Tag Archive for: Commercial Security

Small Retail Profitability Strains

Retail used to be so simple- open a store, source products, sell products, and buy more products. Now, following a time of unprecedented change in commerce, retailers exist in an environment where the margins are narrow and constantly under pressure from rising costs and lower pricing power. When you factor in retail shrink—the job is difficult indeed.

There is no question that retail shrink seriously strains profitability. Retail shrink is multifaceted and addressing the problem is complex, but one of the most effective ways is to think about security as a holistic approach to operations rather than just a tool to catch criminals. Here are a few important points to consider as you protect profitability.

  • Use security technologies to maintain operational execution standards. When people and processes are working well, profitability increases. When everyone is working optimally, any process that isn’t will stand out. Maintaining execution standards will also help employees catch criminal practices such as shoplifting and refrain from them themselves.
  • Follow the money. It is, of course, important to have a comprehensive video surveillance system and to cover POS, but it is also important to balance out, and budget for buying cycles.
  • Using access control can help protect your products, but video analytics can tell you what products are moving and which are not. Both of those aspects are critical in protecting profitability.
  • Video surveillance technologies are a huge crime deterrent and help stabilize loss. You can also use the technology to ensure on-shelf availability or to change displays, or product placement in the moment, rather than wait to figure out the reasons for poor or underperformance.
  • Increased oversight is always an advantage, but even more so when you have increased inventory for seasonal sales. Increased inventory is critical to seasonal sales but without increased oversight, the inventory can be very easily lost to shoplifting.
  • Video analytics can tell you a lot about what products are capturing attention. Analytics may also reveal why certain products are being stolen as opposed to others, such as not enough employee oversight in a particular area.
  • Another advantage of video surveillance is having the ability to evaluate the store in relation to patterns of theft and make adjustments to design and layout.
  • Security technologies are also useful in managing inventory, both on-shelf and in the backend or warehouse. This can lead to tighter inventory and avoid insufficient stock or dead inventory.

Security Instrument understands the needs of retailers and knows that security technologies are for far more than protection. They are instruments of success.

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Retail Security: Preventing and Deterring After-Hours Break-ins

Stores are prime targets for after-hours burglary and break-ins. Retail burglary involves the breaking and entering into a business with the intent of stealing cash, merchandise, or equipment. Not only does it involve loss of valuable merchandise, it also often involves costly damage to the building – both of which are detrimental to the business.

Why Are Stores Targets?

One of the biggest reasons stores are targets of burglary is that they contain desirable and valuable items that can be either used or sold. Retail businesses are usually located in areas dedicated to commerce and once all the businesses close, there are fewer people and less traffic to observe any illegal activity. Stores generally have large glass fronts that can provide easy access. During closing, the staff is limited which is another attractive advantage to a criminal. Together, these factors add up to the perfect storm to attract crime.

Who Are the Criminals?

Generally, burglars are motivated by economic gain. While many shoplifters are opportunistic non-professionals, after-hours burglars are usually more skilled professionals and (though still highly opportunistic) employ more sophisticated planning, methods, and tools to execute their plans. They are more likely to have committed other crimes and are familiar with security features.

What Do Criminals Take?

According to the National Institute of Justice, criminals tend to choose targets based on convenience or desirability of goods within the store. Certain items draw more attention and commonly stolen items share particular attributes which fit into the CRAVED metric.

Concealable: Easily hidden in pockets, bags, or under clothing.
Removable: Portable and easy to carry.
Available: Widely available and easy to find.
Valuable: Expensive with high resell value among peers.
Enjoyable: Enjoyable to own or consume.
Disposable: Easily resold to a wide group of people.

How to Lower Your Risks for Burglary

Burglaries are not a random phenomenon. For the retailer, that is actually a good thing because there are factors that make businesses more, or less, a target and many of those factors are highly predictable and controllable. Even better is that the most effective strategies to combat burglary and theft involve simple environmental changes. Some of the most effective strategies include:

  • Increased lighting outdoors
  • Improved indoor lighting
  • The use of access control in storage and warehouse areas
  • Monitored security alarm systems with intrusion detection
  • Outdoor video surveillance
  • Indoor video surveillance
  • Having 24-hour presence

While you can’t prevent every incident of crime, what you put in place now can play an important role in deterring crime and catching criminals. Security Instrument has the technology you need to protect and propel your business.

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7 Ways in Which Retail is Different

No matter how large or small the business, retail security is far different from (and often more challenging than) any other enterprise. It is important to consider these differences because they directly impact the choices you make and the effectiveness of your security system.
So, how are retail enterprises different in security concerns? Here are the top 7 ways.

