/ By Gateway Team / access control equipment • biometric fingerprint readers • perimeter security • security • tailgating • turnstiles/ 0 Comments

How to prevent and reduce the damage of tailgating

Tailgating is one of the most annoying lapses in security that you can have happen and unlike many other security bloopers it is often it is the result of common courtesy rather than ineptitude or criminal intentions. Picture the scene – one of your employees swipes their security fob to gain access to the front door of your building, as the door is about to swing shut they notice someone else stood there and courteously hold the door open for them.  While your employee might not realise the gravity of the situation at the time, they could have unwittingly given a criminal access to your property that could quite easily go on to commit vandalism, theft, criminal damage or even a violent crime on your premises.

What can we do to prevent tailgating?
The first place to start when it comes to defending against tailgaters is to seek out a risk assessment. A professional company will be able to take an audit of your facility analysing the strengths and weaknesses in your operations and helping to develop a security solution that protects your assets and your employees. For example a risk assessment might result in  recommendations to install waist height or half height turnstiles or biometric fingerprint readers, both of which can be effective in preventing tailgating.

While you can put lots of measures in to place to prevent tailgating, your security is only as strong as the culture you build around it. If your employees aren’t trained in the risks of tailgating, and are not told to challenge unidentified visitors then you run the risk of your systems being ineffective.

Most businesses have some kind of important asset that they need to protect, whether that is expensive equipment, confidential information, restricted chemicals or something else. This is why it is important to not only secure your entry and exit points but also to lock down any important areas of your building with high quality access control equipment.

Whether your business runs from small retail premises or a large industrial site, we can provide you with a free, no-obligation risk assessment, feasibility survey and quotation to assess your perimeter security requirements. For more information please contact us

/ By Gateway Team / property • risk assessments • security • unoccupied buildings • vacant properties/ 0 Comments

What are some of the threats to unoccupied buildings?

Properties can become vacant for a number of reasons. Whether closed for refurbishment, awaiting a sale or closed for good there are a whole range of reasons why a property might be unoccupied for a long period of time.

However, it is absolutely critical that during the time that a building is left vacant that the owners take steps to secure their property.

High on the agenda of concerns for landlords of vacant properties is the risk of scrap metal theft. High export values for materials such as lead and copper have led to a sustained rise in the number of buildings pillaged by thieves, with 1,000 commercial properties every week targeted in the UK at the peak of activity. Criminals force their way into property and then proceed to strip it of all its valuable metals often causing thousands of pounds worth of damage along the way.

Another problem which is also causing headaches for landlords is that of squatting. This is when a vacant property is taken over by people determined to live in the building free of cost with the only route to remove them being to take them to court. Once evicted, landlords are often left with heavy renovation costs to pay for as well as expensive energy bills for water, gas and electricity that have been racked up during their stay.

The best strategy for dealing with these types of threats is to take preventative measures. The first step you should take upon knowing that your property is to be vacant for a period of time is to have a risk assessment carried out.  Here at Gateway we regularly assess properties for risk making sure that they are adequately secured and recommending any ways that we think security could be improved.

  • Every site is different but our recommendations might include: Installing lighting in areas where criminals and squatters could potentially gain access.
  • Turning off gas, electric and water supplies to the property as early as possible
  • Installing heavy duty gates or barriers which make access difficult both on foot or in a vehicle.
  • Applying anti-climb paint and clearing away bins, wheelbarrows or other items which could be used to gain leverage onto the property. 
  • Restricting access to the entire property or specific areas with access control equipment
  • Restricting vehicular access with automatic rising kerbs

The risks to empty buildings are numerous and should not be underestimated.  Beyond squatting and stealing scrap metal there is also the risk of trespass and there are numerous incidents of vandalism taking place in vacant properties, as well as the risk of having to pay compensation if someone is injured while trespassing in your building as you may have a duty of care over them while they are in your building.

If you believe that your property may become vacant in the future, or you own a property that has already been a target for thieves and vandals then please call us on 01522 682 255 to discuss how we can help to keep you safe. 

/ By Gateway Team / access control equipment • automatic rising kerbs • barriers • bollards • crash tested road blockers • flow control plates • gates • risk assessments • security • security posts • speed ramps • turnstiles/ 0 Comments

Why physical security is crucial in protecting your business from crime

While many businesses fall back on CCTV as a low maintenance form of security, as we explained in our recent blog it is anything but an all-in-one solution. CCTV has indeed proven to be weak in many areas and it is particularly worth remembering that a camera cannot physically prevent a crime from happening, only document it taking place. It simply records the event in the hope that police or private guards can be informed in time and a conviction can be secured later on.

Here at Gateway Automation we provide full risk assessments so that we can identify any vulnerabilities and then recommend the best tailored approach to protect your business. This often means a variety of different physical barriers designed to make your property unattractive to criminals and could include one or a combination of the following protections:

Creating a robust physical perimeter around your business site should be high on your agenda, but equally it is just as important to maintain your gates, fences and other types of security solutions, for if they are damaged over time due to intrusion attempts or even just accidentally damaged in your day to day activities then they could leave you vulnerable.

This is why we offer a nationwide reactive callout service with engineer response times of 8 hours, 24 hours, 48 hours and 7 days meaning that we can get to you quickly to repair any damage and keep your business safe and secure.

