Facility security has to do with the protection of buildings, assets and facility users.
As a facility manager, you know your facility more than anyone else and you should partner with appropriate security team to carry out a facility security audit to identify your security needs and have a clear security plan in place to protect your facility.
A measure should be in place to protect the facilities and facilities users, as the first aim of facility management practitioners is to protect the people and then properties. To protect lives and properties, facility security personnel and technology are usually employed.
The practitioners should acquire the necessary knowledge on how to operate, monitor, analyze and maintain the technology.
Facility security personnel must be of unquestionable honesty and trustworthiness, such that no amount of money or any other inducement would be able to tempt the personnel away from discharging his/her assigned duty.
The following are some tips on how to ensure a good facility security measure:
- The personnel should be trustworthy and givenquality training because trustworthiness of personnel is of great importance than the sophistication of the equipment used to protect the facility.
- Background checks of the potential personnel should be carried out. These checks may include examination of the individual’s domestic history, arrest and police record, financial history etc.
- All entrants to the facility must submit themselves to the security procedures.
- There should be adequate lighting around the facility.
- Communicating devices should be provided to aid incidence reporting and communications between personnel and also with control station in the event of a security breach or any other incident.
- Sensitive areas and items should be in a location easy to maintain a closer watch on and which will be difficult for any intruder gaining access to.
- Provisions should be made forthe components of facility security (surveillance system, access control, fire detection and suppression devices, alarms, first aid kit, emergency response plan, biometric devices etc.).
- Installation of firewall and security software should be done on the information technology servers to prevent unauthorized access to data and information on the server and also to prevent possible attacks and threats.
- Routine checks should be carried out on the facility and all security apparatus to ensure they are functioning and effective.
- Scheduled facility security audit should be carried out and the recommendations should be implemented.
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Kazeem Olugbade, ProFM, is a facility management professional who has extensive knowledge and skills in the subject areas.
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