Office Building Security Strategies Getting Smarter

Apr 1, 2006 12:00 PM

           

Owners and landlords are gravitating toward a more strategic deployment of technology and personnel. “The aim is to implement new technologies for added efficiency, not just for their own sake, or because they are the greatest wonder since sliced bread,” says Mike Coleman, vice president of commercial real estate at Philadelphia-based AlliedBarton, a security personnel firm.

The new approach to safety goes well beyond gadgetry and technological wizardry. Relatively simple procedures — such as mail handling and emergency planning — have taken on heightened importance.

In general, office building managers are reducing their reliance on manpower in favor of X-ray machines, metal detectors, turnstiles and barriers. “The key is to do it smarter, by integrating personnel and systems,” Coleman says. “That could mean replacing or supplementing humans with technology.”

“Layered technologies work in conjunction with each other. For instance, software complements high-quality video or digital recordings,” says Tony Varco, vice president of the security division at Convergint Technologies, Schaumburg, Ill.

The good news is that security costs appear to be under control. After an initial jump from 46 cents to 56 cents per sq. ft. between 2000 and 2002, research from the National Association of Building Owners and Managers (BOMA) shows they have now leveled off.

Installing and maintaining a CCTV system ranges from $1,500 to $2,000 per camera. Varco estimates a card access system with a proximity reader may cost about the same per door. Metal detectors are expensive to install, requiring electrical expertise. As for security personnel, unions dictate wage levels in different cities.

From the tenant side, rents are a marginal expense for large companies and professional firms. Small increases in rental expenses, including security, barely dent the bottom line. “Security expenses constitute 6 percent of [total tenant expenses],” says Amita Juneja, BOMA's director of research.

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