Multi-Focus Physical Security

Retailers have the difficult job of providing physical security across the entire footprint of the store. This is because most of the structure and merchandise is within reach of the public. The public is unvetted and roams freely.

Unusually Vulnerable Storefront

Many stores have a storefront that is largely glass, and highly vulnerable. Additionally, the business is usually closed at night which makes it much more of a target to potential thieves.

Largely Centered Around Loss Prevention

Unlike non-retail enterprises, retail stores must focus on loss prevention with a focus on video surveillance technologies covering vulnerable areas such as the retail floor, storage areas, and POS.

There is a Need for Advanced Analytics

In retail, one of the best ways to gain actionable insight on product, store, or employee performance is through detailed video analytics. These systems provide intelligence by capturing, analyzing, and reporting real-time data that help retailers make strategic decisions designed to improve operational efficiency and profitability.

Security Solutions Must Also Help Improve Customer Experience

Another important facet of retail security is that it should also provide a way to help improve customer experience. Retailers use it to review how the business works or doesn’t, as well as gauge customer satisfaction with transactions, employee performance, and how customers interact with product and displays.

Vulnerability to Fraud

Stores are also very vulnerable to acts of fraud such as slip and fall or claims of being injured on displays or by products or shopping carts and must consider this element in planning their security strategies. Injury claims are costly and very difficult to dispute in court without clear video of the event.

Injury Prevention

In addition to preventing acts of fraud, the retail security must also focus on preventing actual injury. Retailers must have a multi-view of the store and operations to eliminate obstructions and correct potentially dangerous conditions, such as folded or rippled mats or wet floors.

In the retail environment, security must enhance safety and improve overall operational efficiencies. Security Instrument is Delaware’s largest full-service and independently-owned security company and understands the unique security needs retailers face.

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Time to Upgrade Your Retail Video Surveillance System? Easy Ways to Know

In retail security, video surveillance is one of the most valuable and proven tools in helping to protect employees, customers, and product. A security system is an investment, but it does not have an indefinite lifespan. Eventually, it will become necessary to evaluate your security system and decide if it is time for an upgrade.

Knowing when to upgrade your retail video surveillance system can be tricky. You want to be sure to get the most from your investment, but want it to retain its usefulness. So how do you know when it is time to upgrade this critical component of retail security? Once you know the facts, it is much easier than you think.

Is the Technology Out of Date?

Think of how often we upgrade our phones, or how many additional functions your current phone has over any of your previous ones. It is easy to want to hold on to old video surveillance system technology to “get the most out of it” but doing so can actually be costing you money. Video surveillance technology is quickly evolving, and today’s additional features likely add much more value than does holding on to an old system. For example, remote management provides unattended delivery monitoring, customized alerts, remote viewing, and verification—all of which help improve productivity as well as safety. Newer technology provides other advantages too, like greatly improved image resolution, scalability, storage, and system integration over systems from just a handful of years ago.
Compare your current system’s features to that of a new retail video surveillance system. If your system does not have features that could benefit your business, or has incompatibility issues, poor video quality, or insufficient storage, it is probably time for an upgrade.

Has the Business Changed or Expanded?

If the business has changed, such as had an addition of space or if you have added an additional location or warehouse space, it is probably a good time to upgrade your existing system. Every day video surveillance technologies become much smarter than their predecessors and offer the expanding business a huge array of advantage. Wireless networks provide limitless possibility in connecting multiple cameras and multiple locations to one remote platform for ultimate control.
Security Instrument Corp. is committed to integrity and responsible business practices and invests in strengthening its capacity to serve clients with excellence.

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Is Cloud Based Access Control and Video Surveillance Right for Your Business?

Security and surveillance systems for businesses come with many options, and not all of them are right for every business. One of the options business owners face is whether a cloud-based system is best. When considering cloud based security options, think about long-term security goals as well as modern security threats such as internal crime like employee theft, and external threats from today’s sophisticated criminals.

Access control and video surveillance technologies are rapidly evolving, largely due to wireless and cloud-based capacities. But why should a business consider a cloud-based system? Here are just a few of the important advantages of cloud-based access control and video surveillance.

Manage Multiple Sites

Having a cloud-based security infrastructure means you can expand to multiple locations and manage each of them remotely from one platform. This means you can manage video surveillance and physical security for hundreds of locations—viewing live video, locking doors, granting or suspending access, and monitor activity logs all from your mobile phone or tablet no matter where you are.

Increased Flexibility

With increased wireless capabilities, securing doors, elevators, entrances, and exits is uninhibited. This provides the possibility of unlimited coverage and control with faster, less disruptive installations.

