It's normal for employees to have a set of keys to the office, but it can be a bit of a dilemma choosing the right people. Some people would argue that all employees are trusted members of staff, and should therefore be allowed a set of keys. However, you should never take keyholder responsibilities lightly. When you hand over a set of keys to your business, you really are putting your assets in the hands of someone else. Ideally, you want to choose people who are sensible, trustworthy and who actually need a set of keys.

What are the responsibilities of a keyholder?

A keyholder is someone who's been trusted for opening and closing the business on a regular basis. These people need to be capable of setting/disabling your alarm systems & keeping your business and its contents safe! In shops and restaurants where physical cash is handled, key holders might need to make sure that the cash is deposited safely and out of view from prying eyes. Being a keyholder tends to come with more responsibilities than simply opening and cosing up at the end of the day, so choosing the most appropriate people for the job is paramount! Most business owner tend to allocate keyholder responsibilities to the more senior members of staff because they know they're capable of managing the reposibilities of being a keyholder.

What happens if there's an emergency?

Keyholders are often required to respond if the intruder or fire alarm goes off ouside of business hours. It's vital that keyholders understand the procedure they need to follow if they're faced with this situation. For that reason, you might want to choose keyholders that are based locally, or that have access to their own vehicle. Someone who lives 30 miles away and commutes to work on public transport, they might not be the most reliable keyholder in an emergency.

When a keyholder attends an emergency call out, they should be capable of assessing the situation and reponding appropriately. If it looks like a break-in has occured, they should phone the emergency services immediately. Likewise if they can see obvious signs of a fire. If they attend and realise that it's a false alarm, they should be able to reset the alarms, lock up the premises and notify you or the relevant person in charge.

Key traits of a good keyholder:

• Trustworthy & reliable
• Confident under pressure
• Local to the business
• Well-organised
• Strong leadership skills

Outsourcing keyholder responsibilities

In some circumstances, it may be a better option for a business owner to outsource their keyholder duties. For example, if all of your staff live far away, or if staff turnover is high, it might not be possible to choose people to take on keyholder responsibilities. In this case, you can hire a third-party company to help with keyholder responisbilities & out of hours emergencies.

One great option is to invest in a monitored alarm system & a maintenance contract. This means that someone at a trustworthy security company will keep an eye on your alarms around the clock. If an alarm is triggered they will make sure that the appropriate emergency services are contacted right away, meaning the responsibility for the business is taken out of your employees hands. Without proper training, in-experienced staff members might put themselves in harms way in the event of an emergency, so it might put your mind at ease to know that a reliable & professional company are monitoring your premises.

• Burglar Alarm Monitoring from IDS
• Fire Alarm Monitoring from IDS

Our advice when allocating staff keyholder responsibilities is, choose carefully and don't be afraid to outsource to professionals if you're concerned about the safety and welfare of your business. Give us a call if you're interested in upgrading your business security systems, we're happy to help!

Business Security Systems >

If someone tries to force entry into your business premises, a commercial burglar alarm will provide a quick response to get the situation under control. Commercial burglar alarms work by alerting staff members on-site, passers-by or the emergency services that an intrusion is taking place. But how do you choose the right one for your business? With so many on the market, it can be hard to know where to start. The IDS Security System experts have put this guide together to help guide you.

Audible Alarms

Audible alarm systems work by, you guessed it, making a lot of noise until someone does something about it. They're designed to be so loud and piercing that the intruder won't be able to stand it and will vacate your property immediately... if you've ever heard one, you'll know what we mean. Generally, these alarm systems will continue to sound until they're manually switched off... not ideal if you live miles away from your business and it starts going off over the weekend! 

We don't usually recommend audible alarms for commercial premises for a few reasons. Firstly, they rely solely on the actions of individuals that are in or near to your commercial property. If no one is around at the time of the break-in, then the chances of it being reported to the police are pretty slim. Besides, if these alarms are triggered accidentally, they can cause a real disturbance for surrounding businesses. 

Having said that, there are a few commercial properties that might benefit from an audible only alarm system. For example, if you're a small business and you're friendly with the neighbouring businesses/homeowners then you can be fairly confident that they'll report a disturbance to the police and notify you straight away (they're also likely to be less disgruntled if it starts going off accidentally). These alarms are also good for 24-hour businesses (where someone is always on the premises), or for business owners who live very close to their businesses. 

That being said, this wouldn't be our first recommendation if you came to us looking for a commercial burglar alarm system. Nowadays, there are much more sophisticated systems on the market which will provide you with a higher level of security and control.

