> Can I reduce the number of guards with live video monitoring?
> Can I eliminate guards all together with live video monitoring?

Rather than list all the reasons to NOT use security guards, we decided to list the circumstances in which guards could be considered a necessary addition to live video monitoring. If you have questions about whether guards are necessary for your jobsite or property, please contact us today >>

Here are the five situations in which a security guard might be a good addition to live video surveillance:

1) After-Hours Entry and Exit Access Required
If your property or site requires 24-hour access then a security guard may be required along with your video surveillance cameras.

2) You Provide High Theft Incentive to Thieves
Do you make thieves feel safe robbing you? Do you give them obvious theft incentives? If you DO provide incentives and don’t plan to make changes, then a guard might be a good addition to your live monitoring.

3) Your Circumstances Require Immediate Security Response
No security fence? High foot traffic in a high crime area? Frequent looting? You might require an onsite guard with your video monitoring in these circumstances.

4) Cameras Not Allowed Inside Structure for Privacy Reasons
If there are resident privacy concerns or even government clearances that keep video out of certain areas then a guard might be a good addition to security surveillance.

5) Slow Police Force
If the police in your area are slow to respond to burglaries and break ins then an on site guard, assisted by live video monitors, could be a good idea.

We believe guards can provide a powerful layer of security. We’ve had great success in supporting on-site guards through our live video surveillance. In fact, that’s how we got the expertise to write 10 Ways to Increase Security Guard Effectiveness with Live Video Surveillance.

However, we frequently find property owners and jobsite managers relying on guards when they could be effectively securing their sites at a lower cost and with increased threat deterrence. We can’t stand by and watch people pay too much for less-effective security.

If you’re considering guards, please contact us today so we can help you get maximum theft prevention from your security dollars.

Don’t make your construction site a target for portable generator theft! This article describes 14 different ways you can protect your portable generators, divided into pro-active and reactive measures.


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9 Pro-Active Portable Generator Security Methods
We believe that the best time to fight crime is BEFORE it happens. These tips will help you stop thieves before they steal your generators.

1) Unload From Trailer and Secure Immediately
Have you ever found $500 just laying on the ground? That’s what a thief sees when you leave your generators loaded and ready to go on trailers. If you plan to store generators onsite overnight, always get them off the trailers and under several layers of security.

2) Secure the Trailers
If you have no choice but to leave them on the trailers, do everything you can to secure the trailer itself. This includes chaining the wheels, defensive parking, removing the hitch and more. Other suggestions in this article should help too.

3) Remote Monitored Security Video Camera Surveillance
Stop generator theft before it happens with live video surveillance connected to sirens and strobe lights onsite. When intruders enter with intent to steal, live security monitors trigger the strobes and sirens and then call the police if necessary.

This news report gives a good idea of the power of live, theft deterrent surveillance:

Further reading: 6 Construction Video Surveillance Tips for Max Monitoring Impact

4) Construct Generator Security Zone on Site
Centralize your storage within clear camera view – keep your portable generators, conex boxes, material pallets, and heavy equipment in direct view of your surveillance security zone. If you don’t employ construction surveillance then fence in your security zone and keep it well lit so that it’s visible from the road.

5) Install Appropriate Fencing
Good construction security fencing is the first line of theft prevention for jobsites. It’s more of a temporary deterrent, however and really only serves to delay intrusion rather than stop it completely. Fence height, barbed wire, size of mesh, the number of gates and the size of your clear zone around the fence all determine the fence’s effectiveness in preventing generator theft.

Further reading: Construction Security Fencing Checklist

6) Bright-White Security Lighting
Strong, white security lighting plays double defensive duty: it deters more cautious thieves and lights your jobsite at night so neighbors and passers by can see more brazen intruders. Be sure to position lights so that they don’t glare out onto the street, and remember to keep your generator security zone well lit.

Further reading: 5 Jobsite Security Lighting Tips

7) Chain and Padlock to Other Equipment
Like good security fences, chains and padlocks only delay theft – they can’t stop it. Sometimes delay is all you need though, especially if you utilize live video surveillance and/or leave the generators well lit and visible from the street. Be sure to weave the chain through wheels if possible, and attach to other heavy items that can’t be easily loaded by hand onto a trailer.

