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[show]As many approach the Winter season with excitement, preparing for Christmas and cosy nights in, for construction businesses this brings a wave of oncoming risks to prepare for. Read on to find out how you can secure your construction site this Winter.
What makes Winter a Difficult Season for Construction Sites?
Construction sites carry risks all year round, however, during the Winter season this often increases.
With 51% of fatal injuries in the construction industry due to falling from a height, construction companies need to be aware of the dangers ahead. The risks of slips, trips and falls can become more common as colder, frostier weather conditions set in.
Additionally, due to worsening weather conditions, construction equipment and machinery can be impacted by this and require specialised care.
The vulnerabilities have already increased as darker nights are upon us, and construction sites cannot risk reducing their security or following the method used in the summer months prior.
Our Ultimate Guide to the Winter Season: The 7 Essential Steps to Protect Your Construction Site
Having over 20 years of experience in protecting and securing construction sites, we understand the preparation required, especially during the colder, darker months.
From this, we’ve pulled our knowledge together to create a comprehensive guide on how to secure your construction site this Winter season following these 7 steps.
Prevent and Monitor Injuries to Construction Workers
There are multiple hazards related to construction sites, especially during Wintertime where there is a higher risk of slips, trips and falls. As employers you hold a duty of care to your employees.
Conducting safety inspections, providing thermal PPE and refreshing employee training are good starting points for you to promote the importance of staying safe on your construction site.
Monitoring health and safety can be more difficult, however is crucial to ensuring that safety standards are being met by construction workers and repeat instances are prevented.
Utilising temporary security solutions such as CCTV cameras allows employee safety to be monitored remotely to ensure standards are met and provides the ability to review incidents back to find out how injuries occurred.
This ensures there is no room for error as you have video recording of any incidents or safety risks that are taking place on site.
Ensure a Strong Light Source on your Construction Site
Colder, frostier weather is not the only concern in Winter as the darker evenings entice thieves to target construction sites without risk of being caught. However, there are simple ways to combat this.
Installing strong light sources around your construction site stops any thieves or intruders thinking they cannot be seen. This is critical for construction sites during darker evenings, especially at any entrances, exits or where valuables and machinery are kept.
If you wish to take further steps to secure your site, investing in CCTV Towers during the Winter period will provide the extra reassurance of capturing any criminals. They can cover up to 200m in the dark if there are areas where light source may be lacking.
Store Machinery and Expensive Materials in a Safe Location
It is estimated that the construction industry suffers a loss of more than £400 million a year due to vandalism or theft.
As construction workers will often face shorter work days and construction sites are left vacant for longer, the risk of theft increases and the need to protect your high-value products is vital due to the repurchasing costs related to them.
If possible, moving machinery and expensive materials off-site is the best option, however, if you cannot do this the recommended option is to place them in a site container secured by a lock.
Make sure Security Cameras Cover the Full Construction Site
Taking preventative measures such as, storing equipment in a safe location and placing fencing around the site are important steps to take, however, there is no guarantee that this will stop theft or vandalism.
Having security cameras on site that cover the full construction site 24/7 is the most effective method of preventing such crime. Rapid Deployment CCTV Towers provide multiple benefits including, a visual deterrent with its bright yellow colour and PTZ abilities.
In instances where intruders access your construction site, CCTV Towers will be able to record the event, assess the threat, read a live message through the loudspeakers and inform the relevant individuals such as, the police and keyholders.
Be Prepared for the Winter Weather with a Security Plan
Plan, plan, plan! You can never be too organised for the Winter as a construction site, however, being unprepared can cause many risks.
Carrying out a security check can help elevate your site’s safety, identifying any hazards or gaps where further solutions could be provided to them to improve site security.
Once the checks are completed, you can create a security plan for the Winter and implement the changes highlighted at the required times, ensuring the improvements are made before the risks ramp up.
Educate your Construction Workers on Health & Safety Risks
Everyone has a duty to ensure health and safety in the workplace, and this includes construction workers. However, overtime, training can be forgotten, or changes take place meaning that some construction workers may not be up to date with their knowledge.
As employers, you need to make sure that any construction workers have the relevant training required and that this is updated on a regular basis. Especially prior to the Winter season where health and safety risks increase.
Set the time aside for all your employees to complete any training NOW to prevent workplace injuries from occurring over Winter that could be avoided.
Protect any Equipment prone to Cold Weather Damage
The drop in temperature over the Winter period can impact the effectiveness or usability of construction tools and machinery.
You need to be aware of the tools and machinery more prone to cold weather damage and create a plan to protect these.
If possible, store them indoors. This will keep your tools and machinery warm and reduce preparation time for construction workers at the beginning of each day.
Other methods include, covering them in weather-resistant materials, disconnecting any batteries, lubricating any moving parts on machinery and using equipment suited to cold weather.
Stepping up Your Construction Site Security This Winter Season
By following these steps and onboarding the correct security services, we firmly believe that your construction site will be secured as best as possible.
At WCCTV, we specialise in supporting these needs, supplying CCTV Towers and cameras supported by a high-quality service that includes a site survey, equipment installation, regular maintenance, remote video monitoring, proactive response, and monthly reporting.
Even in locations where power is not available, our service can be used to provide 24/7 monitoring this Winter and beyond.
Are you looking to step up your site security this Winter? Get in contact with us today.
Daniel Del Soldato
Marketing Director
Daniel has been at Wireless CCTV over 10 years and has accumulated a vast wealth of knowledge when it comes to CCTV products and the way they operate. In his spare time Daniel likes to listen to music, watch football and spend quality time with his family.
