Security in Supertall Buildings

VIDEO SURVEILLANCE: BUILDING DATA AND EXTENDING FOOTPRINT

Video surveillance equals data-gathering. Data on footfall, on who is doing what, why they are doing it and when they are doing it. It also shows the respective traffic levels of deliveries, visitors and who is visiting who. The smart analytics of most advanced CCTV systems also allow keyword and subject-category searches, ie, “when did woman with white coat and brown hair visit the building last Wednesday?”

There is also the proactive element, in that when CCTV is placed in plain sight, it positively encourages people not to take chances - for example, not to steal opportunistically or get into heated disagreements with other building occupants.

Meanwhile, used externally, good video coverage can extend the actual security perimeter to the very edges of the property, not just inside the building’s cross-section. This means there is in effect a ‘no man’s land’ around the building, which thieves have to traverse before they even get to the main entry points - thereby dramatically increasing the chances of unwanted intruders being spotted and interrupted. Exterior coverage also extends the data collection process and the level of information about traffic and footfall (including parking and delivery routines) around - and leading to - the building.

Access control cannot be seen as a 'cure-all', however, it can be very effective if it factors in the need for tenant flexibility and ease of entry.

External Lighting

The exterior surfaces of super-talls tend to be near-ideal canvasses for high-budget advertisers - particularly, for example, in Seoul or Kuala Lumpur. Yet when they aren’t being used in this way, it’s essential that super-talls should always be adequately lit, with high-intensity, inwardlooking lighting every 15 or 20 floors. This is a powerful way to discourage intruders and also allows crystal clear night-time surveillance, identifying any attempt to scale the structure illegally.

The Right Kinds Of Access Control

Many Property Managers reject access controls because of the problems they will often provoke for bona fide office employees. The art is to find a system that controls and secures all points of entry into the facility while making it easy for tenants and their customers to come and go as they please. The golden rule is: system you choose should accommodate your business needs and should not dictate how you run your business. For example, a ‘one card’ approach can be terrifically helpful, both boosting security and making office employees’ lives easier. Many systems exist that will give access to the main lobby and to the actual office premises with one simple swipe card. Thereby, tenants don’t need to invest in bespoke sets of door locks and touchscreen pads - one card does it all.

Moreover, the next step can be to integrate the access card system and the video surveillance together - thereby enhancing the overall understanding of events and bringing the ability to highlight risk hotspots, such as a door being propped open. If you are managing the building remotely, it’s advantageous to determine who actually propped open the door.

ELEVATORS - NOT A 24/7 RESOURCE

While all high-rise structures depend on elevators, super-talls depend on them absolutely. This aspect of the security solution is often overlooked, but the best way to provide building security in a super-tall is to limit after hours elevator access to tenants only, or limiting tenant access to only the part of the building that they lease.

In reality, a safe and secure work environment will assist in attracting and maintaining a long-term tenant base. Specific ROIs on these common solutions are of course hard to quantify, but as we all know, a 100% leased building is the goal. Meeting that goal on a super-tall is of course even more challenging, but the right combination of security systems can not only maximise tenant and visitor security but bring powerful levels of ROI that less elevated, smaller-scale buildings simply cannot equal.