Remote Management

Cloud-based access control and video surveillance allows the user or administrator to view, control, and manage security remotely from their smartphone, tablet, or desktop. This means that you can respond to security needs real time, receive security alerts, and ensure that safety and procedural practices are upheld all from a mobile application.

Monitor Live Stream Video

The ability to have a wide view of activity even when you are not in the facility provides a huge advantage in monitoring the lobby, sales floor, POS, or stockrooms.

Improved System Health

Cloud-based systems also provide advantage in keeping your security system in optimum working health with automatic system updates, and cyber resilience and requiring minimal IT support.

Customized Security Reports

Another huge advantage is the ability to customize security reports with rules based email and texts. Depending on your needs, rules based texts can alert you to suspicious activity such as increased traffic by loading and unloading docks for example.

Centralize and Simplify Facility Security Operations

The advanced features offered by cloud-based security systems reduces the complexity of implementation and operation while reducing risk.

Security solutions should do more than provide security. They should also enhance your business operations by providing invaluable business insight and unlimited management capabilities. Security Instrument Corp. customizes the right system for your concerns, whether you’re the owner of a small business or Security Director of a Fortune 500 company.

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How to Protect Your Business from the Top Retail Security Vulnerabilities

Security is one of the top considerations for any business. Why? Crime has the power to take down any business and criminals are expert at what they do, and get away with it at alarming rates. While it is impossible to prevent every crime, it is possible to understand common gaps in retail security and how criminals exploit them.

Each year business owners face increasingly sophisticated criminals who prey on surprisingly common retail security vulnerabilities. Here are the top five vulnerabilities and how to solve them.

Employee Theft

Unfortunately, employee theft is an issue for every retail establishment. Annually, employees steal $50 billion from their employers and 70% of those polled admit to having stolen from their employers at least once. Shockingly, employee theft plays a role in one third of all business bankruptcies.

Burglary and Robbery

A burglary happens every four minutes somewhere in the US and in the retail sector causes significant loss. While large retail establishments can absorb some loss, it’s not without a cost that is usually passed on to the consumer. Smaller businesses are less able to recover and often never do. In addition to loss, these crimes put the lives of your employees and customers at risk.

False Liability Claims

There are many people looking to make money dishonestly through fraud and willing to put your business at risk to do it. Many of those faking injury, usually a slip and fall injury, are so exceptional at what they do that it is difficult to prove fraud without the right tools in place.

Fire

Fire and other disasters have a devastating impact on a business. Some disasters are out of your control, but others are preventable. In either case, it is possible to save lives and minimize damage.

Vandalism

Vandalism may seem like a small problem compared to the others, but not when you put it into right perspective. Every act of vandalism encourages another and essentially marks your business as an easy target for other crimes.

Protecting Your Business from the Top Five Crimes

Knowing the common vulnerabilities is not enough to protect your business. Here are some practical and strategic solutions you can implement quickly, easily, and affordably.

Keep:

  • Entry ways and parking lots well-lit
  • Landscaping low
  • Security cameras focused on registers, stock rooms, and other important areas.
  • Recorded video for at least 30 days

Use:

  • Security cameras both indoors and outside
  • A motion intrusion alarm system
  • Fencing
  • Panic buttons
  • Deadbolt locks on exterior doors
  • An access control system
  • A monitored fire and environmental alarm system

Security Instrument offers a full line of services from professionally engineered system designs and turnkey installation services to 24 hour system monitoring.

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How A Simple Change Can Optimize Camera Coverage of Long Corridors

 

It is possible to have the right security camera and not use it optimally. This is often the case when monitoring long narrow areas in commercial places. Capturing images in long narrow spaces is very difficult and until recently the only security camera options produced images with lots of useless area of wall space on either side and a very limited view of the passageway intended to be covered. However, a simple change can optimize security camera coverage of long corridors and make a huge difference in your ability to monitor a long narrow space.

The Problem With Hallways

Traditional security camera set-up provides a landscape view, or a 16:9 ratio. This is perfect if you are covering a large, wide area such as a retail floor space, conference room, lobbies or parking lots. It is not the best option for a long narrow space. Why? The image orientation results in a scene with lots of redundant space on the sides, with perhaps only one-third of the image in the middle being valuable and the other two-thirds being a wall. This means that the full area and resolution of the security camera’s sensor are not being fully utilized and anything occurring outside the limited useful view is completely missed.

Corridor View Solves the Problem

Using Avigilon HD Dome Camera and software corridor reorients the image to a “portrait” view suitable for long narrow spaces. This eliminates the unnecessary view of empty wall space and provides additional and sharper images of the actual occupied space. Essentially, it takes the 16:9 ratio and changes it to 9:16 maximizing coverage and eliminating bandwidth waste.

