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Why CCTV Cameras Are a Must-Have for Your Construction Site

How Construction Site CCTV Can Boost Your Revenue and Productivity

If you work on a construction site, then you've probably worked on a site burgled by petty thieves. If you haven't, then you're in the minority.

A survey by the Chartered Institute of Building found that 92 percent of respondents experienced petty crime.

Twenty-one percent said that site robbery was a weekly affair.

Construction site security is a must-have, and most businesses have it in some form. Whether it's a guard after hours, securing fencing or security boxes over each tool shed lock, almost no one leaves their site wide open when they go for the day.

While a combination of deterrents is the best way to lower construction crime rates, no theft prevention strategy is complete without construction site CCTV.

The same CIB survey also asked site workers how they felt about the effectiveness of CCTV. Their response: CCTV was more effective than both security guards and security dogs in preventing crime.

What are some other ways that CCTV can stop crime and benefit your construction business? Keep reading to find out.

Eight Ways to Use Construction Site CCTV At Work

CIB surveys found that preventative safety efforts need to include many different checks, including:

  • Secure storage
  • Tracking systems for plant and other vehicles
  • Locking points for plant
  • Heavy-duty gates and barriers
  • Enhanced lighting
  • Security guards

So where does CCTV fit into the scenario?

While these methods are critical to deterring thieves, construction site CCTV has several other uses in addition to security that make it invaluable to any construction site.

Here are eight ways it could improve your workday.

1. Lower Insurance Costs

Some insurance companies offer discounts to businesses and buildings that employ CCTV.

Why?

CCTV keeps a real-time record of all the goings-on in an area. If there are thieves, the cameras catch their arrival, departure, and access points. They also increase the potential of capturing identifying information.

Cameras also capture accidents and disputes, which help determine liability and improve safety.

There are many inappropriate places to try to save money on a site, but if you can save money on insurance premiums by doing something positive? Why haven't you installed your cameras yet?

2. Keep Everyone Safer

CCTV is useful not only for reviewing tape but for checking in and preventing disasters.

For example, cameras are critical on sites with high fire hazards. With CCTV monitoring, you can spot fires or other dangers before they spread and damage the entire site. It also provides a unique look at the best way to do so.

3. Deter Burglars

Here's the real problem with robberies. Your equipment and your site benefit from insurance. But there's no insurance coverage for all the time spent waiting around, calling the police, and missing out on opportunities to complete a project segment because you arrived to find your tools damaged or missing.

Deterring burglars saves you time and money. It's the difference between another morning in the site hut or making your deadline.

The CIB survey we referenced earlier studied what people thought of CCTV exactly.

Out of all people surveyed, 15.4 percent said CCTV was very effective, and 48.5 percent of people said the cameras are effective. Only two percent of people answered, "not at all effective."

CCTV deters burglars for two reasons.

First, monitored cameras allow security experts to see what's happening in real time, giving them ample time to phone the police.

The cameras also catch information like vehicle makes and models, registration plates, or faces and body types.

We would never tell you that CCTV deters all burglars. Enhanced lighting, GPS-tracking, barriers, and secure storage are critical to the effort. But it does provide you with information about the burglar that you couldn't get from one of these other methods.

4. Encourage Accountability

What are your site workers doing when they know you're not watching?

CCTV encourages accountability by reminding employees that bad habits or laziness are on camera. It both promotes productivity and prevents accidents caused by short-cuts or protocol breaches.

Your site director can't be everywhere at once, but your cameras can. When your workers are on their best behaviour, you're all on the right track.

5. Look Back at Accidents

Unfortunately, construction accounts for only 5 percent of British workers, but it contributes 27 percent of the country's fatal workplace injuries.

Construction companies can always do better, and CCTV helps you do that. With the option of looking back at the scene of an accident, it's easier to see what went wrong. You'll learn how you could have prevented both fatal and non-fatal injuries.

CCTV is another way to keep your workers safe.

6. Share Information

Are you on a site that gets robbed week-after-week? Share your CCTV footage with the local police to get as much help as possible.

Remember that sharing video information needs to fall within the confines of the GDPR.

7. Avoid Disputes

Disputes happen on every site, and they're almost always expensive. With a video record of an event, it's easier to stymie those disagreements and resolve them quickly so that everyone can get back to work.

8. Creating Marketing Videos

Today's CCTV footage looks more like professional videography than the grainy, low-res video of the past.

One of the more unique ways construction companies use CCTV is for marketing purposes. You can create time-lapse photography and real-time updates on construction projects. A picture is worth a thousand words and video is worth a thousand more. Plus, it's proof to clients that you use CCTV - and your cameras work.

Use Construction Site Surveillance to Boost Your Productivity

Construction site CCTV reduces downtime, deters criminals and bad behaviour, and makes conflict resolution simpler.

While you could never trade in your secure boxes and barriers for cameras, they provide information that you could never get from flood lighting, like identifying details and additional site protection.

Are you ready for a site solution that will simplify your workday? Learn more about adding CCTV and CCTV monitoring to your site here.

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