News and Events

Here is some very good information for business and individuals concerning the locksmith industry. If you have comments or questions, feel fre to call me at 360-678-5253 or email at bee.safe.lock@comcast.net.

DID YOU KNOW THAT ...
© 1999 The National Locksmith

DID YOU KNOW THAT ...

... no matter how good your door locks may be, a thief might easily gain access to your business by removing the hinge pins from the door hinges and prying the door open from the hinge side?

... we can rectify this problem by installing special security hardware that would make it virtually impossible for a potential thief to enter your premises by pulling out the hinge pins and prying open the door?

... we're here to help you find the quickest, and easiest, security solutions?

DID YOU KNOW THAT ...

... a sensible security precaution is to change the combination on your company's safe every time you lose an employee that had the combination.

...if you have any digital (electronic or manual push button type) locks, you should also change those combinations?

... the reasons for changing combinations are obvious? The benefits are incalculable? And the savings are very real?

... by taking steps to prevent a breach of security before the breach occurs is the best, most economical and effective security solution available to you?

DID YOU KNOW THAT ...

..the Americans With Disabilities Act--the ADA--obligates you to install hardware on your business doors that will not require "tight grasping, turning or twisting" to operate?

...if you fail to comply with the stringent mandates of the Act, the first fine can be $50,000.00?!

...installing ADA approved and mandated hardware truly makes good financial sense.

...the moderate cost of lever sets or push/pull hardware on restroom doors and appropriate hardware on your other doors can be an economic lifesaver.

DID YOU KNOW THAT ...

...if your business has "drop boxes" under or near the registers, those boxes should be left unlocked? Otherwise, some bad guy or gal will assume there is money in it, and destroy the box.

...you can keep thugs from ruining an expensive register by leaving the drawers open after removing the money.

...If you have charitable collection containers on the counters or near the register, they should be put in a safe each night.

How effective your security solutions are comes down to how effective the controls you have in place are and how vigilant you and your employees are. Alarmed panic hardware on your vulnerable doors, covert surveillance equipment and alert employees are the keys to positive deterrence of theft in your business.

Yet, the alarmed exit hardware on your back door won't do you an iota of good if you allow the back door to be propped open during warm weather or, be opened without a supervisor present. Your covert surveillance cameras are virtually useless unless they're adequately monitored.

Inventories of high-end merchandise should be kept on a daily or weekly basis. It's a great security solution but worthless if you can't account for discrepancies.

Remember, there are plenty of good security solutions but, the price of real security is constant vigilance.

The American With Disabilities Act's mandates effect virtually every facet of your business' operations. Types of door hardware, the width of aisle ways between tables and counters - to keeping personnel health and job performance files separate is covered by the ADA.

The Americans With Disabilities Act requires all covered businesses to install or retrofit lever sets instead of doorknobs on entry and other doors where applicable. Push/Pull handles must be "U" shaped. Door opening pressures and the height of door hardware from the floor are specifically mandated by the Act. The ADA even requires door operators under definitive circumstances.

ADA requirements and penalties are far more stringent than Life Safety Codes, Building Codes and Health Code regulations ever were.

According to the penalty schedule of the ADA the first fine could be as much as $50,000.00! In light of that kind of "penalty", doesn't it make good sense to let us help you find a viable solution?

If you were to give a thief enough time and resources (assuming they had the proper knowledge and the right tools), they could, possibly, break into virtually any building, defeat any lock or open any safe. Fortunately, the average thug does not have the luxury of unlimited time, knowledge, tools and other resources. Consequently, they're reduced to the most direct approach: Force.

Rather then use finesse, they will break, pry, twist, hammer and otherwise force their way in. That makes it easy for you to take steps to deter them from entering your business.

Simply walk around the inside and outside of your business and look at the doors, win-dows, vents, and various openings in the wall or roof and ask yourself this question: "Could I force my way through that ____________?" If the answer is: "Yes". Then, you need to strengthen that weak point to keep the thugs out.

