You do it all. From the moment you arrive in the morning, you are engaged in the operation of your club… Attending to your members, managing your staff, and calculating the bottom line. However, are you protecting your investment against loss, vandalism, or false liability claims? If not, your club could be vulnerable to a devastating situation…One that may seriously affect your business.
As the saying goes, your best defense is a good offense. This is especially true when it comes to protecting your club, and there are many reasons to install a functional and safe security system onsite. Just some of those reasons include: theft deterrence (both internal and external); monitoring the safety and security of your members; emergency alerts, and peace of mind.
Determine Your Security Needs
There are many options available for securing your club, but a bit of research should help you determine your needs. A popular platform seamlessly integrates hardwired and wireless technology. This combination provides flexibility and full coverage while still being easy to operate and maintain. Features to look for include: a central control panel; passive infrared motion detectors; wireless door contacts, and glass break detectors.
Another security trend is the use of multizone systems. In this setup, certain zones are armed manually, and other zones are active at all times. For example, a burglary zone is activated when your club is closed for the day. A 24-hour zone is continuously active, and can secure areas that are vulnerable during your operating hours.
For the ultimate in protection, your security system should be linked to a monitoring center. A high quality monitoring center offers fast response times and reliability, while being available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Eyes in the Back of Your Head
You try to keep a watchful eye on your club, its members, and your employees, but you can only do so much. And, since you don’t have eyes in the back of your head, a video surveillance system can do the watching for you. Using closed-circuit television and digital video recorders (DVR), a video surveillance system can protect your club in many ways. The possibility of being caught on camera can greatly reduce theft and prevent breakins. This same concept can improve the productivity of your employees, while increasing the sense of security your members experience. For actual crimes or questionable liability claims, a video surveillance system can provide valuable evidence for further investigation.
There are two main components in a video surveillance system – cameras and DVRs. The cameras that you select should have a low profile, allowing smoke-colored domes to be placed over them. This allows you to conceal the direction the camera lens is pointing. Your cameras should also have versatile positioning options – preferably using a three-axis system.
A quality DVR will combine advanced digital recording, multiplexing, and alarm inputs. That sounds overly technical, but a good unit should also be easy to operate. The DVR will record video to a digital storage device, for example, a hard drive. Motion detection features can control recording, which means if no activity is in front of the camera, it will not record. This saves valuable hard drive space. Multiplexing technology allows the DVR to record even while you review existing video. An alarm input feature can create logs from your security system to simplify video review. For real convenience, remote viewing applications allow you to access your DVR from anywhere via the Internet. This technology allows for offsite surveillance of several clubs, or uninterrupted observation during vacations or business trips.
Get Protection from an Industry Insider Once you have decided to install new security measures, or you want to improve the ones you currently have, you are faced with a daunting array of security companies and products. There are many good companies, but do they understand the fitness industry? Can they design a system that has proven to be effective in clubs similar to yours? Can they provide quality, yet affordable, products and services? Do they offer state-of-the-art components, exceptional service, and competitive pricing?
For more information on security and surveillance systems, please contact Apex Technology Systems at 800.317.2739 x 119.
Terri Blattenbauer is the Vice President of Apex Management Services, a leader in club management software and receivables processing. She can be contacted at 800.317.2739 x 117, or by email at terri@apexmanagement.com, or visitwww.apexmanagement.com.
