Lay out your warehouse for security: how your warehouse layout can deter inventory theft, pilferage, and shrinkage

1: Trash Dumpsters and other Containers

It's a poor idea to place a dumpster or other bins, large containers, scrap vessels, or cans near an accessible door. They can become ideal places for thieves to stow stolen inventory for later pickup and removal to cars. If you cannot position your dumpster in a way that discourages thievery, consider making it lockable so that access is difficult to unauthorized personnel, searching it frequently, and letting people know it is monitored.

2: Total number of Doors

This warehouse has far too many doors. There should only be one that is open, and there should be a guard or other employee in charge of watching this door. If fire regulations require more than one door, use bars that set off an alarm if the doors are opened. You can secure these doors with equipment such as folding security gates or man-trap cages if they are already in your facility (but be certain to follow all local fire codes).

3: Staging Area

This staging area may be too close to the loading docks. If no one is around to keep an eye out, it would be easy to take something and put it in a truck.

4:Shipping and Receiving Doors

The receiving dock and the shipping dock are too close together, and there is no barrier between them. It would be easy to take things from one truck and put them into another. Erect a barrier between the doors if they are in place already with easy cross-access between them.

5: Employee Parking Lot

This parking area is too accessible to a employees who might steal inventory. The door is very close to the parking lot, making it easy to take things from the warehouse out to cars. It's best to have parking separated by a comfortable distance from the warehouse doors, making it more difficult to transport pilfered items. Best case scenario is to have a fence separating the warehouse from the parking lot, as well.

6: Trucker's Lounge, Break Room, etc.

To get to this lounge area, the truckers have to walk all through the warehouse. Look at the tracks (light blue arrows) to see where they might walk. Everything along these routes is at risk. It is important to restrict movement in your warehouse. Don't let people just go wherever they want. If possible, lay out your warehouse to move visitors or guests to a lounge area without any access to inventory. If not, strictly instruct them on where they are expected to walk through your facility (and make sure they stick to it). Consider "man trap" dock area cages that let you admit truckers and other visitors at your convenience, within your restrictions.

7: Restroom Location

This is a bad spot for the restroom. To reach it, the truckers have to walk through the warehouse. This puts your goods at risk of being stolen. Just because people are dropping off or picking up shipments doesn't mean they are free to wander around. It's best to keep unauthorized people out of the warehouse, or within a strictly limited path if they must be inside. There is usually no reason for someone other than your employees to be in your shelving or storage racks with access to stored items.

8: Bushes and Foliage

Bushes, shrubbery, and foliage are a good hiding spot for things stolen out of the warehouse, especially when they are near a door. Remove the bushes or lock the doors to curtail this avenue for thieves.

This article originally appeared at Rutgers University's Crime Prevention Website, and is presented here as a public service to our readers.