Protecting a construction
site at night.

What gets taken

Compact plant and attachments, power tools, fuel, copper cable and pipe, and materials stacked ready for the next day. Thieves often visit in daylight first to see what is there and how it is protected, then come back after hours.

The layers

• Perimeter. Heras fencing that is clamped, braced and checked; locked gates; no gaps behind the welfare units.
• Lighting. Good lighting helps cameras as much as it deters people.
• Monitored CCTV. Cameras or CCTV towers with detection analytics, connected to a control centre, so an intrusion is seen as it happens rather than discovered in the morning. How remote CCTV monitoring works.
• Audio challenge. A live voice warning through site speakers ends most incidents before anything is taken.
• Response. A response officer with keys, or the police where an intrusion is confirmed.
• Housekeeping. Plant immobilised and stored together in view of a camera, fuel locked, tools off site or in secure storage, nothing high-value left in cabins.

Monitoring or a guard?

For most sites, monitored CCTV gives more coverage for the money than a static guard: cameras watch the whole perimeter at once, and a person is sent when one is needed. A guard still makes sense for very large or complex sites, high-value deliveries, or periods of particular risk — and the two work well together.

Cover for the length of the build

Construction cover is temporary by nature, but the setup — site profile, escalation ladder and testing — is the same work as a permanent site, so tell us your dates early. Arrangements can change as the build does: a new phase, new access points, a new contractor working late.