Plant hire equipment is expensive, and as well as being sought after by thieves, it can also be subject to vandalism. Mischief makers think they may know how to operate heavy machinery, and whether they mean to or not, can often damage equipment with repair costs running into thousands of pounds. The correct safety and security measures should be taken if your hired equipment is to stay safely out of harm’s way.
Because the type of equipment you are hiring can differ in size and value, it is vital to consider your storage options beforehand. You might have to store your plant hire equipment in an exposed or outdoor location, and damage caused to it through misuse or vandalism could disrupt your project schedule. Your job could be set back for days on end, costing you money, not to mention the inconvenience!
We have compiled some simple tips to help keep your Plant Hire Equipment protected for the duration of the hire term.
- Location, location, location
Make your equipment as difficult as possible to access. It’s not always practical to keep it out of sight, but if you have site cabins or buildings, these can be an excellent shield to the prying eyes of opportunist thieves or vandals. If any would-be culprits do enter your site, they’ll have to increase their efforts to move your equipment if it is stored behind materials or other paraphernalia.
- Take extra security measures
Make arrangements to review your security. The more measures taken, the less likely thieves and vandals will try to enter your site. Lighting and cameras are relatively inexpensive these days, and if you choose the motion detection kind, they’ll be cheap to operate too. Be over cautious with your lighting – opportunists rarely take chances in daylight, so make the night-time hours as bright as possible.
- Fence it
Keeping intruders off your site is imperative if you’re to protect your equipment and other assets. Good quality fencing will be the first barrier any would-be vandal will encounter, and it may just deter them from trying to enter any further. You may only have scope for temporary fencing, but that coupled with other security measure should make any trouble makers think it’s not worth the risk. Temporary fencing could also be installed and locked around any equipment that’s particularly vulnerable to thieves or vandals.
- Don’t fuel their attempts!
Try not to leave any fuel operated machinery with full tanks. It’s frustrating enough to lose machinery to either theft or vandalism, but to lose costly fuel too only adds to the bill! You could use security signs to say that fuel is regularly removed and that none is left on site, to deter thieves further.
- Track it
If you’re concerned about theft of equipment, then a GPS tracker could put your mind at rest.
Magnetic GPS trackers are tiny pieces of equipment and are really affordable. In the event that any of your equipment is stolen, you’ll be able to track it remotely.