How Additional Lighting Can Keep Your Business More Secure at Night

Additional lighting can help discourage criminal activities like theft and vandalism

When it comes to your business’s nighttime safety, what you can’t see can hurt you. Criminals and other bad actors thrive in darkness; the more of it there is, the less likely they’ll end up being caught. That’s why owners and managers need to make sure that their business has sufficient illumination. While the basic principle of proper nighttime lighting is simple, implementing it can be more complex than it seems.

Basic nighttime security means all entrances and exits are well-lit

Making sure your building is lit properly means that all potential entrances and exits can be fully seen at night. Criminals will often observe a building and look for dark or dimly lit entrances to reduce the chance that they are detected breaking into a building. In addition to making sure you have enough lighting, routinely check if current lights are in good working order.

Replace damaged or burned out bulbs immediately. To save money and safeguard  your system, it’s often a good idea to place outdoor lights in cages, to protect against accidents, harsh weather, and vandalism.  And, if you own a retail store with expensive merchandise, you should keep it well-lit but away from windows, as potential thieves may be more inclined to attempt a ‘smash-and-grab’ robbery if highly-valuable goods are within arm’s reach. You’ll also likely want to set your lights on a timer, to make sure that they turn on a soon as the sun begins to go down. That way, you’ll never forget to turn them on.

More important places to install nighttime security lighting 

In addition to entrances and exits, it may also be a good idea to put lights in exterior areas that include:

• Walkways (ground-level or overhead)
• Parking lots or garages
• Prominent landscaping (e.g., bushes or trees that can easily cast long shadows)
• Valuable statues, plaques, or other easily-vandalized areas
• Building and exterior safety signage
• Any spaces or areas that appear particularly dark at night

For many businesses, it also makes sense to purchase motion-activated lights. These can often work alongside intelligent video analytics systems, as well as on-site and remote security personnel who monitor surveillance feeds to detect and deflect threats.

Educational institutions may particularly benefit from increased security lighting

While businesses have much to gain from making sure their lighting is up to par, high schools, colleges, and universities may need it even more. In addition to routine crimes like vandalism and break-ins, students (especially those at colleges and universities) often face increased threats of violent crimes. Increased lighting may not be able to eliminate the risk of these kinds of unfortunate events, but it makes them less attractive to the perpetrators, making everyone on campus a lot safer.

Additional lighting keeps businesses safer at night, but make sure glare doesn’t become a problem

Whether you own or manage a store or a consulting firm, making sure your business is properly lit at night is a serious responsibility. While most businesses suffer from not enough light, some that have recently installed security lighting may face a new issue – glare. Unfortunately, glare may make it harder for people to see at night, which actually encourages crime. That’s why security experts make sure to use softer lighting, spread lights out evenly through outdoor areas, and make sure that lighting isn’t installed to point directly into people’s eyes or disrupt cameras.

To learn more about how smart strategies and time-tested technologies can protect your business or organization from both established and emerging threats, contact POM Technologies today at (212) 688-2767 or info@pom-tec.com, or complete our contact form for a free consultation.