Your security measures could be as simple as installing some screws or repairing a broken window latch. We can help you find the simplest, and frequently, the most economical security solutions that are truly effective.

Keeping an eye on your business can be tough . . . and expensive. Unless you want to go to the expense of installing closed circuit television, you watch your merchandise, you should reflect on the benefits of security mirrors.

Security mirrors are a proven, effective, economical and unobtrusive surveillance instrument. They make an excellent physical security and loss prevention tool. Security mirrors come in a multitude of shapes, and sizes to configure to the most demanding surveillance applications.

There are the standard convex security mirrors we've all seen in various establishments. Security mirrors also come in models that will allow you to see both ways down a hallway, or models that will enable you to see around corners and one way models that will permit you to observe without being seen.

There are small convex mirrors that can be placed above a cash register to allow the cashier to see anyone approaching their station. Other small convex mirrors mount low on the wall of adjacent cashiers stations and permit another cashier to see if there is anything on the lowest shelf of a shopping cart that cannot be seen from counter level.

Security mirrors reduce theft and increase safety. Wouldn't that be a great reflection on you?

Why do business owners and their managers persist in counting cash register receipts in full view of whoever might be passing by? I mean, that's just asking for trouble considering that nothing will get the adrenaline of a thief rushing faster than the sight of bundles of cash they think they might easily grab.

Secure cash handling techniques require that you never turn away from an opened cash register drawer - even for a second. You should never leave the drawer open from one transaction to the next. And ... you should always be aware of others, beside the customer, that are lurking around the cash register.

Cash should only be counted in the privacy of an office. If your establishment does not have an office, then the cash should be counted in the back room where there are no observers. Cash should not be allowed to accumulate in the register where everyone can see that the till is loaded when the cash drawer is opened.

Excess cash, over and above change needs, should be "pulled" from the register on a regular basis and "dropped" in either a depository safe under the counter, or placed in the safe in the office until it's time to total out the day or a particular shift. And, such "pulls" and "drops" should be accomplished in as unobtrusive manner as possible.

The back door area is frequently poorly lighted; giving the thugs an opportunity to work with little chance of being spotted. Which is why it is a favorite point of entry for the barbarians that want to rip off your business.

One of the easiest means of combating this type of break-in is to install bright, high-intensity security lighting around the back door area. That lighting should be encased in vandal-proof housings to forestall tampering and the disabling of the security lighting by rock-throwing thugs.

Because the back door is subject to attack, you should make sure that your door is in good repair, has strong, well functioning hinges and the door fits properly in the frame.

An exposed latch - that is: a latch that can be easily seen and accessed - then the door should be equipped with a heavy-duty astragal. Otherwise, the exposed latch is an open invitaiton to a thug with a pry bar. An astragal is a piece of surface mounted steel that runs the full length of the door covering the latch-side door/frame clearance.

Another security product for an exposed latch is a Latch Guard. Latch guards are formed and hardened units of steel that protect the latch area of the door. The design of a good quality latch guard forces a thief to attempt to pry the door open above or below the ideal leverage point.

..The more secure latch guards have pins along their outer edge that lock into the door's frame and make it nearly impossible for a would-be burglar to pry the door and frame apart with normal tools. Latch guards are economical and effective latch protection devices

WITH OPEN ARMS
© 1999 The National Locksmith

You may have welcomed a thief with open arms when you hired your newest employee. According to a recent survey, one out of three employees will steal if given the opportunity. What can you do about it? Start verifying job applications since seventy-three percent of them are falsified.

On the average, five to eight percent of your gross sales can easily be lost to employee theft and seventy-five percent of all missing inventory has been stolen! How-ever, employees steal cash, merchandise and time. In tact, the majority of employees caught stealing have worked for a business for five or more years!

Next, do surprise department or area inventories. Check all packages and bags being taken out by employees. Install surveillance equipment. Offer rewards to employ-ees that help you pinpoint theft. And, finally, when you do catch a thief - prosecute!

