Choosing a security vendor with a proven track record and experience installing specialized systems can make the difference between a smooth-running facility and an ongoing maintenance nightmare.

Storage security and access-control systems are complex and require intricate wiring. Only an experienced security vendor has the skills to install them properly and avoid potential pitfalls. When shopping for security providers, keep in mind the following concerns.

Licensing

State licensure requirements vary, so make sure your provider holds current and proper licenses to work at your site. In California, contractors working on electrical systems producing 90 volts or less are required to hold a C7 low-voltage license. For systems producing more than 90 volts, contractors must hold a C10 electrical license.

For 24-hour monitoring of a security system, youll need a vendor with an alarm company operators license. By law, your security provider must be properly licensed; however, licensure doesnt always guarantee quality work. Thats where the next step becomes important.

Get References

Ask security providers for several referencesincluding names, phone numbers, addresses, and the date and nature of the installation. Call all those listed and ask the following questions:

• Is the system working properly and has it been trouble free aside from normal maintenance?
• Did you receive the system you ordered and did it meet expectations?
• Were there change orders and, if so, were they legitimate?
• Did the vendor work in a professional manner and clean up after installation?
• If mistakes were made, how were they handled?
• How well did the vendor communicate with you? Is the company easy to contact? Are phone calls and e-mails returned promptly?
• Would you use this vendor again?

Schedule a visit to one or more of the referenced facilities and preview the security system. This personalized visit gives you a great opportunity to get insider tips from the site manager who has been using the system.

Attend a Tradeshow

Self-storage tradeshows are rich with resources and well attended by companies providing access control, CCTV, management software, etc. This is a low-pressure environment where you can view a variety of offerings and talk directly with manufacturers. Ask them to recommend qualified installers since the manufacturers themselves are neither contractors nor installers.

Hiring and Working With Vendors

Bringing in a vendor early enables him to develop working relationships with other contractors and can save time and money on your project. A professional can provide critical design input to the architect. Once he is provided with site plans, he should submit a price proposal and begin working on modified site plans indicating placement of conduit for equipment. He may also offer suggestions on office design pertaining to security features. Finally, he can communicate with your electrician about wiring requirements.

Its always best to hire an experienced vendoreven if it means finding one out of your immediate area. Try to develop a relationship with the installer to facilitate a smooth process. Your security installer may have to make decisions requiring your input, so your availability is crucial. Its equally important for him to be readily accessible when you have questions or concerns.

Make sure you receive a fully itemized and understandable proposal. With a detailed proposal, youll be able to inventory the items to ensure youre getting what youre paying for, leaving no surprises for the end.

Pricing

A full security system may include gate keypads, elevator controls, individual door alarms, video cameras, digital video recorders, music/ PA system, intercom, office alarm, site graphics, video display monitors, wire, connectors, mounts and fittings. Determining the cost of equipment and installation depends on the facility size, number of cameras installed, type of access control, etc. The proposal submitted to you should fall between any of the following parameters:

• $100 and $250 per door 
• $1 and $3 per square foot 
• 2 percent and 6 percent of total project cost 

Selecting a security vendor is a crucial part of developing and operating any self-storage facility. Conduct your search carefully and youll find the best-suited provider for your project. 

Robert Nattenberg leads the sales team for Pacific Rim Security, a security-installation company in the San Francisco Bay area. For more information, call 206.230.5630; e-mail [email protected]. 

For more information about self-storage security, check out "Security: Choosing Tools, Protecting Your Investment," a 32-page e-book available through the Self-Storage Training Insititute. Click here for more info!

 

Its not all glamour, glitz and gambling. The town known as the Biggest Little City in the World offers visitors of all ages an array of entertainment outside the casino and convention hall.

Blending the best of both worlds, Inside Self-Storage selected Reno, Nev., as its new summer tradeshow venue, July 19-22. Reno is a perfect place for both business and family recreation, says Dana Hicks, tradeshow director for Virgo Publishing Inc. Its affordable, picturesque and fun. We anticipate a great show.