Achieving Corridor View

Different cameras achieve corridor view in different ways. Some cameras can be installed so that the body is rotated, and therefore the image rotated 90 degrees using the camera’s settings and configurations. Some models provide the ability to rotate the lens and the camera’s sensor after it is mounted (sometimes remotely). Still, other models crop the view to produce the landscape configured image. The result is a high quality, vertically oriented video stream optimized for your application.

About Security Instrument

Security Instrument is the largest privately owned security company in Delaware. Whether you’re the owner of a small business or the security director of a Fortune 500 company, Security Instrument has the right solution.

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Why Commercial Security Is The Norm, Not The Exception

The elements in running a successful company are as many as the people in it and even more diverse. The one thing most industry leaders have in common though, is their ability to leverage commercial security systems to their fullest potential. Naturally, electronic security was designed to keep sensitive areas, valuable property, and sensitive information secure; but it can do much more.

Top companies utilize these technologies in additional ways such as tracking office flow, theft deterrence, avoiding HR challenges, enhancing customer experience, or providing valuable information and confirmation in accident reporting.

Video Surveillance Technologies are a Critical Component

Every property owner faces liability concerns, but those concerns are multiplied for businesses of every size. CCTV and video surveillance are valuable tools in slip and fall verification or evidence as well as fraud prevention. Though fraud is only evident in about 3% of cases, litigating these cases accounts for $2 billion a year with much more settle out of court.

Industry leaders realize that POS loss is another important aspect that surveillance technologies can help address. Most retail loss occurs at the point of sale attributed to employee error, and theft. Early resolution is vital to loss reduction.

Video surveillance is also helpful in monitoring traffic flow and linger times, letting them know what works and what doesn’t. With this information, business owners can adjust floor plans and displays to direct traffic in more beneficial directions and enhance the customer experience. 

Access Control Systems are the Norm, Not the Exception

Restricting access to sensitive areas is another important way industry leaders improve operations. By employing different types of access control systems from simple proximity controls to the latest in biometric security systems, business owners can access important information that helps in employee accountability.

Electronic security is always valuable, but using it to its fullest potential can set your business apart. If you have questions about how to integrate these technologies most successfully, please give us a call today.

Your Local Delaware Security Company

Security Instrument Corp., established in 1960 and headquartered in Wilmington, DE  is a electronic security integrator for businesses of all sizes throughout Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Contact us today to schedule a complimentary consultation.

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Quick Facts About Commercial Monitoring With AES

When it comes to wireless alarm monitoring for your business, it makes a lot of sense to define your requirements before searching for the right security company. It starts with knowing your own needs, or that of your business, and ends with knowing the capabilities of the system of choice and its delivery method. AES-IntelliNet is our partner of choice,  because we know the difference it makes in your service, and ultimately your safety. 

Some Quick Facts About AES Technologies

AES technology was originally developed for rigorous military installations requiring unparalleled reliability over all kinds of terrain and under all weather conditions.

The IntelliNet system includes smart subscriber units which act as a receiver, repeater, and transmitter. This allows individual subscribers to act as relays to the central receiver creating multiple redundancies.

  1. The network automatically and dynamically adapts to changes in the network caused by weather, obstructions, and the addition or subtraction of transceivers in the network.
  2. Data always chooses the fastest most reliable route.
  3. Radio mesh networks are infinitely scalable.
  4. AES wireless mesh technology offers best-in-class protection against catastrophic fire and intrusion events.
  5. It offers the fastest transmission speeds and response times, transmitting critical event signals in just 1 to 3 seconds. This is a critical difference when internet transmission can take 3-to 5 seconds and telephone and cellular technologies can take up to 45 seconds. (Consider that a fire can double in size and intensity every 30 seconds to weigh the true value of transmission speed.)
  6. The technology is applicable to commercial, residential and government markets.
  7. AES technology offers two-way communication to assure that each signal is acknowledged.
  8. Is not impacted by severe weather events. In 2016 the Eastern US was pounded by severe storms from January 22-24, creating blizzard conditions in many states and triggering a state of emergency. While many other communication systems were down, AES-IntelliNet kept customers protected.
  9. Telephone lines (widely used to link alarm systems to the central station) are highly susceptible to problems caused by weather, accidents, equipment failures, and natural disasters.
  10. The network is dedicated to alarm communication.
  11. The technology will never sunset or have the need to change out obsolete cellular technologies.

Security Instrument Corp., established in 1960 and headquartered in Wilmington, DE  is a electronic security integrator for businesses of all sizes throughout Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania. Contact us today to schedule a complimentary consultation.

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