HARDWARE THAT MAKES THE GRADE
© 1999 The National Locksmith

When it comes to your businesses door hardware needs, The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the Builders Hardware Manufacturers Association (BMHA), recommend two classifications of door hardware: Grade 1 and Grade 2.

The differences between the two classifications are significant. The pulling force needed to separate a knob or lever from its spindle is about 60% greater on a Grade 1 than a Grade 2. Cycle tests of a Grade 1 are double that of a Grade 2. Vertical load and bolt strength factors are similarly greater in a Grade 1 than a Grade 2.

Grade 1 rated hardware should be used in schools, factories, and institutions where long hardware life and optimal security are the criteria. Grade 2 rated hardware can be used in less demanding applications such as office or commercial rental properties.

Use the wrong hardware and you just might end up in a class all by yourself - and be poorer for it.

THE ALL IMPORTANT DOOR CLOSER
© 1999 The National Locksmith

Door closers on entrance doors prevent injuries to clients and employee alike by controlling the closing of the door on even the windiest of days. Closers on kitchen or service doors help control the intrusion of insects, vermin and even would-be crooks. Door closers on rest room doors provide privacy and prevent the migration of odors and germs to other areas of the premises.

Which means; door closers must be considered an integral part of the overall health and safety considerations of your business.

Door closers should be considered an essential part of your overall energy conservation program since they automatically and firmly close doors helping to prevent cooling or heating losses since the doors stay open for long periods of time.

But! Door closers are mechanical devices. And, like all mechanical devices, they need periodic servicing, adjustment and, occasionally, replacement. Since Life Safety codes, National Building Codes and The Americans With Disabilities Act all mandate specific door closer performance, yours need to be in top form.

For adjustment, repair or replacement - call us. We'll find a secure solution to your door closer problems.

ONE KEY CONVENIENCE?
© 1999 The National Locksmith

Although the thought of being able to carry one key that would allow you to access every door in your business sounds like the ultimate in convenience - you must recognize what a masterkey system is and weigh the advantages against the disadvantages normally found in masterkey systems.

A masterkey allows management, maintenance and security personnel to carry a single key to access designated groups of doors (or the entire building) while keys issued to non-management employees will open only single doors.

A big disadvantage is: more than one key will open a single lock. That means it is possible that a key, not intended to open a specific lock, might do so. Such a key is called a "Ghost Key". Consequently, the masterkey system that is designed for your facility must be properly crafted to eliminate that possibility.

Once the system is in place, key control is the secret to the integrity of the system. Key records should be audited regularly and no keys duplicated without your specific authorization.

Should you masterkey? That's a decision you should make after a careful analysis of your requirements. We can help you design, implement and monitor a masterkey system that won't give you nightmares. How's that for convenience?

SIMPLE, EFFECTIVE SECIURITY
© 1999 The National Locksmith

If your business location is a typical storefront (glass and aluminum), a burglar can often be inside your premises almost as fast as you can get in with a key!

The thugs have discovered an easy way into most businesses like yours. How? Through the front door! That's right,.

The burglar's "key" is really a pair of Chanel-Lock pliers. They use them to "wrench" the lock cylinder out of the door! Once the lock mechanism is exposed, it's a simple matter to manipulate the lock open. An accomplished thief can be inside your store or office in under a minute with little or no noise. That's why "wrenching" is fast becoming the preferred entry method for the bad guys and gals.

Obviously, the easiest way to prevent your business from being burglarized is to take away the burglar's ability to use their "key".

Placed around each lock cylinder, cylinder guards do just that. A cylinder guard is a formed collar (tapered and free-spinning) of steel that fits surrounds the lock cylinder, offering solid protection. If the thief could get a good grip on the cylinder guard with their Chanel-Locks , all they could is spin the collar around the lock cylinder ...without harming the cylinder.

We'll be glad to install this economical protection for you and offer other quick, valid and tested solutions to address your particular security needs and requirements.

You'll be glad we did.....

