Office Building Security Managers Need to Raise Their Awareness

While each office building may have some unique characteristics making it more vulnerable, there are a number of essential office building security precautions that are applicable to all.

Obviously, high-visibility and certain public buildings are more prone to being targets of domestic and international terrorists, but any office building runs the risks of being targeted for theft, vandalism, assaults from disgruntled employees and customers or lone gunmen with a point to prove.

And there are also the ever-present threats to office building security from natural and man-made disasters including weather-related incidents, HAZMAT spills and more.

Many office building managers think that simply developing and publishing a security plan, and maybe hiring a few security officers, is all it takes to protect the people who spend so many hours of their lives behind the building’s front doors. Unfortunately, it is this type of thinking that gets people injured or killed.

The implementation of an effective office building security program begins with access control. And that’s not limited to simply checking who is coming through the main revolving doors.

Effective access control means addressing all of these areas:

•    Requiring visitors to be processed through a central security point, and being issued visitor credentials, before being allowed to go further into the building.

•    Have security staff regularly check the physical security and operation of all electronic access control, alternative entranceways, emergency exits, loading dock doors, roof doors, etc.

•    Having a central check-in area for all deliveries including the U.S. Mail carrier, FedEx, UPS and even the local pizza delivery guy.

•    Limit or eliminate deliveries beyond the loading dock area by vendors unless the package is inspected by security and the vendors are escorted by security personnel or the tenant receiving the delivery.

Large office buildings should consider installing optical turnstiles and issuing staff and tenants high-security identification cards to activate those turnstiles and provide entry to non-public areas.

•    Deploy CCTV to record activity in non-public areas, loading docks and access points, as well as the main lobby area, elevators and staircases. Having a video record of an event for post-incident review is invaluable, but providing addition live-video feeds to security officers, offers real-time protection.

•    Protection against attack from chemical and biological agents is another area that office building security personnel rarely had to consider in the past. Now it is unwise to leave roof vents and HVAC systems unprotected.

•    Office building security professionals should evaluate the threat of someone being able to drive an explosive-laden vehicle into the building lobby. A good defense is to work with groundskeepers and maintenance staff to develop architectural barriers designed to prevent attacks like this from occurring.

The days are gone when you could place a guard in the lobby and pat yourself on the back for providing office building security. It’s time to raise your awareness and come to grips with the real threats that exist in the real world.