No matter the industry, there are unscrupulous people who will take advantage of gaps in security for profit. According to data from the National Equipment Register, job site theft costs the construction industry as much as $1 billion per year. As a result, job site monitoring has grown as an industry to combat not only theft, but to improve safety, streamline data collection, and assist in completing other important tasks.
In the Beginning
Prior to the digital revolution, a typical construction site would be monitored by security personnel who would patrol the physical location. Though the job site might be fenced, that was essentially the state of the art in security for remote construction sites. Hiring security personnel to physically patrol a job site took a major portion of the security budget even back then. Today that number has increased tenfold and is often impossible with tighter and tighter budgets and project and construction site managers are expected to do much more with far less.
The Task
If we simply look at the issue of securing a job site, we know that thieves tend to look for easy targets without many obstacles to bypass. A static camera system is going to be enough to deter the laziest of criminals, but won’t work if the thieves are determined, professional, and intent on stealing expensive heavy equipment or construction materials. Using traditional security tools, costs add up rather quickly:
- Security Officers: The average cost for a security officer is generally between $30 and $65 per hour, depending on several factors, including their experience. The size of the site will also dictate how many security officers you need to secure the site.
- Cameras: Depending on their capabilities, advanced construction cameras may cost between $2,000 and $7,000. The service fees range from approximately $225 to $400 per month.
- Fencing: Fencing that reaches six feet may cost between $3 and $5 per linear foot, and privacy screens can add to this total.
- Lighting: The costs of these lights vary dramatically depending on the type of lights used, the number of lights that will be placed and the installation method, with LED lights costing less than other types of bulbs and using less energy. If the site is remote and doesn’t include access to affordable power, you’ll also need heavy power generators at night.
On top of the security concerns, other issues have become as important in terms of construction site monitoring, worker safety being chief among them. Modern job site monitoring systems also help protect employees from construction site hazards and help find safety issues long before they result in injury.
The Digital Revolution
As construction projects increase in scope and complexity, new solutions that can address several tasks are required to maintain profitability. No longer can a construction company expect to be competitive if they expend large amounts of money on security alone.
Modern solutions include robust construction project management tools like Procore that tackle several mission-critical functions from one easy-to-use platform. Combined with other tools like SiteKick, your construction site monitoring solution can perform many other tasks which would normally require additional software and hardware investments.
SiteKick’s suite of monitoring and reporting tools you’ll enjoy an entire suite of data collection, analysis, and reporting tools in a single cost-effective construction site monitoring solution.
With SiteKick you can:
- Monitor, report analyze environmental conditions
- Monitor and track visitors
- Capture video to detail progress
- Leverage AI and machine learning to make better decisions
- Automated daily photos and logs
- Manpower tracking
- Environmental monitoring
- Temperature Tracking
- Humidity levels
- Mobile accessibility
SiteKick is the most complete site monitoring solution for commercial construction. It takes the guesswork out of project management and improves communication while enabling a more efficient use of field resources to help improve profits. To find out everything SiteKick can do beyond securing your valuable construction assets, contact us today! We’re ready to help you build a better future.