LOCKS ARE NOT JUST FOR HONEST PEOPLE!
© 1999 The National Locksmith

There's an old Yiddish proverb that says: "Locks are for honest people." And, it's amazing how many people fall prey to the idea that if the bad guys want in badly enough, there's nothing that you can do about it. Well, like the old English proverb said: "It's foolish to bolt your door with a boiled carrot!"

The truth is, just like people, some locks have more strength than others. Some are prettier than others. Some have both beauty and brawn. And, with today's strides in electronic security technology, some locks are actually smarter then others!

So, whether you're selecting a lock for a freight door, kitchen door, a window or trying to establish a whole new security program for your business, there are locks available that can be customized to your needs. They may not be the cheapest initially but, they will surely be the most cost effective over their useful life.

Primarily, the locks that you select should be chosen on the basis of their ability to provide security to a degree that exceeds your requirements by a comfortable margin. That is, buying more lock then you actually need, increases your level of security proportionately

That's where we come in. No matter what type business you own or operate, we can help you select the proper hardware for your business' security needs. In other words, hardware security solutions that work É designed with your needs in mind.

We can even help you comply with the Federal mandates of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) that pertain to doors, locks, locking devices, door closers, door hardware and door openers.

All you need do is give us a call. We'll show you why locks are not just for honest people

Thieves are opportunists who prey on the unsuspecting and the unwary. They look for unlocked drawers and doors and unguarded merchandise and equipment. Take their opportunity away by being alert and keeping critical doors locked and goods and cash under surveillance.

Unlocked service, employee entrance and office doors are open invitations to internal and external theft. Inattentive, uncaring employees who fail to question or report strangers who are in non-customer areas encourage theft by their apathy.

A thief that believes they are being watched will go elsewhere. So train your employees to be aware of what's transpiring around them. When they see a non-employee in an employee only area have them ask if they can "help" and then direct the individual to the sales floor. Being alert to suspicious behavior is one of the controls that lead to tight security.

When it comes to the doors, fire exits and the type of hardware on the doors of your business; NFPA 101 is the basic guideline various jurisdictions base their Life Safety Codes on.

The underlying premise is: any exit door be operable by anyone in the building in "one motion". That is, the locking device must be operable ("... with no special knowledge ... even in the dark") by anyone leaving the premises.

Which precludes multiple locking devices, double cylinder deadbolts, chains, hasps, padlocks and drop bars (unless specifically exempted by the local fire marshal).

Life Safety Codes stipulate the "path of travel" to a fire exit, must be free all obstructions. Further, the door and any exit hardware on it, must be in "good working order".

Otherwise, you could be in violation of local Life Safety Codes and subject harsh monetary penalties.

Call us, for Life Safety Code solutions that you and your customers can live with!

How many times have you had a customer come in form the parking lot and tell you they locked their keys in the car and request you to help them get them out? I'll bet you it's happened often.

I'm also willing to wager that you, or one of your employees, will have a Slim-Jim or coat hanger and will be unable to resist the opportunity to play Good Samaritan.

Please, listen: Don't do it! Particularly if the vehicle is less then five years old. Why? Most of the newer vehicles cannot(!) be opened with a Slim-Jim or bent coat hanger. And, if you or your employee try, you could cause damage to expensive electrical wiring, lock mechanisms, paint or weather stripping. Damage for which your customer could hold you, as the employer or business owner, liable!

In fact, if you try to open the door on many new vehicles in an unapproved way, you could easily void the car's warranty!

The next time one of your customers lock up their keys, play the Good Samaritan by telephone . . . and call your favorite locksmith for them.

Padlocks come in a variety of sizes, strengths and designs to fill a multitude of security requirements. Padlock use is as varied as your needs and, padlocks are portable. Which means you can safely secure whatever you need to, wherever it is located. Talk about convenience!

Because of their versatility, padlocks - properly matched, and installed for the job you want them to perform - can frequently solve the trickiest security problem for you. And, with padlocks, those problems can frequently be resolved at a fraction of the cost of other security hardware.

You can buy padlocks that are virtually impervious to saws, bolt cutters and sledgehammers. Or, you can buy specialty padlocks without visible shackles and padlocks that you open with the same key you open the front door to your business.

