Moving your business should be an exciting time. After all, it means a new space — and potentially more space — plus a new/expanding customer base. Moving can mean a lot of positive things for your business. Of course, it’s hard to focus on the excitement when there are so many different steps to keep track of as you make your move. One of the biggest concerns most business owners have during this time is how to handle security. With so much of your business in transit, the chaos that goes along with that can make it difficult to keep everything well protected. Consider these safety concerns that go along with moving and how you can better protect your business:
Adding, Replacing or Rekeying Locks
The first step in any move, before you move a single asset of your business into the new space, is to secure all exterior doors and windows to your space. Now, if you’re moving into an existing building, there will probably already be some security measures in place. However, even if the locks are all fully functional and in great shape, all of those locks will need some attention from a local locksmith. Rekeying is a way of updating the tumbler inside each lock so that you don’t have to replace all of the lock hardware across your new space, but the locks will no longer allow access with previous keys. That way, if the previous owner still has a key, they won’t be able to access your space.
If you’re entering a newly built space, you may need to go through and add locks and other commercial door hardware in order to better secure your building — or at least talk with the builder to select lock options. We recommend going through the space with your local commercial locksmith so that we can provide you with recommendations that are tailored to your space and your business’s needs. This will make it easier in the long run to get a comprehensive security system set up that meets all of your business’s security needs.
Installing or Updating Alarms
Once you have the physical locks installed or rekeyed and ready to go, it’s time to move onto the digital security elements. Ideally, you’d want to handle all of your business security updates at the same time to really make sure that all of your security measures are ready to go at the same time. This will provide the best protection for your new space, plus it’s easier to get all of the different security elements set up before furniture and other fixtures start moving into the space. Of course, we realize that this may not always be possible, so after lock hardware, the next most important element is an alarm system. That way, if someone tries to break in or otherwise vandalize your new space, the building is protected and the authorities will be notified whether you’ve started moving into the space or not. In most cases, an alarm system is also a good deterrent to burglary attempts just from being present.
Personalizing an Access Control System
Controlling customers’ and employees’ access to your space is another element of security, but one that may be harder to set up if you don’t know how you want to set up the new space. Setting up an access control system can wait until you’re in the new space, or at least have a finalized plan for how everything will be arranged. Once you know how you’ll use the space, connect with your local locksmith to have a comprehensive, individualized access control system designed and installed. Since access control systems are the most effective when they meet the specific needs of each space and use, it will be more effective to have it designed around your space, even if that means installing everything after you’ve moved in.
Moving and Securing Safes
One last consideration is what to do with any safes or vaults in your current space. A local locksmith can move your safes to the new space, get them securely installed, and service them to ensure everything is in good working order. If your new space has a vault already built in, talk to us about having it serviced and see what can be done to rekey or update the locking mechanisms so previous owners and employees won’t be able to access it.
Scheduling Local, Experienced Assistance
If you’re preparing to move your Milwaukee business to a new location, make the security side of things as seamless as possible during this transitional time. Connect with Urich Lock today to schedule a consultation with our Milwaukee locksmith team, and get the guidance of a business that has been protecting the region’s businesses for more than a century! Call our commercial locksmith team today to learn more.
