effect than the people you employ, Your recruitment Policies are the first defence in a sequence of measures which should be related to your personnel management routines.
References must always be followed up and, if any lingering doubts persist, former employers should be contacted by telephone as often this brings facts to light which would not be committed to papee. It is also worth checking that references actually relate to the applicant in question—it is not unknown for members of the same family to exchange identities!
A library of staff photographs should be compiled— which will be useful to police if someone does abscond with a load. This should apply equally to temporary or agency drivers, even though it represents an annoyance. Special care must be taken with sub-contractors—who should never be allowed to sub-contract work further without full authority.
Night watchmen should not be expected to patrol in areas providing cover for those with malice in mind. Their personal safety and security is important and they should be supplied with alarms linked to a central system such as Chubb or Securicor. Dogs can detect the presence of intruders long before humans, so consideration should be given to their use. The use of "loose" dogs, however, is illegal. Apart from being good security practices in their own right, these details make it difficult for watchmen in collusion with thieves to make up a plausible story.
I VEHICLES/PREMISES
Successful protection of vehicles and premises requires dependable equipment which enhances the ability to monitor and control. The choice of equipment is large and in some instances methods are used which are not widely known. One such system uses two underground parallel wires carrying a radio frequency signal which can detect a human body due to its salt and water content.
Alarms can also be triggered by automatic closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras whose activation may be by infra-red, ultrasonic or microwave signals registering the presence of intruders, the outbreak of fire or even the malfunction of equipment. Microchip technology allows each alarm to be assessed—minimising false alerts to the point where they can only be attributed to human error.
At night, circumstances permitting, premises should be well lit, though exterior CCTV cameras can be fitted with infra-red sensors to allow operation at low light level& Movement of individuals inside a building can be further tracked by CCTV.
Access control equipment at doors prov ides an electronic means of identifying individuals and allowing or denying their entry in accordance with pre-set rules. The latest developments in card-based systems— relying on "smart" cards—will find their way into vehicle security systems, probably linked to in-cab computers, so that vehicles are effectively disabled unless activated by the holder of an authorised card.
The design of premises should have security in mind. The cash office should be located to make theft as difficult as possible, but thought can even go into the design of toilets, eliminating potential hiding places (like behind the cistern). Ground-floor windows should never overlook car parks; private cars should be in an exposed position, or where stolen goods would have to be carried a long way to reach it.
I PROCEDURES
All arriving and departing vehicles should be spot-checked at the site entrance and relevant details recorded in a movements control system, even if it is only a book. This applies equally to service vehicles such as skip and refuse collection and regular visitors to the site should not be excluded.
If there is a weighbridge at the premises, check that it is being used correctly. It is an old trick to leave pallets and sack barrows on a vehicle while taring and then to remove them before grossing. Prominent notices should warn arriving drivers of the procedures to be followed, and the consequences of ignoring them!
An easily recognised livery can be useful for spotting vehicles in unauthorised places. However, any markings must be thoroughly erased before vehicles are disposed of, otherwise it is too easy to repaint them sufficiently well to resemble currently-owned transport. Some operators paint fleet numbers or logos on the roof of their vehicles which are clearly visible from bridges or police helicopters.
Vehicles should always be sealed, but this is pointless unless backed by adequate documentary support. Many seal deceptions are 'inside jobs which are easy to spot but difficult to prove. The best seals are manufactured in one piece so that they cannot be stripped and reassembled, or altered without leaving evidence. Electronic seals appear even more awkward to tamper with.
Premises are built once and usually remain in that condition. Employees are recruited oar. Equipment is bought once. Procedures, though, mu changed: either by improving them or I introducing new ones to cater for new circumstances. Actual stocks must be matched with "book" stocks, and spotshould be carried out when least expect Losses should be recorded with suppor information so that the facts can be an in case a pattern emerges—and if one d emerge the police should be involved— amateur sleuthing can endanger your II Documents should never be left whei can be stolen, or even copied, by unauthorised people. Don't pin them to door for collection while staff are absen don't leave blank forms lying around. Shredding machines can deal with documents but what about the disposa! used electric typewriter ribbons which retrieved from the waste bin, unravelle( read?
Li by Robert Coates