By David Whelan, Managing Director, Clarity Telecom
Business owners have a plethora of responsibilities, including – and perhaps among the most important – over the security of company property, both physical and otherwise.
That’s because maintaining strict control over security matters helps to ensure business continuity by reducing, for example, the risk of interruption due to crime.
Here are five reasons why video surveillance should be considered a key investment.
Preventing crime – The sight of a CCTV camera, and the risk that actions may be captured on video, is clearly a deterrent to any individual or group considering carrying out illegal activities such as vandalism, theft or break-ins.
Should a crime occur, the presence of the surveillance system will pay further dividends with the video captured of the event usable as evidence, helping to place the time and precise location of the offence and identify any suspects.
Activity monitoring – In addition to capturing footage of any illegal activity, security cameras can also keep a track of other activity, carried out by employees and visitors, offering complete awareness of what is going on under the roof of the firm.
This has the added benefit of supporting the maintenance of good record keeping, helping to ensure comings and goings are handled efficiently and operations are running smoothly.
Dispute resolution – Disputes can occur in any business, between customers and staff or between employees. Regardless of the nature of the dispute, business managers need to figure out exactly what happened, and expeditiously. In some cases, a surveillance camera may provide clear video proof about the entire incident, leading to a fair resolution of the matter.
Remote access – Real time remote video monitoring can also be extremely useful, with a select group of approved employees given access to monitor critical areas of the business continuously.
Such monitoring can be completed from computer, mobile phones, or tablets at anytime and from anywhere. It is even possible to have multiple sites communicating, using the same network, with each of the camera views accessible through the internet.
Cost effectiveness – There is a myth that installing video surveillance systems is costly, and while there will of course be some capital expenditure required, it can prove exceptionally cost effective in the long term.
It is certainly cheaper than hiring full-time security officers for every corner, entrance and exit.
When integrated with your company’s telecommunications network, camera-based security systems open up a wide range of possibilities.
For further information about the solutions available, please contact the Clarity Telecom team on 0800 912 1000.