Monitoring Service

Commercial burglar alarms that are connected to a remote monitoring service are highly effective! Nowadays, most commercial property insurers will specify this level of alarm system as a minimum, so look out for this if you're a new start-up business. 

These commercial alarm systems work by contacting a monitoring service when the alarm is triggered. The monitoring service will then take a look at the situation and decide whether or not it's a false activation. If it's not a false activation and a break-in is occurring, the monitoring service will notify the relevant emergency services straight away. By filtering the activations, monitored alarms help to make sure that you're not wasting police time unnecessarily.

The response time is very quick and completely automatic which ensures that someone attends the property even if you, the business owner, are unable to do so yourself. Monitored alarms are perfect for all kinds of businesses, but are particularly beneficial for companies with multiple locations across the country or vulnerable businesses that might be targeted by professional/skilled burglars. 

Our Monitored Alarm Service >

Here at IDS Security, we work with commercial businesses to create a burglar alarm system that suits their needs exactly. To choose the right commercial burglar alarm, we'd recommend thinking about your businesses security needs and tailoring the system to suit you!

If you're looking for a commercial burglar alarm system, don't hesitate to get in touch with our technicians for a free quotation today!

The UK is still in the grip of a deadly coronavirus pandemic. New cases of COVID-19 are still being reported every day, so it remains important for all of us to do our bit to slow the spread of this disease.

One crucial precaution is to stay at home if you are displaying any of the following coronavirus symptoms:

• A high temperature
• A new, continuous cough
• Changes to your sense of smell or taste

If you have one or more of these symptoms, you may be infected and should self-isolate at home in order to avoid infecting others.

But taking responsibility for your own health is one thing. What should you do if you're a business owner and one of your employees comes to work with one or more symptoms of COVID-19?

More...

When it comes to door entry systems there is no hard and fast answer about which is the 'best' one out there. The best door entry system for you depends on the why and where you plan to install it. Here are a few things to bear in mind if you're trying to decide which door entry system is the best for you.

Location

Commercial - If you're a business owner there are a few things to consider when you choose a door entry system:

• Which door entry system will be most efficient for your employees?
• Which system will provide the desired level of security commercial property?
• Which locations need to be secured around the premises?

Residential - A homeowner's worst nightmare is burglary or theft. Here's what you should consider before choosing the best door entry system for your home:

• How many people will be using it?
• What level of security do you prefer for your home?
• How much do you want to spend?

Best types of door entry system

Once you've considered the answers to the above questions, it's time to decide what type of door entry system is best for you! Let's take a look at some of the door entry systems we offer and explore why they might be the best for your property...

Key Fob Security Systems

• One of the simpler door entry systems on the market, key fob security systems are easy for everyone to use. You'll often find key fob door entry systems outside blocks of flats, although they can be useful when employees need to pop in and out of the office frequently too.

Video Door Entry System

• Ideal for monitoring your property while you're away, our video door entry systems are the best for residential properties. You can see who's ringing your doorbell without having to answer the door, and you can keep a close eye on people behaving suspiciously.

Security Barriers

• Security barriers are a physical blockade between your property and the outside world. Generally, this might be considered a bit of a strange choice for a residential property where most people would install a gate or fence.  Security barriers work wonders in private car parks, making them the best door entry system for commercial properties. 

Do you need more help choosing the best door entry system for your property? Speak to one of our advisors today, we're more than happy to help. Call us on 029 20 753 251 now.

Chance & Counters is a board game café that opened in the centre of Cardiff. Spread over three storeys in a picturesque Victorian building on High Street, Chance & Counters is home to more than 500 board games, which visitors are encouraged to try out while they sample a variety of dishes and drinks.

Images from facebook.com/chanceandcounterscardiff

As one of Cardiff's leading security companies, IDS Security Systems Ltd were asked to provide a range security and fire protection solutions for the new café. Not only did we supply the cameras and alarms for Chance & Counters, we also designed the whole system and installed it ourselves. Our experienced engineers handled the job with their usual professionalism, and we are very proud to have been involved in this fantastic, unique addition to Cardiff's food and drink scene.

Photos from @IDSFireSecurity on Twitter

IDS supplied and installed the following systems:

• Intruder alarms
• CCTV cameras
• Fire alarms

If you require an expertly-designed security and/or fire protection system for your premises, please call IDS Security on 029 20 753 251 or enquire online to request a quotation. No job is too big, too small or too unusual!