The Arch Company is the UK’s largest small business landlord, serving thousands of business owners who make a unique and vital contribution to the UK economy.
It purchased Network Rail’s former commercial property estate in early 2019 and has a property portfolio of approximately 5,300 railway arches, business estates, former station buildings and other properties. It supports business communities that boost local economies, and security plays a pivotal role in helping to maintain and enhance the value of the property assets. Amulet partnered with The Arch Company to upgrade its security provision in 2020.
The challenge
Prior to our appointment, security across The Arch Company estate was heavily focused on manned guarding and mobile patrols across the most vulnerable sites within the vast portfolio. This reliance on manpower alone was proving costly and limited in terms of mitigating the risks to the entire estate. The client also recognised that this provision didn’t meet their vision of the estate. The Arch Company needed a security partner who would offer innovative solutions to control both risk and costs.
The solution
Our approach proposed an overhaul and reprioritisation of the security solution with data at the fore.
We produced an initial matrix where sites were prioritised by risk. The site risk level guides allowed us to allocate the correct level of security to each individual site. A balance of smart CCTV backed up by dedicated response allowed for a greater understanding of the situation on site and a move away from a reliance on site-based guarding.
With a detailed understanding of the properties and risks, we began to implement a solution that blends manned security and technology across the 10 highest-risk sites. The holistic approach balances security operatives, CCTV, access control, smart tech and remote
monitoring.
The Arch Company was involved in the process from inception to completion, providing invaluable support and guidance throughout.
This ensured that the security solution met four key objectives:
- Update the security to include the latest tech
- Better risk mitigation (reduce crime and support customers)
- Reduce the significant spend on manned guarding
- Help to increase asset value, delivering a more attractive proposition to future customers
The results
Our tech-driven and industry leading approach transformed the client’s security provision. We removed outdated security guarding and replaced it with a sophisticated, targeted approach that has significantly reduced the security risk, improved customers’ perception, and provided 5-year savings for The Arch Company.
The security solution works to deter incidents, improving the environment onsite by preventing damage and offering a sense of safety and reassurance to The Arch Company customers and the general public.
We have achieved a 30% reduction in crime and a 60% reduction in unauthorised music events across the sites. We have reduced graffiti, deterred trespassers and fly tipping and limited damage to sites which has led to a series of arrests.
The successful implementation of our security solution across the 10 highest-risk sites provided the blueprint to roll out across the wider portfolio.
Looking ahead
Continuous improvement is critical for an effective security provision. Context and risk profiles are constantly changing. Data-driven services allow our team to constantly refine and adjust their provision. A great example of this is the provision of “thermal patrols” across vacant units to detect heat spots inside the arches. These are carried out by vehicle mounted thermal cameras. This means we can detect potential cannabis farms and/or fire risks, as well as any unusual activity inside a vacant unit.
Specifically built “in arch” alarms have proved extremely useful in monitoring for any illegal intrusion, but the addition of sensors detecting heat, smoke and water add extra protection and raise early warnings to prevent and limit any potential damage.
Our team collects data on local area and site-specific behaviour and trends. As well as using it to inform our provision, we share this data with The Arch Company via advisory incident updates, as increasing awareness of relevant threats and promoting vigilance further reduces crime.
We believe that security extends beyond the border of our own premises and work consistently to support our clients and the local community, so we can contribute to a safer built environment for everyone.