Padlocks can be used to lock storage sheds, tool boxes, electrical panels, roof access hatches, cabinets, truck bodies, cupboards, employee lockers, gates, equipment rooms, utility trailers and dozens upon dozens of applications where normal locking hardware is simply impractical.

Padlocks can be an important part of your physical security program, give us a call for practical advice on portable security. We know how to use padlocks as an effective and proven security solution.

No matter how many employees your business has, there always seems to be a time when no one is minding the store, so to speak. You know the times when everyone is preoccupied with some aspect of their job and no one seems to be keeping an eye on the front door, the sales counter or, especially, the back door.

The thugs are just looking for opportunities where everyone's attention is somewhere else rather than on the thief skulking through the back door and into the stockroom. Opportunities abound for a thug that is more alert than your employees. You know. An unattended cash register. The receptionist on break and no one covering for her. The "crew" out back unloading a truck. And in less time then it takes to think about, the thief has emptied the register, snatched a purse or two from the break room or walked out with an arm load of cigarettes!

One way to immediately direct your employees attention to the high risk, vulnerable areas of your establishment, and at the same time, let the would-be rip-off artist know that your business is not the pushover they think it is, is to install door annunciators.

Even though it is nearly impossible to have everyone exactly where they need to be at all times annunciators are a viable, effective security solution that will draw attention to the door no one is watching.

Security and Life Safety Code compliance can often seem to work at cross-purposes. However, there are ways to secure any door and stay within code mandates.

Because each exterior door in your building is a fire exit, each of those doors are required to meet certain criteria in order to comply with local Life Safety Codes. Since designated exits (interior or exterior) cannot blocked, locked, barred, chained or padlocked to prevent unauthorized use; a code compliant means must be found to secure the doors in question.

Basically, the law states that a person - employee, customer or the thief that just ripped off some merchandise - must be able to exit the premises quickly, easily and with "no prior knowledge" of how the door hardware operates. Which means: you have to install "panic hardware" that will allow "one motion egress" in the event of an emergency.

The drawback to standard panic hardware is that anyone can, at any time, exit your premises without your knowledge. To combat unauthorized egress, various manufacturers have developed alarmed exit devices that sound a loud, piercing, high-decibel horn when someone pushes on the bar. Code approved delayed exit hardware is also available. When an individual pushes on the bar, the alarm sounds but the device does not release for fifteen seconds. Which gives you a chance to respond to the security breach.

Although Life Safety Codes and solid door security can seem to be at odds with each other, there are ways to secure any door and stay within the mandates of your local code requirements. We have the experience to help you find a workable solution to your door security needs that will not land you on the wrong side of the local fire marshal.

To eliminate shrinkage caused by merchandise being put out with the trash; in-stitute, and make all employees aware of, trash removal policies. Inform them if they are caught trying to do a trash stash, they'll lose their job and face criminal prosecution.

After all, a favorite ploy of a thief is to conceal merchandise, food or equipment in the trash, throwing it in the dumpster and returning later to pick it up! Generally, this type of theft will occur just before a shift change or closing.

Institute random inspections of trash taken from the building. Check the dumpster area itself. Put the dumpster under lock and key and require the key be checked out and in. Restrict parking in or around the dumpster to force the thief to carry their loot further and thus increase their chance of being seen.

If your business is not a food service business, you might not be concerned about the relationship between the local health inspector, you and your door hardware. However. . .

If your company has an employee cafeteria, snack bar or restaurant, you'll come under the same scrutiny from the health inspector that a restaurant, food store, delicatessen or meat market would.

Food preparation or food service area doors will be required to have door closers and positive latching mechanisms on them. Rest room doors are required to have closers and code approved knobs, lever sets or push/pull hardware.

And, the health inspector may even examine your main (customer) entrances to make sure that the doors close within a designated time (generally five to seven seconds).

Like the fire marshal and building inspector, the health inspector has a code mandated interest in the doors and door hardware of your business.