Attendees of the Inside Self-Storage Expo will have the chance to network with peers and expand their industry knowledge while enjoying a range of activities for adults and children. Days on the links, walks along the Truckee River or horseback riding are all easy options in this city that never sleeps. Take your choice of live casino shows or Broadway productions. For families with little ones, Circus Circus is top-notch big-top entertainment. If its a romantic evening youre after, make reservations for dinner and a show at one of the many hotels in the compact downtown Reno area.

For those who love the arts, Artown features hundreds of performing and visual arts including music, dance, theater, opera, childrens workshops, movies in the park, cowboy poetry and historical walks throughout Reno, July 1 to July 30. Peek into the past with Everyday Mysteries: Roy Curtis 1920s photographs of Reno are on display at the Nevada Historical Society. For car buffs, the National Automobile Museum houses more than 200 antique, classic and vintage cars in galleries and four authentic street scenes. Remember Bonanza? The original site for the Ponderosa, the ranch made famous in the long-running TV show, is in Incline Village, a 45-minute drive into celluloid history.

Incline Village is just one of many towns and vistas surrounding Lake Tahoe. Aside from magnificent natural beauty, the area is a host to innumerable activitieswater sports, hiking, mountain biking, gambling and dining. Lake Tahoe is just 30 miles from Reno, set high in the Sierras, cradled by tall pines. A two-hour paddleboat cruise shows off dazzling views of the Sierra Madre Mountains, Emerald Bay and the Vikingsholm Castle. Also, you can hear the words of The Bard at the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festivals outdoor stage.

Some 25 miles from Reno, visitors will find the historic town of Virginia City. This former mining community, a famous site of the 1950s gold rush, offers tours of mines, mansions and museums. Visitors feet echo hollowly along the wooden sidewalks past gift shops and colorful period restaurants. Take the family for a ride on the Virginia City steam trainand watch for wild horses and burros that may trot by.

History Trivia

Renos rich and colorful history began in 1859, when Charles Fuller built a log bridge across the Truckee River and charged a fee to immigrants and gold seekers traveling to Virginia City. When Reno became a stop on the Central Pacific Railroad route in 1868, the town site of Reno was officially established. The presence of several legal brothels, illegal underground gambling, and a reputation for quick divorces earned Reno the title of Sin City. The town gained more notoriety with the Wests first train robbery. Although 90 percent of the loot was found, about half-million dollars in gold is still missing. Care to go on a gold hunt?

Heres another bit of Reno trivia: Jacob Davis of Reno tailored the first pair of sturdy, duck cloth pants from fabric purchased from the Levi Straus Co. in 1873now known as the birthday of blue jeans.

So, ISS visitors, put on your Levis, take a stroll through picturesque downtown Reno, play a few slots and remember, some of the glitter you see may be real gold!

For more information about the ISS Reno Expo, visit www.insideselfstorage.com . 

Self-storage folks have unique security needs compared to car washing. Here you are, charged with the protection of your clients goods. You have to run your operation like a fort: No one can get in unless they have the magic password! Even if they know the magic code, you still have to be watchful for those in arrears. It seems like a never-ending vigil, certainly one that is not common at car washes. Or is it?

Car washers have a different but equally frustrating security issue. When a customer enters our property, we are at risk, just like a storage facility. If we are a full-service car wash, we ask motorists to exit their vehicles. From that moment, until they reclaim their vehicles and leave the property, we are liable. In most cases, this isnt a problem; however, once were in their cars, anything occurring on the inside or outside is our risk.

On occasion, customer will make claims relating to items missing from their vehicles. To protect ourselves and our customers, we have security cameras in all key areas. In most cases, cameras are an effective deterrent. Employee training also is key to managing sticky customer relations.

But what about unattended car washes? Although the question of internal risk has been eliminated, vehicle exteriors remain a vulnerability. Unfortunately for car washes, a few motorists look to us as an easy target for external damages. In some cases, the motorist may have done the deed himself but not noticed it until the cleaning. With the advent of touch-free as well as soft-touch friction, the amount of damage stemming from car washing has all but disappeared except on damaged vehicles.

