Commercial property owners and managers are always challenged with tough decisions, especially when it comes to balancing access and security. How do you make the property as safe and secure as possible while also improving efficiency? If the property sees dozens or hundreds of customers a day, then security can be trickier, particularly when it comes to the types of commercial locks you are using.
Once you’ve done some research and made the decision on which devices to go with, your next challenge is to maintain the safety and security of the property. Every year, property owners or managers have to make decisions on whether to rekey, completely switch out, or leave commercial locks as is. If you are uncertain on what route you should take, consider asking yourself these questions:
- How old are they? The first question you need to ask yourself when making this decision is how old and in what condition are the current locks? If they are older or look worn out, rekeying may not be the best option. For old and worn commercial locks, you should consider replacing them with brand new ones, especially if the technology and security measures have been vastly improved since they were first installed.
- Do former owners/employees have keys? This is another important question you should ask yourself. If you have recently purchased the property, you need to check with the previous owner and find out who all have keys. However, there’s no way to know for certain, especially with commercial properties. There also may be former employees of your own with keys that you don’t want to have access to your property. That’s why changing or rekeying locks is highly recommended if this is the case. Some businesses change or rekey commercial locks every six to twelve months for security measures.
- Did you recently purchase the property? This decision comes into play based on how long you’ve owned the property. If you recently purchased it, then completely switching out the locks is again, highly recommended. However, if you’ve owned the property for at least a year and the current commercial locks are relatively new and in good condition, then rekeying is the most economical and practical option.
- How many locks are there on the property? This is another thing to consider, especially from a cost standpoint. Homeowners may be happy to just change out the locks on their property because there are only three or four to do. On the other hand, commercial property owners may have dozens of locks that they need to replace which makes rekeying a much more economical option.
Another thing to consider with this decision is your insurance company. Your business has insurance and part of those premium costs are based on how secure the property is. Upgrading your security and then reinforcing those measures is essential to the safety of your property and its valuables. How many hundreds of thousands of dollars or even millions of dollars do you have in your warehouse? How many years of important data is on the computers in your office? Rekeying is a practical and efficient way to improve the safety of these and other items every year while doing it at an affordable rate.
At Silver Eagle Locksmith, we take pride in making sure that you get the best guidance and service possible. Our dedicated team utilizes years of industry experience to give you the best options regarding commercial locks. Feel free to contact our team today for further assistance.