To find out more about our servicing and repairs options, please visit https://www.gatewayautomation.co.uk/servicing/ or contact us on 01522 682255 for a free, no-obligation quotation and feasibility survey to assess your perimeter security needs.

/ By Gateway Team / biometric fingerprint scanners • biometric identification systems • fingerprinter readers • key pads • security • warehouse security/ 0 Comments

Reduce employee theft in warehouses

clip_image002Internet shopping giant Amazon hit the headlines recently after resorting to putting up flat screen TV’s in their warehouses which showed stories of alleged former employees who had been ‘terminated’ or ‘arrested’ for stealing company stock.

While this is an extreme method of deterring employees from stealing from you, it is understandable that Amazon aimed to put protections in place considering how much of their stock has a resale value.

However, there are other ways to show your employees that you mean business that have less of a chance of damaging company morale and creating a public relations storm.

Mirrors & cameras
First of all, mirrors can be installed in strategic areas of your warehouse that highlight any hard-to-see areas where employees may be able to conceal items away from your cameras or the sight of other employees. Your employees are less likely to try and commit opportunistic crime if their actions are highly visible through a combination of mirrors and cameras.

Create secure areas
For particularly high value items it is important to put systems in place so that employees are unable to easily gain access to them. Security does not end simply with perimeter protection and you need to make sure that items of high value are given full protection. This could be achieved by enforcing a two-person rule where no-one is ever allowed to access specific items by themselves, or by securing a room or cage with a keypad or finger print biometric access control system.

Limit the number of keys
While it’s important to lock up your building at night, keys are not as secure as they might first appear. Physical keys are easily copied which means that if a key is lost or falls into the wrong hands then it could put your entire warehouse and stock at jeopardy. Instead you should limit physical keys only to specific high clearance members of staff and provide key fobs for other staff which can be deactivated if they part ways with your company.

Outside of these three key areas you should also ensure that checks are done on new employees to make sure that they are fit to work for your company and don’t have shady details in their past. You may not need to enforce a DBS check even just calling previous employers can help.

Gateway Automation can provide free, no obligation quotes and feasibility surveys for your premises. To get us to assess your security requirements, please contact us

/ By Gateway Team / access control equipment • audio intercom • care home security • care homes • fingerprinter readers • intercom • key pads • nursing home security • nursing homes • security • swipe cards • video intercom/ 0 Comments

How care homes can benefit from access control equipment

clip_image002Care homes act as a refuge for our nation’s elderly people, offering them respite, round the clock care and a good quality of life. Unfortunately care homes are also considered an easy target for criminals looking to take advantage of their vulnerability and gain access to valuable equipment, possessions and personal records.

Owners and operators of care homes have a duty to safeguard and protect the wellbeing of their residents. However, with the level of ongoing care that is often needed it can be difficult to rise to the challenge, especially when coupled with staffing issues and overcrowding.

Care homes often have a number of different visitors throughout the day, from care providers and health care workers to social workers, friends and family. In order to protect residents it is important that you are able to personally greet each visitor and verify their identity; however this is not always easy – especially if you are at the other side of a large site when the door bell goes.

Intercom systems can allow you to quickly respond to a visitor requesting access even from a distance, verifying their identity and business either by audio or video for extra assurance of their identity.

Care homes also keep sensitive information on file of residents, information which needs to be protected. They may also have expensive equipment, shopping supplies or valuables kept away for which access needs limiting too. Using biometric devices such as fingerprint readers, swipe cards, keypads or smart cards you can make these areas accessible only to your staff.

Gateway Automation provides a range of products to help businesses and individuals secure their sites. We also provide nationwide servicing and repairs to gates, barriers and other perimeter security equipment. To find out more please call us on 01522 682255.

/ By Gateway Team / audio intercom • business security • intercom • intercom security • intercom systems • security • video intercom/ 0 Comments

Why we recommend intercom systems to businesses

clip_image002Intercom security is one of our top recommendations for businesses with lots of visitors who are looking to secure their premises and limit entry to authorised persons only.

We hear cases every day of criminals gaining access to buildings unchallenged. If an unauthorised person takes advantage of your open door policy, or even just happens to go unnoticed by your front of house, then they could quite easily cause trouble.

Unwanted visitors could steal from your property, commit acts of vandalism or even intimidate and attack your employees or guests. Installing intercom systems gives you and your employee’s peace of mind that your building is secure, allowing you to go about your normal working day without the fear of intrusion.

Not only do intercom systems help to protect your property from opportunistic criminals and unwanted visitors but they also help you to communicate at long distances. This means that you can grant access and open doors or gates without having to travel all the way there to physically do it. This can even help you to save money by removing the need for a front of house reception.

Intercom systems have another valuable benefit in that they cut down on the number of keys that need to be distributed to employees. When an employee misplaces a pair of keys, or leaves your business without returning them, you are left with the costly inconvenience of changing locks and having new keys cut.

With intercom systems employees can gain access either by speaking through an audio intercom and you recognising their voice, or through video for visual verification.

Click here for more information on our range of intercom systems and start taking steps to improve your business security today. Gateway Automation can provide free, no obligation quotes and feasibility surveys for your premises to assess your security requirements, contact us here.