8) Defensive Blocking
If thieves can’t get to your generators then they can’t steal them. Block generators in with materials, other vehicles, or anything else on your jobsite that will make the generators awkward or difficult to get at.

9) Portable Generator Storage Boxes
If you generators remain on your vehicles then consider portable generator storage boxes which not only prevent theft but have handy cut-outs to enable operation.

5 Reactive Portable Generator Security Methods
Reactive methods, while lacking the impact of pro-active security methods, still pack a punch when it comes to potentially recovering stolen property.

10) Keep Detailed Records of Your Generator
Proving to the police and a court of law that a stolen generator was indeed yours requires good records. Record product identification numbers, make, model, year etc, take digital photographs, record the date of sale and retain the bill of sale.

11) Paint or Engrave with ID Numbers
Make it easy for police to identify who a generator belongs to – mark yours by engraving or painting on ID numbers or even your company’s logo. Make your mark big, bold and deep so the chop shop can’t remove it quickly.

12) Security Video Camera Surveillance
Security camera systems – without pro-active theft deterrents – can help you or the police to identify thieves after they have stolen generators from you.

13) Equipment Recovery Systems
There are several different recovery systems, methods and technologies available for recovering stolen generators. Check out the National Equipment Register as well as LoJack.

14) Monitor Craigslist and eBay After Theft
Just in case your generator was stolen by amateur thieves and not an organized crew, monitor Craigslist and eBay for a week or two after the theft. Police often do this too. Google offers a free “web band” scanner service called Google Alerts that monitors the web for you. All you have to do is tell them what sites to watch and what terms to look for. Monitor those sites for the make and model of generator you had stolen.

More Jobsite Security Resources from Pro-Vigil:
10 Skid Steer Security Tips: The Jobsite Thief’s Favorite Tool
Equipment Yard Security: 10 Tactics that Stop Equipment Yard Theft
Job Site Security: Establish Your End-of-Day Routine
9 Ways to Stop Construction Theft During Holidays and Vacations
How to Analyze Your Job Site’s Security Needs BEFORE the Job Begins
Reducing Employee-Driven Job Site Theft
Job Site Security: Establish Your End-of-Day Routine
Secure Jobsite Boxes: 4 Key Features to Look For
5 Security Lighting Tips For Your Construction Site
How Secure is Your Construction Security Fence? 11 Questions to Ask

1) Compressors: 15%
2) Portable Generators: 13%
3) Trailers: 13%
4) Skid Steers: 10%

This data helps GCs better secure their jobsites by adding extra layers of security to those items. However, ForBusinessPro’s findings don’t show one of the core jobsite theft tactics that we’ve seen time and time again. Protecting yourself from this single tactic will reduce jobsite theft attempts considerably.

Skid Steer Loaders: The Jobsite Thief’s Tool of Choice
Our experience shows us that the skid steer loader is the number one tool of choice for jobsite thieves… in addition to being the 4th most stolen item from jobsites (PDF link). First we’ll look at why, and then look at ways you can prevent thieves from using this handy tool. The bonus is that if you stop thieves from using your skid steers as theft tools they can’t steal them either. Skid steer theft prevention delivers multiple benefits.

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How Theives Use Skid Steers to Rob Jobsites
Even the toughest lock can’t stand up to a skid steer’s repeated bashing. Thieves use skid steers to open up “secure” connex boxes like sardine cans so they can get at the materials and equipment inside. Thieves also use them to load up their trucks with your materials. When you stop to think about it, there’s really not a more useful piece of equipment for smash and grab operations on a construction site than the skid steer. And since many jobsite thieves are insiders, they know how to use them well…

10 Ways to Protect your Skid Steers – and Your Construction Site
Here are the top ways to protect your construction site from theft by skid steer – one of the most common theft methods we’ve found on customers who contact us for construction video surveillance.

1) Construct a Skid Steer Corral
Build a jobsite security fence corral around your skid steers and other frequently-stolen materials and equipment. Sometimes a good fence is all it takes to prevent thieves from attempting to steal a skid steer.

2) Install Construction Surveillance Cameras
Nothing stops thieves like live video surveillance backed by onsite deterrents. At 18 seconds this video gives you an idea of the effectiveness of Pro-Vigil’s live video surveillance:

3) Park Skid Steers Defensively
Defensively park your skid steers in a “circled wagon” formation. This makes them difficult to access. Alternately, block them in with larger vehicles. Engaging blades into dirt, when possible, can also serve as a deterrent against skid steer theft by dragging and loading.