There are dozens of reasons why your key may not turn the lock when you try to enter your business. Among them are misaligned doors, building settling, swelling or shrinking of the doors form heat and cold, miscut keys, improperly pinned lock cylinders, sagging door hinges, poor quality lock hardware are among the factors that might cause the key to turn "hard" and the lock to "drag". None of the above listed causes can be corrected by lubrication.

Yet, if you are like most people, and you encounter a situation where you have to force the key to turn, or "shake, rattle and kick the door", to get the lock to release, the first thing you will do when you get the door open is find some kind of lubricant to "oil" the lock.

I've know of folks using cooking oil, Pam, Crisco, motor oil, graphite, WD-40 and - in one instance - Lock-Tite! Unfortunately the remedies often caused more problems then they solved. Especially since the majority of lock problems are due to causes other then lubrication.

Newspaper accounts and police files are full of cases where an unsuspecting business person opened their office door or back door someone they couldn't see and wound up as a rob-bery statistic ... or worse.

Although you can refuse to open the door to someone you can't identify, or even hire an armed guard to protect your interests, neither idea is practical.

The easiest - and probably most economical - thing you can do to keep from winding up as a statistic in next years crime report; is to give yourself a means of visually identifying the person who is trying to enter your premises.

Electronic systems can be expensive, and often unaffordable for the small business owner, which precludes the use of sophisticated electronic surveillance cameras.

On the other hand, passive door viewers are viable and dependable door security device. They allow you to see out without being seen. They can be installed on most doors. And, depending on the type and style of door viewer that you choose - their installed cost is generally under a hundred dollars.

We can install a door viewer for you that will give you a better outlook on your security solutions.

You've probably seen dozens of keys that bear the inscription, "IT IS UNLAWFUL TO DUPLICATE THIS KEY". You might even carry a couple yourself. Now, I'll disabuse you of the warm and fuzzy feeling that legend might give you.

Unless you have a unique, proprietary or patented restricted key system, there are few enforceable laws to protect you from anyone indiscriminately duplicating one or more of the keys to your business, safe, night deposit box, home, automobile or office. Period!

Which brings up a couple of interesting questions. Do you truly know who has copies of the keys to your establishment? Are you comfortable with the fact that any employee might be able to easily obtain copies of keys to your company?

If you answered, "No" to either question, the chances are that you need a keying system that is unique to your firm and one that only you can authorize duplicate keys made. Such a system will give you absolute key control, which in turn will greatly reduce the risk of unauthorized persons accessing your premises with a key.

Although restricted key control systems may initially be more expensive then a conventional keying system, those costs are often offset by the fact that fewer rekeys are needed due to personnel changes. Better key control always equals better security. And ... better security is part of our Security Solutions package customized to your specific security needs.

Many business owners feel the easiest way to keep the thugs at bay is to install a heavy-duty deadbolt, locking bar, slide bolt or chain and padlock on the doors they feel are most vulnerable to attack.

Although the new lock just might prevent a future burglary, it could bring the business owner the unwanted attentions of the local fire marshal.

According to NFPA 101 - which are the minimum criteria that most jurisdictions use to base their Life Safety Codes on - putting a deadbolt, slide-bolt or other type of auxiliary - or secondary - locking device on the selected door would most likely be forbidden.

Therefore, if there is already an "approved " locking device on the door É even though you may feel the approved lock is inadequate to do the job you want it to. By putting another lock on the same door you may not only be a violation of your area's Life Safety Codes ... but could net you an unwanted fine!

The law, in most jurisdictions, requires that any person should be able to exit any commercial building in an unimpeded manner. Further, that law states that any designated fire exit (Virtually any door that permits egress from the building.) cannot have any lock, chain, bolt or device that requires a key or "any specialized knowledge" to operate - "even in the dark".

Call us to help you find good, solid, workable security solutions. Solutions that allow you to proactively protect your premises and the assets on those premises. Solutions that will not only keep the bad guys and gals out, but will keep the fire marshal, the health inspector and your wallet happy too!