Security can cut costs and reduce environmental footprint, says BSIA

BSIA suggests businesses that security measures can indeed be sustainable at the same time as providing considerable cost savings

With World Environment Day and Recycle Week taking place respectively on the 5th and the 20th to 26th of June, this is set to become the most environmental month of the year. The British Security Industry Association (BSIA) is therefore reminding businesses that security measures can indeed be sustainable whilst still providing considerable cost savings.

Thanks to the continuous technological development within the private security industry, measures such as access control and information destruction are now being utilised beyond their traditional security function.

Access control and visitor monitoring systems can currently be used as part of intelligent solutions that work alongside Building Energy Management Systems (BEMS) to help companies save money on their energy and heating bills. In such systems, data gathered by the security systems is employed to inform the BEMS of the nature and function of the people occupying a heating zone. This information is applied by the BEMS to heat-loss algorithms in order to determine the minimum amount of heat to be applied to a particular area, thereby reducing the amount of energy consumed and avoiding any unnecessary wastage.

Linking the secure disposal of confidential waste with recycling strategies is another way to reduce the environmental footprint of businesses.

To this end, a member of the BSIA's Information Destruction section has pioneered an award-winning information destruction, recycling and business solution scheme with a large firm in London.

The success of the scheme has meant to date 325 tonnes of paper were shredded and recycled, 5,514 trees were saved and 729m3 of waste destined for landfill was avoided. Moreover, more than half of the paper used by the client firm's 2,500 partners and staff in its London office is now recycled paper acquired through this scheme.

"In these harsh financial times, finding innovative and cost effective solutions that can clearly demonstrate Return on Investment is key to business success. The fact that security measures can assist in this is indeed welcome news", says James Kelly, Chief Executive of the BSIA.

"These types of innovative solutions that demonstrate the growing flexibility of security measures also prove how investing in security is worthwhile not only to protect premises and assets, but also to improve sustainability of a business", concludes James.

The BSIA is also hosting its second annual Information Destruction conference and exhibition, aimed at sharing best practice amongst suppliers and service providers within the information destruction industry, on the 8th June at the National Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham. The event will be essential for keeping up to speed with the key developments in the industry.