4) Chain Up Your Skid Steers
Chain your skid steers to each other or to larger equipment to immobilize them. Make sure to thread the chain through moving parts. This tactic won’t stop a determined thief, but it will certainly slow him down.

5) Add Skid Steer Wheel Locks
Skid steer wheel locks – also called boots – prevent the wheels from turning complete circles. This is the same device used by traffic police on cars whose owners have unpaid fines. Put it to use on your skid steers to keep thieves off.

7) Install Skid Steer Controller Locks
Like the “the Club” for autos, skid steer controller locks make the skid steer undriveable – even if the thief gets the key or knows how to hotwire skid steers. Skid steer controller locks come in small versions that only incapacitate one controller, and large versions that incapacitate both. Skid steer attachment locks are available as well.

8) Remove the Spark Plugs
For quick, effective theft prevention simply remove the spark plugs from your skid steers. No spark, no engine. This is not the most convenient method, but great in a pinch or over long holidays.

9) Establish a Key Control System
Equipment key management can go a long ways towards stopping unauthorized and illegal usage of your equipment. Especially your skid steers. Consider investigating a key control system so that your jobsite’s subcontractors and employees can’t steal a key during the day and come back that night.

10) Keep Skid Steers Well Lit
To deter thieves, keep your skid steers brightly lit and visible from the road. Thieves prefer to strike in the comfort of shadows. Don’t help them to relax. Drive by your jobsite at night to check on your security. Good construction site lighting can make a big difference in keeping thieves off of your skid steers.

Bonus Tip 11) Store Skid Steers Off of Trailers
Though this won’t keep thieves from using skid steers to rob your site, it will make it much harder for thieves to steal them. Leaving skid steers on their trailers is like leaving your front door open and unlocked during a week vacation – and all your major appliances boxed and ready to load up. Don’t make theft convenient! Unload skid steer loaders at the end of the day.

More Construction Security Resources from Pro-Vigil:
Secure Jobsite Boxes: 4 Key Features to Look For
5 Security Lighting Tips For Your Construction Site
How Secure is Your Construction Security Fence? 11 Questions to Ask
How to Analyze Your Job Site’s Security Needs BEFORE the Job Begins
Reducing Employee-Driven Job Site Theft
Job Site Security: Establish Your End-of-Day Routine
Equipment Yard Security: 10 Tactics that Stop Equipment Yard Theft
A Model Home Security Plan: 10 Tips that Prevent Burglaries
Job Site Security: Establish Your End-of-Day Routine
9 Ways to Stop Construction Theft During Holidays and Vacations

Not only do green construction techniques save you money, but they tap you into the mainstream green building movement. Consumers and local governments seem eager to back this movement, so read on and learn the tactics that will have you seeing GREEN.

1) Prevent Waste in the Design Phase
2) Prevent Construction Waste on Site
3) Purchase to Prevent Construction Waste
4) Reuse/Recycle Waste On Site
5) Implement Green Security to Prevent Waste Due to Theft
6) Know Your Local C&D Material Recycling/Salvage Requirements
7) Filter/Divert Your Jobsite Water Runoff
8) Know Your Green Materials Alternatives
9) Design for Deconstruction
10) Document Your Green Efforts for LEED and/or GBI

1) Prevent Waste in the Design Phase
If you are – or can get – involved in the design phase then you have some prime opportunities to prevent waste that leads to overspending on materials and waste removal costs. You will be amazed at the wasteful decisions the project architects and planners may be making…

>Design with standard building material sizes in mind
>Set specific waste reduction goals at the beginning of the project, target specific materials and activities
>Get subcontractor buy in by including specs in your contracts
>Win employee buy in by incentivizing participation (purchase “rewards” with portion of money saved)
>Estimate when and where you’ll be generating waste – use this schedule to efficiently plan your methods of handling waste

2) Prevent Construction Waste on Site
Construction sites generate massive amounts of waste – and we’re not even talking about demolition here. Here are a few tactics you can use to prevent construction waste from accumulating so quickly in your dumpsters.

