Employee safety and property security are priorities every single day, whether the weather is perfectly sunny or dreary-snowy. It comes as no surprise to us at Kyosis that security personnel still need to trek into work, even when the forecast calls for more than a foot of snow.
At Kyosis, too, we don’t take any days off — or more accurately, our parking management systems don’t. Even when a nor’easter is barreling through the Garden State, our parking systems are still working around the clock to support the security and public safety teams which need to come to work regardless of the weather. Sure, parking management systems may not go on foot patrols or ask questions of unfamiliar visitors to campus, but they provide the valuable information needs to properly manage a facility during an already-stressful weather event, like who’s parking in the lot and who’s inside the building.
How do parking management systems support hardworking security staff?
Security staff in hospitals, public buildings and other sensitive places know just how integral their role can be on campus, from unlocking the doors to keeping unwanted visitors out.
During snow emergencies when travel is restricted, staff in many industries, including the public sector, colleges and hospitals, is typically divided into “non-essential” personnel who stay home and “essential” personnel who still need to come to work. In New Jersey, security and safety officers are considered “essential” staff alongside police, fire officials, doctors and journalists. Many in the private sector, too, call in their security staff to manage facilities during weather emergencies, for the security of the employees and the facility itself.
Security staff is essential during weather emergencies like a snowstorm for a few reasons:
- Security needs to know who is in the building. Especially in situation where more “funny business” may occur because of the smaller number of employees on site, it’s important for security to know how many people came to work, how long they stayed and if they are staying overnight (if allowed). This helps keep order in the event of a larger emergency such as a power outage and can help backtrack steps if there’s an issue inside the facility.
- Trained professionals should be on site for emergencies. A good number of problems could arise in a weather emergency. If the power goes out or the water stops running, there may be a point where the building must be evacuated or employees inside may need to be relocated to a different portion of the building. Employees will naturally (and correctly!) assume that security is there to assess the situation on the ground. Management will also expect security to professionally handle an emergency situation.
- Buildings need to be operational for other essential personnel. Security personnel is necessary for the continued operation of institutions that remain open no matter what the weather, such as hospitals. Without security staff on site, maintaining everyday operations would be a confusing challenge, at best.
The right parking technology can support security during those trying days which, ironically enough, call for enhanced security and an even more watchful eye. Kyosis’ vehicle location identification system installs cameras above each parking spot; the system scans and indexes license plates so employees and visitors can search for their cars upon return to the parking garage. This license plate scanning system is not just convenient, but crucial for security: it provides another level of safety, helping security keep track of who is in the building at all times. All that security personnel needs to do is log into the system to identify unfamiliar cars or vehicles not registered to the business or organization.
In short, without security personnel, already difficult inclement weather days become even more stressful. With a commute and everyday routine already impacted by the weather, why should security need to face yet another unnecessary difficulty during a weather event? When the weather is frigid and strong winds are whipping up, walk-throughs or parking garage checks by foot aren’t exactly a pleasant prospect — and they could be downright unsafe when the weather is bad enough. Luckily, video systems and parking guidance systems work in tandem to support security’s eagle eyes on the parking lot.
To the hardworking men and women in security: thank you for all that you do!