Safety First

Security systems today play an important role, not only in ensuring safety, but also in facilitating a building's performance

Most guests do not look for safety services before picking any hotel but it is a top concern for hoteliers. A secure system not only ensures that the structure is resistant to theft, fraud or criminal attacks, but also aids its managers to detect faults and difficulties in the proper running of the hotel's functions. Safety systems are indicator and reactors to man-made and natural disasters.

An overall secure setup starts with assessment of potential threats and vulnerabilities to the hotel building. One can understand the process of securing a facility as creating different levels of resistance. Each level blocks a particular set of threat with the goal to make the system more impervious to damage. Design, technology and operations are all part of this strategy.

In new constructions, if threats and vulnerabilities are considered and worked into the design right from the beginning, security may not have a significant influence on budget or aesthetics. But retrofitting old systems can be more expensive. Add-on security relies more on technology and operations than design. X-ray machines, metal detectors, video surveillance cameras, etc., are some technological aids that are part of the security unit handled by professionals. With digital video recordings, the visual evidence can also be obtained to prevent theft and protect the building from legal claims concerning onsite physical accidents, such as lost baggage claims, etc.