>Ask suppliers to buy back unused items
>Ask suppliers to replace all damaged materials
>Ask suppliers to deliver materials in returnable pallets and containers
>Reassess your material storage practices to prevent loss due to weather

3) Purchase to Prevent Construction Waste
When you’re sourcing the materials for your project you have an opportunity to reduce waste, sometimes in very significant ways. Your purchase decisions have an impact on the market, so cast your vote with your wallet.

>When possible avoid material brands with excessive packaging
>Evaluate your current estimation process
>When possible purchase reused, recycled and renewable materials

4) Reuse/Recycle Waste On Site
Your imagination’s the only limit on reusing and recycling waste on site. Well, ok – there will be some local laws affecting how you can use some types of waste and in what ways, especially when it comes to backfill.  That said, here are a few ideas to start you thinking about on-site waste reuse and recycling.

>Make a designated area for onsite-reused materials including lumber for fire blocking and spacers, scraps of drywall for filler in hidden areas, etc…
>Save concrete chunks, broken bricks, blocks and other masonry rubble for backfill
>Use cleared brush and trees chipped for mulch
>Use joint compound buckets for other materials and your tools
>Use sawdust for mulching landscape, path ways
>Never throw away excess insulation – install in interior walls or on top of attic insulation for added protection

5) Implement Green Security to Stop Waste Due to Theft
Theft and vandalism cost construction companies in the US over 1 billion dollars annually. Your little slice of this could equal tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars every year. Stop this with live guards monitoring your solar powered construction site surveillance cameras .

>Stop theft and vandalism before it costs you time or money
>No electric draw

6) Know Your Local C&D Material Recycling/Salvage Requirements
Recycling and salvage companies may be your new best friends. Some of them will even turn your waste into cash. Call them, get to know them and learn what their requirements are for materials they recover from construction sites. Your local government may have recycling options for you as well. And remember, there’s always SOMEONE out there who might want to use your waste material. Consider using Craigslist to get rid of any potentially useful waste.

>Research your local recycling and salvage options
>Which ones pay cash and for which materials?
>Who can use unsalable materials?

7) Filter/Divert Your Jobsite Water Runoff
Jobsite runoff, whether pollutants from vehicles and cement mixing or from topsoil washed away in storms, can be very expensive… in the form of fines and even injunctions or restraining orders that keep you from working. Know your local laws and consider following some of the tips below.

>Prevent potential fines, injunctions and restraining orders by preventing runoff
>Provide stabilization – temporary or permanent – by planting rye grass
>Protect all drain inlets, outlets with rock arranged in check dam formation AND silt fencing
>Check your drain control measure weekly
>Continually monitor vehicles for leaks
>Keep spill kits on hand and use on spills immediately

8) Know Your Green Materials Alternatives
The green material industry is booming now, and will continue to grow and evolve as consumers – and government – shift towards green building. Below you’ll find a few links to outside sources that will help you to evaluate green materials and even find suppliers.

Green Construction Materials
Green Building Materials
Environmentally Preferable Building Materials and Specifications

9) Design for Deconstruction
Designing for deconstruction (also Design for Disassembly and “DfD”) reduces costs at the end of a building’s life cycle. This process also makes it easier to add on to the existing structure.

>Design so that the building is easy to take apart either for reuse or adding on
>When possible use bolts instead of glue
> Read DESIGN FOR DECONSTRUCTION (PDF)

10) Document Your Green Efforts for LEED and/or GBI
In order to tap into the wider green building market you will need to get involved with one or both of these organizations: LEED or GBI. Ask green design folks you know locally which one is more important in your area. Both organizations require documentation, especially in the area of waste diversion.

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Website
Green Building Initiative Website
NAHB’s Model Green Home Building Guidelines (free PDF download)

More Green Construction Resources:
Building Green – web publication about green design
Recycling Construction Materials: An Important Part of the Construction Process
Wastes – Resource Conservation – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – Construction & Demolition Materials
Construction Waste Minimization Methods
Construction Waste Management Guide (PDF)
Post-Construction Runoff Controls
Construction Runoff
Construction Recycling
Benefit from “Green” Construction Methods
Taking Green One Step Further Through Green Construction Practices
A Green Jobsite Can be Gold
Green Construction
‘Green’ building practices don’t have to hike costs, researcher says

Newsletter photo credit.

-Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America

If you’re a general contractor you’ve seen price increases far more than 41%, especially metals and petroleum-based materials. This article proposes 6 strategies for controlling your costs and closes with several resources for further investigation.

The sections are:
1) Know What Accountants Look for During an Owner Audit
2) Be Aware of the Market and Stockpile Materials
3) Stop Material Theft on Your Jobsite
4) Find Value Engineering Opportunities
5) Know Your Cost Estimator
6) Cost Projections and Contingency Planning
7) Recommended Construction Cost Saving Resources

1) Know What Accountants Look for During an Owner Audit
A rise in capital costs will result in a rise in owner expense audits as owners try to tighten down. A familiarity with what audits turn up will help you during the cost estimation phase… you may be unwittingly setting yourself up to lose your shirt.

Some of the major things owner-auditors look for include: all your cost-reimbursable contracts, discretionary benefits you provide that aren’t legally mandatory, statutory limitations in payroll taxes, inaccurate pension and profit sharing claims for employees, computer costs and accounting costs (overhead) included as labor costs in the project. These items are covered in more detail in Understanding the owner’s right to audit construction costs.

2) Be Aware of the Market and Stockpile Materials
We’re now out of the era of reliable supply chains. This means higher prices. It’s your job to stay up on the materials markets using resources like the AGC’s Construction Inflation Alert (pdf). One way to manage the sometimes dramatic cost fluctuations is materials stockpiling.

This is an old but effective technique whereby you purchase and warehouse large quantities of materials at prices that you speculate will be lower than when the project starts. This flies in the face of “just-in-time” materials management and brings with it a new host of issues, the least of which is warehouse management. This method won’t be right for some companies, but it’s worth investigating

3) Stop Material Theft on Your Jobsite
As material costs increase so will material theft. These costs go beyond replacement – you suffer the loss of time and ready cash replacing materials. Then you have to wrangle with your insurance company to get your money back. All this contributes to significant damages to your bottom line and even your reputation.

We’ve written extensively on stopping construction site theft. Here are a few articles to help you increase your jobsite security:
9 Ways to Stop Construction Theft During Holidays and Vacations
Reducing Employee-Driven Job Site Theft
How Secure is Your Construction Security Fence? 11 Questions to Ask
5 Security Lighting Tips For Your Construction Site

Also, investigate our construction site security services. We use live video surveillance to stop construction site thieves.

4) Find Value Engineering Opportunities
According to Wikipedia, “Value engineering is a systematic method to improve the “value” of goods and services by using an examination of function. Value, as defined, is the ratio of function to cost. Value can therefore be increased by either improving the function or reducing the cost.”

In our language that means build only what you need. An example I read suggested that if you know a given conference room won’t have high traffic then don’t cover the floor with high traffic carpeting. Save it for the hallways. Extend this thinking across your project and you will see significant savings.

5) Know Your Cost Estimator
Matt Stevens is a construction business consultant. I found this quote on bidding and hope it can be a guide for you when you’re estimating cost or working with your existing cost estimator: “Being low is not success, being right is.” Estimating construction costs is a science, and well worth studying.

Spend some time reading through Cost Control, Monitoring and Accounting by Chris Hendrickson of Carnegie Mellon. It provides – at the very least – a good basis for figuring out what are the right questions to ask.

6) Cost Projections and Contingency Planning
Does your contract identify and prepare you for potentially skyrocketing material costs? Because estimates happen so far in advance of project completion you may need to build a plan, if not allocate funds, to safeguard against a major cost increase.

Make sure that the “trigger” for the plan is perfectly clear in the contract and that the owner is on the same page. The contractual language will be vital if and when you face an owner audit for overages.

7) Recommended Construction Cost Saving Resources
Construction and Materials Outlook: Sinking Demand, Higher Costs
Keep costs down: Understanding the owner’s right to audit construction costs
Surging Material Costs Call For New Construction Strategies
Managers need to buff crystal ball to forecast construction costs
Construction costs in the Hotel/Motel Industry
Contingency / reversion plans
Project Management for Construction – an online text book
Ten Ways to Reduce Residential Project Costs
Raise the Roof, Lower the Costs: Construction Costs and Housing Affordability in New York City