Here again, the only protection is security cameras. Fortunately images can be captured digitally, time stamped, and recorded on hard drives for retrieval when required. All operators need this technology to safeguard their sites and prevent improper claims.

Invisible Foot on the Gas

We have security systems and procedures for answering claims and recording property damages, but what about events that are truly accidents? Recently, car washes have reported incidents of uncontrolled vehicle accelerationcars that truly seem possessed! Christine occurrences have a history in the industry, but the main perp these days seems to be Jeep Cherokees.

In some cases, weird acceleration occurs after the vehicle has been washed. In a few other reported incidents, its while entering the facility. But no matter where sudden acceleration occurs, its a scary event resulting in serious damages and occasionally loss of life.

So, how do you protect yourself and your customers from this problem? The most obvious would be to not allow these particular vehicles on your property. For many washers this would result in losing money and clients. Instead, take preventative measures. For manual sites, employees may be trained on safe vehicle-handling procedures. For automated facilities, you can post signage and informational data available for the public.

To say this is a serious situation would be sugarcoating the potential for catastrophic results. What else can we do? First, we need to be fully informed regarding any vehicle that could damage our site; next, we need to inform all our stakeholders; lastly, if we exert enough pressure, maybe the manufacturers of these vehicles with unexplained acceleration will correct the problem.

As retail businesses, we are subject to security breaches from all corners. As long as we deal with the public, there will always be riskand the opportunity for someone to breach our security measures.

The most effective ways to learn about security challenges and remedies are through associations, tradeshows, web research and networking with other operators. Unfortunately, living in a litigious society has spawned a billion-dollar security industry we operators cant live without.

Bottom line: Be involved in your industry, participate in industry events and, most important, be aware that some of the vehicles entering your property are potential time bombs. 

Fred Grauer is president of Grauer Associates and vice president, investor services, for Mark VII Equipment LLC, a car-wash equipment manufacturer in Arvada, Colo. He has made a lifelong career of designing, selling, building and operating car washes. He can be reached at [email protected]. 

I went to college on the opposite side of the country from my hometown. In the summertime, Id rent a small storage unit for my meager possessions. Sometime between by junior and senior years, I returned to the 5-by-5 only to find my belongings had been pilfered. My first thought: Whod want my junk? Next emotion: anger!

No, I hadnt purchased any insurance. I was saving money and really didnt think it necessary, considering what I was storing. But there were plenty of times in the months to come when I went looking for something or other, only to realize someone else owned it.

I cannot begin to count the times I wondered what ifs. For example, What if I had bought that insurance? What if I spotted someone riding my Schwinn 10-speed bike on campus? What if that self-storage business had actually put some money into a security system and prevented my loss altogether?

The latter what if echoes in my head most of all. Since my days (has it really been decades?) as a co-ed, self-storage security has grown so technologically sophisticated it reminds me of The Jetsons. I thought the barbwire fence looked pretty intimidating, but what if the self-storage site had surveillance cameras? Maybe that would have sent perpetrators down the road. Or what if the facility had a keypad and gate? Or door alarms? And DVRs? And what if the management software was entirely integrated with the security devices? For sure the thief who stole my bike and everything else I owned would have been caught, locked behind bars, forever. Or at least for awhile.

This month, ISS covers everything under the sun in self-storage security. Todays tenants want as much security as possibly to protect their belongings and themselves from thieves and terrorists. Why not put your tenants minds at ease, as well as give your facility an edge over the competition? Think security!

Also in the issue, we are introducing our newest column, Open Forum. Coincidentally, this months contribution is titled Battling the Terrorist Threat, by Clark Stave. In future issues, we hope to bring a variety of topics, issues and concerns regarding every conceivable perspective of the self-storage world. Care to step on the soapbox? Just let us know. Wed be happy to share your views with readers.

Stay safe ... and secure.

Drew G. Whitney 
Managing Editor 
[email protected]